Tough Texas trip for Toyota Gazoo Racing
Toyota Gazoo Racing battled through a wet and wild Lone Star Le Mans at the Circuit of the Americas in Austin, Texas on Sunday. Heavy rain created challenging conditions during an incident-packed sixth round of the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC).
The No8 GR010 Hybrid of Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa fought hard to score points in ninth. José María López, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries suffered an off-track incident and finished 14th in their No7 GR010 Hybrid.
In a race featuring multiple safety car sessions and a slippery track, drivers were tested to the limit in front of a weekend crowd of more than 66,000 fans who braved the weather to give their support throughout the dramatic six-hour contest.
Spectators and teams had to be patient for nearly two hours before racing could begin – including an hour behind the safety car and a red flag period – with Hartley starting seventh in the No8 and de Vries 17th in the No7. Hartley dropped to 10th while de Vries moved up to 13th before another safety car a few laps later.
When racing resumed, de Vries continued his charge and passed several rivals to break into the top 10. At the first driver changes just before half distance, during another safety car period, López took over the No7 in eighth. Hartley had two off-track moments before Hirakawa started his stint in 11th.
Conditions deteriorated as the rain intensified, triggering incidents throughout the field when the race went green. Hirakawa was pushed into a spin by an LMGT3 car, but he fought back from 15th to 11th before handing over to Buemi late in the fourth hour. A dramatic stint for the No7 ended with López stuck in the turn 13 gravel after two earlier spins. He was recovered under a safety car, before Kobayashi took the wheel in 17th.
The race was green again only briefly before yet another safety car. Buemi then moved up to eighth heading into the final 90 minutes, although he lost a position to the recovering No83 Ferrari. The track began to dry inside the final half hour, prompting Kobayashi to change to slick tyres but he suffered a harmless spin soon after.
Buemi kept it clean through the final minutes to take the flag in ninth, with Kobayashi finishing 14th, four laps down. The team now turn their focus to achieving a stronger result at their home race, the 6 Hours of Fuji, on 28 September.
Team quotes
Kamui Kobayashi (Team Principal and driver, car No7): “It was a tough day for us. We were running eighth for a while, but we knew that with our pace we could not achieve much better. Obviously when we had a chance after we got stuck in the gravel and could only bring the car home. It’s been a hard week for us. The next race is Fuji, so it’s a big one for us and we want to come back stronger.”
José María López (driver, car No7): “It was not easy on either side of the garage and we struggled with the conditions. We just couldn’t find grip with the car. It was not the race I wanted but I have no regrets. Racing in those conditions after a year out of the car was extremely difficult. But these experiences only make us stronger, and the team will bounce back, I’m sure.”
Nyck de Vries (driver, car No7): “We faced extremely difficult conditions and tough circumstances. We started from the back, and we had a pretty good first part of the race before a few incidents. Ultimately, we were just lacking pace, and we couldn’t fight at the front. We need to try to recover and reach a good performance level again because we have not been competitive enough here.”
Sébastien Buemi (driver, car No8): “The weather was really tough out there, not only for the drivers, but for everyone. Thanks to the fans for staying and supporting us despite the conditions. We didn’t get the result we wanted although we gave it everything. We couldn’t fight with the leading cars today and we want to improve this for the rest of the season, particularly the next race in Japan.”
Brendon Hartley (driver, car No8): “It was a very tough day. We didn’t have the pace to compete at the front, even though the whole team pushed really hard to extract the maximum from our car. We had no real issues, but we could not challenge further up the field. It was a character-building day, but we are going to fight back as hard as we can to get a good result in our home race.”
Ryo Hirakawa (driver, car No8): “We did our best, but it was not our day. The conditions were very challenging for everyone. Now we look to the next one, because it is our home race. So, we have to do our best to prepare well and come back stronger. The last two races have been very challenging, but I hope we can deliver a much better result in Fuji.”
Lone Star Le Mans – Race
1st 6 Porsche Penske (Estre/Vanthoor/Campbell) 120 laps
2nd 50 Ferrari AF Corse (Fuoco/Nielsen/Molina) +8.625secs
3rd 94 Peugeot TotalEnergies (Duval/Jakobsen/Vandoorne)+9.541secs
4th 93 Peugeot TotalEnergies (Di Resta/Jensen/Vergne) +15.149secs
5th 51 Ferrari AF Corse (Pier Guidi/Calado/Giovinazzi) +22.619secs
6th 38 Cadillac Team JOTA (Bamber/Bourdais/Button) +42.517secs
9th 8 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing +1min 14.615secs
14th 7 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing +4 laps
ENDS
