Toyota Back on Track at the Nürburgring

Toyota Gazoo Racing will put the disappointment of the Le Mans 24 Hours behind them with a return to World Endurance Championship action in the 6 Hours of Nürburgring this weekend.

There is everything still to play for in both the drivers’ and manufacturers’ title races and the team will be hoping to prevail at a circuit that’s just 56 miles from their base in Cologne, Germany. Toyota trails Porsche by 32.5 points in the manufacturers’ standings, while the No8 Toyota TS050 Hybrid crew of Sebastien Buemi, Anthony Davidson and Kazuki Nakajima are second in the driver’s rankings, having won two of the season’s three races so far.

The No7 car will revert to its familiar driver line-up, with José María López rejoining Mike Conway and Kamui Kobayashi for the remainder of the season, following his move to a third Toyota at Le Mans.

The target is a podium finish for both Toyotas and an end to a success drought at the circuit since it joined the WEC calendar two years ago.

Davidson is eager for a result to support a reinvigorated push for the championship. He said: “The target for us now is clearly the World Championship. We are a little behind after Le Mans but there are six races left so we have a good chance and our car is clearly quick as we have shown already. I really enjoy the Nürburgring, which is much tighter than Le Mans and quite tricky. It’s also a traditional track with a great atmosphere and enthusiastic fans.”

The Nürburgring’s grand prix circuit presents a technical challenge, with many low and medium speed corners. This means the team will return to a high-downforce aerodynamic package, sacrificing top speed in order to gain more cornering grip.

The action starts with practice sessions on Friday, followed by qualifying on Saturday. The race will get under way at 1pm local time on Sunday (noon UK time).