Anniversary victory at the WEC season opener
A perfect start for Toyota: At the season opener of the FIA World Endurance Championship in Imola, the Japanese manufacturer celebrated a special victory. In its 100th race in the series, it also secured its 50th win—following a fierce battle with host team Ferrari.
In front of more than 90,000 spectators, an exciting six-hour race unfolded at the Autodromo Internazionale Enzo e Dino Ferrari. Ferrari got off to a better start and took the lead early on, but Toyota countered later in the race with a clever strategy.
Thanks to tactical decisions during pit stops—particularly regarding tire management—Toyota managed to take the lead and defend it all the way to the finish line. In the end, the trio of Brendon Hartley, Ryō Hirakawa, and Sébastien Buemi prevailed with a lead of just over 13 seconds.
Ferrari had to settle for second place in its home race. The team led by James Calado, Antonio Giovinazzi, and Alessandro Pier Guidi was locked in a tight battle with Toyota, particularly in the second half of the race, but was unable to reclaim the lead.
The second Toyota car, driven by Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Conway, and Nyck de Vries, secured the final podium spot.
Behind the top three, Alpine and BMW also put in solid performances, but narrowly missed out on the podium.
BMW Celebrates Class Victory in LMGT3
The weekend was also a success for BMW: In the LMGT3 class, Team WRT came out on top with the BMW M4 GT3 EVO. The driver trio made a strong debut and also benefited from technical issues experienced by their competitors in the final stages.
A second BMW vehicle rounded out the strong team performance with another top-five finish. In the Hypercar class as well, the BMW M Hybrid V8 delivered a competitive performance and worked its way up the field during the race.
An exciting start to the season with a promising outlook
The race at Imola featured thrilling battles throughout, a variety of strategies, and several twists in the standings. In particular, the tactical differences during the pit stops played a decisive role in the battle for victory.
Following this intense start, attention is already turning to the next race in the World Endurance Championship, which will take place at Spa-Francorchamps in early May.