Kobayashi: “After Le Mans, winning at Fuji is our second priority”

As a symbol, it is Kamui Kobayashi, the Team Principal of Toyota Gazoo Racing, who took pole position at his team's home race, the 6 Hours of Fuji. For the first appearance of the Japanese Hypercar in front of its public, the Japanese got the better of his teammate Brendon Hartley for only 0.020 seconds.

Kobayashi: “A great feeling”

“It's a great feeling to be in pole position on our national circuit, rejoiced Kamui Kobayashi. My lap could have been a little better, but it was enough. Our GR010 Hybrid is fast here and we showed that performance in qualifying, so I'm very happy. After Le Mans, winning at Fuji Speedway is our second priority and the team has worked hard behind the scenes to put us in this position. It was a big challenge to come here for the first time with the Hypercar, thank you everyone for their efforts. The fans have been amazing so far this week and we're expecting lots more spectators and guests tomorrow. We will do our best to win so we can celebrate with them. »

Kamui Kobayashi and Toyota are playing at home for the first time since 2019, the previous editions having been canceled due to the pandemic. Owned by the Japanese structure since 2005, the Fuji Speedway is located around twenty kilometers from the manufacturer's technical center, based in Higashi-Fuji, where the hybrid powertrain of the GR010 is designed, developed and built. “It’s a very important race for us, explained his teammate in the sister car, Sébastien Buemi, triple winner on this route (2014, 2017, 2019), to AUTOhebdo. It's the home race for the team, so it's important to perform well. The engine factory is only a few kilometers from the circuit, so we have quite a few employees who come. We want to be competitive here. »

Dominant during all sessions, the Toyota GR010 hybrids will be the big favorites at the start of the race, this Sunday at 4 a.m. (in France).

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