WEC Rookie Test - TOYOTA GAZOO Racing back in Bahrain action 13.11.2022: TOYOTA GAZOO Racing returned to action in Bahrain just hours after completing an FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) title double, officially ending the 2022 season with the traditional rookie test day. Since 2015, WEC organisers have nominated

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing returned to action in Bahrain just hours after completing an FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) title double, officially ending the 2022 season with the traditional rookie test day.
 


Since 2015, WEC organisers have nominated the most promising young drivers to take part in the test and this year Lilou Wadoux made history by becoming the first female Hypercar driver when she drove the Le Mans and world title-winning GR010 HYBRID.
 
 
 
Lilou, 21, has impressed in the highly-competitive LMP2 category, driving for Richard Mille Racing Team in her first year of international endurance racing. For the first three WEC races of the season, Lilou drove alongside Sébastien Ogier, who participated in the 2021 rookie test at the wheel of a GR010 HYBRID.
 


She took the wheel of the #8 GR010 HYBRID, which on Saturday earned second place in the 8 Hours of Bahrain to secure the World Championship for Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa.
 


Lilou herself finished eighth in the LMP2 class in that race, so was very familiar with the demands of the 5.412km Bahrain International Circuit. She adjusted to the different demands of a hybrid Hypercar during initial installation laps before completing stints of six, 12 and 13 laps. In total she completed 33 laps, all in the morning.
 


The team used the opportunity of a convenient test day to clock up more laps and analyse different settings. José María López followed a programme of comparison testing in the #7 car, completing a total of 120 laps over the five hours. The team elected not to run the #8 GR010 HYBRID in the afternoon session.
 


Lilou Wadoux (Official WEC Hypercar Rookie): “It was a very good experience. The speed of the GR010 HYBRID was impressive and the hybrid boost was very nice; it felt good to experience that for the first time on my first lap. For sure, it is very different to an LMP2 car because it’s heavier and different to drive.


I learned a lot during this test, particularly with the hybrid system which is very new for me and takes time to adjust to. It has been a nice experience, so thanks to the team and to WEC for giving me this opportunity. It was a dream for me to drive a car like this and I would love to race a Hypercar in the future. It’s nice to be the first woman to drive a Hypercar but I hope there will be more.”
 




WEC Rookie Test - Morning Session

1st #7 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing                                           1min 48.812secs      38 laps
2nd #94 Peugeot TotalEnergies (Müller/Jakobsen/Ehrlacher)    +0.788secs                 38 laps
3rd #93 Peugeot TotalEnergies (Günther/Jensen)                    +1.015secs                 41 laps
4th #8 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing                                           +2.141secs               35 laps
5th #22 United Autosports USA (Schneider/Piquet/Meyrick)      +3.110secs                 42 laps
6th #83 AF Corse (Fuoco/Buguslavskiy)                                  +3.504secs                 21 laps
 



WEC Rookie Test - Afternoon Session

1st  #36 Alpine Elf Team (Vaxiviere)                                       1min 49.769secs         47 laps
2nd #7 TOYOTA GAZOO Racing                                           +0.170secs              82 laps
3rd #93 Peugeot TotalEnergies (Günther/Jensen)                     +0.338secs                69 laps  
4th #94 Peugeot TotalEnergies (Müller/Jakobsen/Ehrlacher)      +0.453secs                74 laps
5th #9 Prema Orlen Team (Correa/Viscaal)                              +2.875secs                29 laps
6th #23 United Autosports USA (Shahin/Patterson)                  +3.267secs                49 laps
 


Thomas Heidbrink, photos Toyota