The 2023 Bahrain 8 Hours Endurance Race weekend got off to an eventful start, although the first day of racing at the Bahrain International Circuit was affected by bad weather.
FP1 was red-flagged following a sandstorm, and then heavy rain fell on the desert circuit, making conditions impossible to run. No such problems occurred in FP2, which was run 10 minutes longer due to time loss in the early afternoon session.
Kamui Kobayashi started the weekend at the front of the #7 Toyota GR010 Hybrid Crew, setting the fastest times in both sessions. Kobayashi, Conway and Lopez are aiming to overturn a 15-point deficit in the World Hypercar Drivers Championship and win their third title in four years.
Championship leaders Brendon Hartley, Sébastien Buemi and Ryo Hirakawa set the second fastest times in both sessions, just a few tenths behind Kobayashi’s benchmark.
Porsche occupied the following four positions in FP1 as the German manufacturer sought its first WEC win with the Porsche 963. Ferrari, which is also challenging for the drivers’ championship, was about 1.5 seconds behind Toyota’s pace.
In LMP2, United Autosports set the fastest time in both sessions in the #22 Oreca, while D’Station Racing and Kessel Racing set the pace in GTE Am. After Gunnar Janet suffered a serious accident in the #56 Porsche 911 RSR, nicknamed “Lexi”, Project 1 – AO his mechanics needed significant work. After working all night to repair the damage, the car was ready to take part in Friday’s FP3 and qualifying sessions.
The cars will return to the track for FP3 at 2pm local time, and fans can watch the action live and free on YouTube. Qualifying will then begin at 4:15pm local time, with the race scheduled to be given the go-ahead at 2pm local time on Saturday. Visit our race page for an overview of the weekend’s time schedule.