WEC – Kazuki Nakajima: “I really had to attack”

What can we learn from qualifying for the 6 Hours of Silverstone, the opening round of the world championship?Endurance ? Of the three manufacturers present in LM P1, none really managed to make a difference. If Toyota took pole position thanks to a time, on the average of the four laps, of 1'42"774, the Audi R18 e-tron quattro n°1 and the Porsche 919 Hybrid n°14 are respectively only 0”005 and 0”313 behind.

“It’s really tight, admits moreover Kazuki Nakajima, responsible for qualifying the #7 Toyota with Alexander Wurz. I really had to push on my last lap to set this time. And all the more so since my tires had already covered six or seven loops. I must also thank Alex, because he preserved the tires well, which allowed me to have grip until the end of the session. I really benefited from a good lap where everything aligned well with the traffic. I'm happy that the work paid off. We will push hard tomorrow. »

An ambition that is obviously shared by his teammates Stéphane Sarrazin and Alexander Wurz, the Austrian adding: “We are now focused on the race, that's where we pocket the points. »

Handicapped by a supercapacitor change this morning, the No. 040 Toyota TS8 Hybrid of the trio Sébastien Buemi-Anthony Davidson-Nicolas lapierre for his part signed the 5th best time, 0 from pole position. Davidson positive however, rejoicing to note that “the TS040 is on pace. Our car was not as good due to the problem we encountered this morning. I showed up at the start of qualifying having not driven since yesterday morning (first free practice session. Editor’s note). The track has evolved a lot, just like the car. » “The performance is there”, concludes Nicolas Lapierre.