Toyota is back with two podium seats at Le Mans

WECHyperCar

Jun 14

Sixth victory for Toyota at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, but this time against fierce competition. Starting from P14 and P15 on the grid, Toyota made the right strategy and a faultless race to clinch P1 and P3.

The right strategy and a faultless race

Key to win the 24 Hours of Le Mans is a faultless race. Beyond making the right call by pitting both cars early in the first hour, both Toyota TR010 suffered only an early puncture and FIA sensor default on the winning car #7, a problem with a brake drum mounting repair on the front left brake system of the #8. Add to the reliable TR010, no errors by the team and the six drivers (except for one drive through penalty) and you get the right elements to win a highly competitive 24 Hours of Le Mans race. Definitively the most competitive considering the number of manufacturers that were leading the race and had a real potential to win.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Le Mans 2026. Sunday late morning pit stop for #7 Toyota.

Conway, de Vries and Kobayashi win in Toyota #7

Despite starting from modest grid positions after a disappointing Hyperpole, the TR010 HYBRIDs used aggressive early strategy to refuel earlier than their rivals and taking advantage of a clear track to gain time. That brought both cars into contention for the top six, and the showed exceptional pace – setting new fastest laps – but setbacks interrupted their progress.

The #7 TR010 HYBRID suffered an early puncture which left it in a tight midfield battle. But relentless speed, particularly in the morning hours, brought it into the top three with six hours remaining.

Toyota #7 — 📷 © Luc Warnotte at Le Mans 2026. #7 Toyota TR010 Hybrid

Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries completed a nerve-wracking win by just 10.913secs after 381 laps of relentless competition in their #7 TR010 HYBRID.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Le Mans 2026. Nyck de Vries takes over from Kamui Kobayashi.

Kamui Kobayashi (Team Principal and driver, car #7): “It was very challenging for us, but we never gave up. Car #7 has had a lot of second places at Le Mans but finally we got our second win. We have waited so long for this victory and it feels amazing. The whole week was not easy, including the race which was not smooth. We had a puncture early and that made it tough for us. But Mike, Nyck, our engineers and our pit crew did a great job. It was an incredible day. Thank you to everyone who made it happen, including all the fans who make this such a special event.”

Nyck de Vries (Driver, car #7): “I am incredibly grateful, relieved and happy to win Le Mans. This is my first time to win here, so I’m delighted. It's been a long journey this week and during the race as well. We had various setbacks and challenges to overcome and, frankly speaking, at times I thought we were out of contention. But it just shows that you can never give up. It all came together and I’m so thankful for all the work the team has done to achieve this incredible milestone.”

Mike Conway (Driver, car #7): “It was a crazy race. I knew we could move forward from our qualifying position, but I just didn't know how far, or how tight the battle would be. Positions were swapping back and forth, and it wasn't until the last couple of hours that we felt we were in with a chance. It has been an amazing job by everyone in the team. Kamui and Nyck were super-fast, they really got us into the fight at the front when it mattered, and credit to the pit crew because they were faultless. Thank you to everyone who has supported us, everyone in Cologne, Higashi-Fuji and at Toyota. This one is really special.”

#20 BMW M Hybrid V8 second

The thrilling fight ended with a fantastic second-pace finish, with the #20 BMW M Hybrid V8 of Robin Frijns, René Rast and Sheldon van der Linde. The result crowns a remarkable run of form for the Belgian team, securing a fourth consecutive podium for the Hypercar programme after podium finishes in IMSA at Laguna Seca and Detroit and a maiden FIA WEC victory at the 6 Hours of Spa.

Sheldon VAN DER LINDE, driver #20: “At first, I don’t really know whether to laugh or cry. When you finish just ten seconds behind the winner after 24 hours, it’s not easy to accept at first. But if we look at the past two years and see the huge progress we’ve made, we can be very proud. The team gave everything to put us in this position. Of course, you never know if you’ll get another chance to win Le Mans, but we’ll definitely try again.” Source: Team WRT

#8 Toyota TR010 Hybrid third

The #8 Toyota led the early stages thanks to the alternative fuel strategy. But an off-track moment in the ninth hour, a drive-through penalty around half distance, and a brake drum mounting repair soon after left the #8 crew facing a tough task to return to the front.

Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryō Hirakawa completed a race to remember for TOYOTA RACING with a podium for third place in their #8 TR010 HYBRID, just 20.417secs off the lead.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Le Mans 2026. Toyota TR010 Hybrid #8

Sébastien Buemi (Driver, car #8): “It was an unbelievable race. I am extremely happy for the team. They worked so hard since last year to bring the TR010 HYBRID. For car #7 to win the race is fantastic for everyone. It was amazing for us to be on the podium with them. Even though it is a special moment, I am disappointed because I feel we could have done a bit better. But it was a great job from all the team to get our second win of the year with this car. We will remember this day for a long time because the competition was tough and we came out on top.”

Brendon Hartley (Driver, car #8): “It was an up and down race, as usual here. We led for a long time and had a big gap at one point before the safety car. We had some good luck and some bad luck. Ultimately, it didn’t work out for our car. We fought really hard until the end and my team-mates did a fantastic job. I am genuinely happy for the whole team, for the #7 crew and the drivers. It’s an emotional moment.”

Ryō Hirakawa (Driver, car #8): “It was a long 24 hours and a very tight battle all the way to the end. As a car crew we did our best and we had a good strategy. It wasn’t the perfect race for us but we were still fighting for victory. I’m really happy for the team to get this win with car #7 but I have some mixed feelings because we led for a long time and couldn’t finish the job. We need to celebrate now because car #7 drove a great race and the team worked so hard for this win.” Source: Toyota

Cadillac #12 fourth

Cadillac finished a strong fourth in the 94th running of the 24 Hours of Le Mans today. Having led large portions of the race in their Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R, Norman Nato, Will Stevens and Louis Deletraz were ultimately unlucky to be deprived of a well-deserved podium finish.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Le Mans 2026. Cadillac V-Series.R #12

Will Stevens #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R: “It’s pretty disappointing to come away with fourth place. I think, honestly, we deserved more than that. With the pace we showed we should have been on the podium at least. But we were more in the mix than last year, which is a positive. But coming here we had higher hopes than the result we ended up with, so we can’t help but be disappointed. But we’ll come back again next year stronger.”

Norman Nato #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R: “We knew coming into this week that we were going to be in a good position. The team has worked very hard and made some big improvements to the car compared to last year. We have the top speed we were missing before, and overall, the package is a step forward. I’m really enjoyed these 24 Hours. We’ve had some great battles out there with the BMW, the sister car and the Toyota, and that’s what we like. For the team and for the fans, it’s amazing to be in this position with a chance to fight for the win.”

Louis Deletraz #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R: ”First of all, a huge thank you to Cadillac Racing and JOTA, all the crew, mechanics, engineers, for the hard work last ten days. Obviously, it's a great result, but after leading so much of the race and being up front the whole week, it's still disappointing for sure. But I think we did the maximum we could, the circumstances made it that way. We came here to fight for a win, we never gave up, and we'll be back for more because we are hungry to win this race. Source: Cadillac Racing

#51 Ferrari fifth

The Ferraris never in a position to fight for victory or a podium finish on a circuit where power along the long straights and the ability to accelerate quickly out of the chicanes and technical sections play a key role.
Nevertheless, determined to extract the maximum from the potential available for this race, the drivers and all members of the group took to the track with commitment and determination, trying different solutions in terms of strategy and tyre choice, seeking to maximise the result in a race that is often decisive for the championship.
From this point of view, the fifth place achieved by the best of the 499Ps, previously always on the podium at Le Mans, represents a result that goes beyond the mere standings position.

James Calado #51 Ferrari #499P: “We were hopeful and I’m disappointed, but in reality I should be satisfied because we knew we would struggle in terms of race pace. We did everything possible. We finished fifth, but there is still a lot of work to do. We need to keep working hard, stay positive and see what we can do in Brazil, which is another difficult circuit for us.” Source: Ferrari