Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Jose María López went into Saturday’s final with a 16-point lead in the championship standings, but their hopes of beating sister Toyota for the title were dented by Bamber’s locked right rear. It was shattered by a collision with a section. #7 GR010 Hybrid in Turn 1.
The collision dropped Conway to 11th place, and the No. 8 car, shared by Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa, won easily and took the 2023 Hypercar title.
Toyota’s technical director Pascal Vasselon was unimpressed with Bamber’s performance at the start and felt he could have eliminated both of the Japanese manufacturer’s cars from the race.
He said, “I can’t believe it. That’s the start for me. You see a Cadillac with locked tires 100 meters away and you wonder where you are. Is this a club race? At all. It’s unprofessional.”
“We saw it coming. Even though it was 100 meters before, he… Fortunately, our car restarted. But that was the end of the race. Might be. Therefore, there are no words here.
“It happened at Fuji. Two of our cars got pushed off the track. And same here. It’s totally unprofessional.”
He added: “It’s sad that something like this happens at that level. It’s really sad. Up to the last 5 meters you can lock the wheels, but when you get to 100 meters… wow.
“I could do that.” [in the car]”
Photo credit: Shameem Farhas
start action
Vasselon believed that the two Toyota cars had struggled at the previous race at Fuji, and thought the WEC should impose harsher penalties to deter drivers from aggressive behavior at the start.
“At Fuji, all the drivers behind me locked up,” he said. “[Laurens] Vanthoor at the back missed the top. Both Ferraris pushed one car out. Fortunately, car No. 8 did not get a flat tire this time, but car No. 5 Porsche did.
“Because it’s the same problem here and at Fuji. So at some point there just needs to be tougher penalties for drivers who engage in this kind of behavior.”
Bamber, a two-time winner of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, explained that although he had not intended to aim for second place, he was disappointed that it had affected the No. 7 car’s title chances.
Conway, Lopez, and Kobayashi were able to overcome the incident and regain second place by the start of the third hour, by which time the No. 8 Toyota was already about 30 minutes in front.
“I was just going to get in,” he told Autosport/Motorsport.com. “I was pretty happy with my position, but I was braking in the middle of the braking zone.
“It’s really weird that all of a sudden both front wheels locked up. And to be honest, I let off the brake and tried to avoid both Toyotas, I didn’t want to hit them.
Photo provided by: JEP/Motorsports Image
#7 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota GR010 – Hybrid: Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Jose María López spin at the start of the race
“We almost avoided both of them, but we just took number seven. So it’s really unfortunate that it affects their race.
“Honestly, I just had a very, very light touch and spun the No. 7.
“But yeah, it’s always shitty to get penalized for it. I think it’s even worse to affect their race.”
Cadillac looked strong in practice for the Bahrain 8 Hours, with drivers suggesting the American manufacturer could be Toyota’s closest challenger in the race.
However, the #2 Chip Ganassi’s V-Series.R was one lap behind the leader due to a 60-second stop/go penalty and was not as competitive in race trim as many expected.
“We had high expectations after Alex [Lynn] “We did a great job in qualifying and the car was really good in practice,” said Bamber’s teammate Richard Westbrook.
“We would have liked to have finished the season on the best possible note. We could have gone into the race with confidence, but it wasn’t. We took this as a learning opportunity and look forward to 2024. I plan to come back even stronger.”