Toyota Gazoo Racing set for Bahrain finale
Toyota Gazoo Racing complete their 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) season this week with the eighth and final round, the 8 Hours of Bahrain on Saturday (8 November).
Following seven rounds across four continents and 64 hours of racing, the stage is set for a day-night showdown in Bahrain, which is hosting the WEC for the 14th time. The team travel to the Gulf state determined to end a difficult season on a high note.
In the team’s home race at Fuji Speedway last time out, Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries challenged at the front in their No7 GR010 Hybrid until misfortune intervened. They will resume the fight for the team’s first podium of the year in Bahrain.
Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa won the race in Bahrain a year ago. This season they aim to bounce back after a disappointing Fuji race, which effectively ended in the opening minutes when their No8 GR010 Hybrid was hit by another Hypercar.
A year ago, Bahrain International Circuit witnessed a spectacular conclusion to the 2024 manufacturers’ World Championship when the team’s 10th victory secured the crown for a record sixth consecutive season. The 3.36-mile circuit has suited the GR010 Hybrids in recent years. The No7 car’s retirement last year ended a run of four consecutive one-two Hypercar finishes – six when including results from its predecessor, the TS050 Hybrid.
Track action gets underway on Thursday with two free practice sessions, the first in daytime conditions and the second running at night. On Friday at 4.40pm local time (1.40pm GMT), the final qualifying of the season will decide the grid for Saturday’s race, which starts at 2pm local time (11am GMT).
The annual WEC Rookie Test takes place on Sunday, when Ben Barnicoat and Sacha Fenestraz will drive a GR010 Hybrid as part of Toyota Gazoo Racing’s commitment to offering opportunities to new drivers. Barnicoat, an IMSA champion at the wheel of a Lexus RC F GT3, participated in the Rookie Test in 2024 while Fenestraz will make his Hypercar debut. He is competing in Super Formula with Vantelin Team TOM’S, and is currently fifth in the Super GT standings this season for TGR Team SARD.
Team quotes
Kamui Kobayashi (Team Principal and driver, car No7): “It’s been a challenging year for the whole team, but we want to end it with a positive result in Bahrain. We have some great memories of races there and our car has worked well on this track in the past. We’ll see if that’s the case again this year, but we will be pushing until the final laps to stand on the podium again.”
Mike Conway (driver, car No7): “It was great at Fuji to be in the podium fight at one stage; that’s where we want to be racing. Unfortunately, circumstances didn’t help us, and we couldn’t finish on the podium, but we will take encouragement from that experience going into Bahrain. It’s the last race of the year so obviously we all want to end it on a positive note.”
Nyck de Vries (driver, car No7): “I enjoy racing in Bahrain; it’s a fun circuit. This is our last chance this season to finish on the podium and we’re all motivated to do that. We know it will not be easy, and we will need to execute a perfect race, but we’re ready for the challenge. The competition in Hypercar will be tough as always and I’m looking forward to it.”
Sébastien Buemi (driver, car No8): “Bahrain is a special place for me and for the team, and I very much enjoy racing there. We’ve had so much success at this track in the past, but last year was particularly memorable. To fight back to win the race and the World Championship was an amazing feeling. I know it will be difficult to repeat that victory this year, but we will all fight hard to finish the season strongly.”
Brendon Hartley (driver, car No8): “Fuji didn’t go our way. We expect a big fight in Bahrain as well, because it’s the end of the season and there’s a lot to fight for in the World Championship. The competition will be intense again, but we’re looking forward to it. We need to focus on keeping it clean, maximising what we have, and hopefully we can come away with a good result.”
Ryo Hirakawa (driver, car No8): “Everyone in the team has worked so hard this year, but it’s been difficult, and the results have not been what we wanted. So, let’s push one last time to get a good result. I like racing in Bahrain, and our car has gone well there, so I hope this will be the case again next week. Of course, the competition is very strong, and a podium will not be easy, but we will keep fighting.”
ENDS
