Le Mans test day: Toyota leads Alpine in opening session
Toyota led the way in the opening session of the Le Mans 24 Hours test day in which the three manufacturers in the Hypercar class were covered by less than a second.
Brendon Hartley sat at the top of the timesheets after the first four hours of running at the official test, which leads into Le Mans 24 Hours race week, with a 3m31.263s in the #8 Toyota GR010 Hybrid Le Mans Hypercar.
His time eclipsed the 3m31.519s from Nicolas Lapierre in the Alpine-Gibson A480 grandfathered LMP1 car.
Mike Conway made a late improvement in the #7 Toyota to go third courtesy of a 3m31.852s.
Olivier Pla was fourth fastest around the 8.47-mile Circuit de la Sarthe in the best of the two Glickenhaus 007 LMHs on a 3m31.920s, which had briefly topped the times.
The #709 Glickenhaus was only 19th overall, nearly five seconds off the pace and behind 14 LMP2s, after completing 14 laps in the session.
The fastest times were already close to the 3m30s race lap time target for the LMH category introduced for this year's FIA World Endurance Championship despite a 'green' circuit, which will become quicker in the lead-up to the race next weekend.
That partially reflects the increase in power allowed to the cars running in the Hypercar division. The power level for LMH machinery was originally set at 500kW or 670bhp for Le Mans, but 520kW or 697bhp for regular WEC races.
#36 Alpine Elf Matmut Alpine A480 - Gibson Hypercar, André Negrão, Nicolas Lapierre, Matthieu Vaxiviere
Photo by: Rainier Ehrhardt
#708 Glickenhaus Racing Glickenhaus 007 LMH Hypercar, Luis Felipe Derani, Franck Mailleux, Olivier Pla
Photo by: Rainier Ehrhardt
The increase to the higher level for Le Mans reflects a desire by the rule makers, the FIA and the Automobile Club de l'Ouest, to increase the gap between the cars in the Hypercars class and the LMP2 prototypes.
Best of the LMP2 field was the #23 United Autosports Oreca 07 with Paul di Resta at the wheel. His 3m33.038s was nearly five seconds slower than the P2 test day best from 2019 (there was no test day last year), which reflects efforts to slow the class for this season with the arrival of LMH.
Phil Hanson made it a United one-two at the head of a P2 times with a 3m33.428s in the second of the British team's three Orecas.
The Belgian WRT squad took third position on its first appearance on the Circuit de la Sarthe with a 3m24.167s from Yifei Ye in the quickest of the team's pair of Orecas.
Oliver Jarvis's 3m34.577s put the Risi Competizione Oreca fourth in P2 ahead of the #28 JOTA machine of Sean Gelael in fifth.
Kevin Estre was quickest for Porsche in GTE Pro with a 3m32.901s aboard the best of the Manthey-run factory 911 RSR-19s. He ended up nearly eight tenths up on the sister car in which Gianmaria Bruni posted a 3m52.904s.
Ferrari's lead AF Corse-run 488 GTE Evo took third in the hands of James Calado with a 3m53.844s.
The best Chevrolet Corvette time was set by Nick Tandy. His 3m55.580s aboard the #64 C8.R put him fifth in class behind the second of the works Ferraris of Daniel Serra.
Marcos Gomes jumped to the top of the GTE Am times right at the end of the session with a 3m55.710s in the NorthWest AMR Aston Martin Vantage GTE. He pipped Alessio Picariello in the Proton-run Absolute Racing Porsche 911 RSR-19 by just over a tenth.
The opening session was interrupted by three short red-flag stoppages.
Five hours of running concluding at 7:00pm local time are scheduled for the afternoon of the test day.
Morning testing times:
Pos. | # | Class | Team | Car | Time |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 8 | Hypercar | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING |
Toyota GR010 HYBRID
|
3:31.263 |
2 | 36 | Hypercar | ALPINE ELF MATMUT |
Alpine A480 - Gibson
|
3:31.519 |
3 | 7 | Hypercar | TOYOTA GAZOO RACING |
Toyota GR010 HYBRID
|
3:31.852 |
4 | 708 | Hypercar | GLICKENHAUS RACING |
Glickenhaus 007 LMH
|
3:31.920 |
5 | 23 | LM P2 | UNITED AUTOSPORTS |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:33.038 |
6 | 22 | LM P2 | UNITED AUTOSPORTS USA |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:33.428 |
7 | 41 | LM P2 | TEAM WRT |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:34.167 |
8 | 82 | LM P2 | RISI COMPETIZIONE |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:34.577 |
9 | 28 | LM P2 | JOTA |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:34.734 |
10 | 48 | LM P2 | IDEC SPORT |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:34.807 |
11 | 29 | LM P2 | RACING TEAM NEDERLAND |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:34.878 |
12 | 70 | LM P2 | REALTEAM RACING |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:35.004 |
13 | 65 | LM P2 | PANIS RACING |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:35.196 |
14 | 34 | LM P2 | INTER EUROPOL COMPETITION |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:35.360 |
15 | 21 | LM P2 | DRAGONSPEED USA |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:35.412 |
16 | 24 | LM P2 P/A | PR1 MOTORSPORTS MATHIASEN |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:35.413 |
17 | 32 | LM P2 | UNITED AUTOSPORTS |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:35.777 |
18 | 25 | LM P2 P/A | G-DRIVE RACING |
Aurus 01 - Gibson
|
3:36.088 |
19 | 709 | Hypercar | GLICKENHAUS RACING |
Glickenhaus 007 LMH
|
3:36.113 |
20 | 30 | LM P2 | DUQUEINE TEAM |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:36.196 |
21 | 1 | LM P2 | RICHARD MILLE RACING TEAM |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:36.480 |
22 | 38 | LM P2 | JOTA |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:36.554 |
23 | 31 | LM P2 | TEAM WRT |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:36.571 |
24 | 49 | LM P2 P/A | HIGH CLASS RACING |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:36.753 |
25 | 26 | LM P2 | G-DRIVE RACING |
Aurus 01 - Gibson
|
3:36.928 |
26 | 39 | LM P2 P/A | SO24-DIROB BY GRAFF |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:37.489 |
27 | 17 | LM P2 P/A | IDEC SPORT |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:38.095 |
28 | 20 | LM P2 | HIGH CLASS RACING |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:38.891 |
29 | 44 | LM P2 | ARC BRATISLAVA |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:40.733 |
30 | 74 | LM P2 P/A | RACING TEAM INDIA EURASIA |
Ligier JS P217 - Gibson
|
3:41.848 |
31 | 84 | CDNT | ASSOCIATION SRT41 |
Oreca 07 - Gibson
|
3:42.145 |
32 | 92 | LM GTE Pro | PORSCHE GT TEAM |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:52.901 |
33 | 91 | LM GTE Pro | PORSCHE GT TEAM |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:52.904 |
34 | 51 | LM GTE Pro | AF CORSE |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:53.844 |
35 | 52 | LM GTE Pro | AF CORSE |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:54.466 |
36 | 64 | LM GTE Pro | CORVETTE RACING |
Chevrolet Corvette C8.R
|
3:55.580 |
37 | 95 | LM GTE Am | ASTON MARTIN RACING |
Aston Martin Vantage AMR
|
3:55.710 |
38 | 79 | LM GTE Pro | WEATHERTECH RACING |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:55.751 |
39 | 18 | LM GTE Am | ABSOLUTE RACING |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:55.841 |
40 | 63 | LM GTE Pro | CORVETTE RACING |
Chevrolet Corvette C8.R
|
3:55.932 |
41 | 88 | LM GTE Am | DEMPSEY - PROTON RACING |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:56.494 |
42 | 777 | LM GTE Am | D'STATION RACING |
Aston Martin Vantage AMR
|
3:56.945 |
43 | 72 | LM GTE Pro | HUB AUTO RACING |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:56.998 |
44 | 54 | LM GTE Am | AF CORSE |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:57.223 |
45 | 80 | LM GTE Am | IRON LYNX |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:57.223 |
46 | 47 | LM GTE Am | CETILAR RACING |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:57.232 |
47 | 56 | LM GTE Am | TEAM PROJECT 1 |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:57.336 |
48 | 60 | LM GTE Am | IRON LYNX |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:57.406 |
49 | 99 | LM GTE Am | PROTON COMPETITION |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:57.722 |
50 | 388 | LM GTE Am | RINALDI RACING |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:57.737 |
51 | 33 | LM GTE Am | TF SPORT |
Aston Martin Vantage AMR
|
3:57.750 |
52 | 77 | LM GTE Am | DEMPSEY - PROTON RACING |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:57.919 |
53 | 86 | LM GTE Am | GR RACING |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:58.001 |
54 | 83 | LM GTE Am | AF CORSE |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:58.102 |
55 | 57 | LM GTE Am | KESSEL RACING |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:58.299 |
56 | 85 | LM GTE Am | IRON LYNX |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:58.476 |
57 | 71 | LM GTE Am | INCEPTION RACING |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:58.542 |
58 | 95 | LM GTE Am | TF SPORT |
Aston Martin Vantage AMR
|
3:59.023 |
59 | 55 | LM GTE Am | SPIRIT OF RACE |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
3:59.165 |
60 | 46 | LM GTE Am | TEAM PROJECT 1 |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
3:59.364 |
61 | 66 | LM GTE Am | JMW MOTORSPORT |
Ferrari 488 GTE Evo
|
4:00.264 |
62 | 69 | LM GTE Am | HERBERTH MOTORSPORT |
Porsche 911 RSR - 19
|
4:04.130 |
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