Toyota to give Le Mans-spec car Spa race debut

Team director Rob Leupen said that the additional car entered for Le Mans would run in the low-downforce configuration launched at Monza at the second round of the WEC in Belgium on May 6. 

Its two regular WEC entries will compete at Spa in high-downforce trim.

“With the extra entry, we will put a low-downforce car out at Spa, which will be the third car,” said Leupen. “We want to improve on the preparation we have had for Le Mans in previous years."

Leupen confirmed that Toyota would race at Silverstone with its high-downforce aero package. 

“We are committed to the WEC and to run a low-downforce car at Silverstone does not make any sense,” he explained. 

Toyota has launched its 2017 WEC programme with its latest TS050 in Le Mans trim and will run two cars in that spec during this weekend’s official pre-season test at Monza. 

Technical director Pascal Vasselon explained that it made sense to test in Le Mans trim at a track with the characteristics of Monza and because development of this version of the TS050 Hybrid was behind that of the high-downforce variant.

Porsche has also unveiled it 2017 919 Hybrid in low-downforce configuration, but has yet to announce what specification it will run at the either of the two pre-Le Mans WEC rounds at Silverstone and Spa.

New rules limiting each manufacturer to two aero packages a season means there is little scope for development once the configuration of each kit is homologated prior to its first race.