The 2023 FIA WEC officially concluded in Bahrain on Sunday after five hours of track time in the post-season rookie test.
Ferrari F1 reserve driver Robert Schwartzman set the fastest time by the end of the day, clocking a time of 1 minute 48.559 seconds in the No. 51 Ferrari 499P.
He was 0.066 seconds faster than Will Stevens in the HERTZ Team JOTA Porsche 963. This time was set in the morning session as a reference time for Norman Nato, who had clocked 1 minute 49.130 seconds in the same car in the afternoon session. That was enough to make him third fastest overall.
“It was great; it was really fun,” Schwartzman told the media after the run. “It’s my first time in a hypercar, but I’m happy to be in a Ferrari. I tried old tires, semi-old tires and new tires. Thanks to all of them, I feel strong and the feel of the car is also good.” It got better. I’m happy with the 30 laps. In this short stint, I got along well with the car. We’re good friends now!
“They wanted to show different stages of grip in the four runs. It gave me a taste, and it felt good and manageable from my perspective.
“When I drove on the new tires, I thought they had a similar feel to F2. Hypercars have a feel that’s somewhere between F1 and GT. There’s less downforce and they’re heavier.”
Will we see him competing full-time in WEC in the future? Is there any possibility of securing a seat in next year’s third Ferrari 499P, which is the subject of discussion?
He has not stated his plans for 2024 beyond his role as a Ferrari F1 reserve, but driving in a hypercar is on his list.
“yes, [I could see myself racing in Hypercar],” he said. “I really hope that after this test I’ll get a chance to race in a hypercar and get a feel for the endurance racing atmosphere. For now. [there is nothing scheduled], but I’m always open to that. ”
Lilloo Wadu recorded the fifth fastest time in his second consecutive Bahrain Rookie Test appearance. Last year, she test drove a sample of the title-winning Toyota, but this time she tried out her 499P. Her best time was 1 minute 49.488 seconds.
“Today, at the end of my first year as a Prancing Horse driver, I fulfilled my dream of driving the 499P that won the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the most important endurance race in the world,” said Wadu. Ta.
“Last year I tried a hypercar for the first time in Bahrain. But this opportunity was very special. It was fun testing myself in this car. I savored every lap.”
Among the remaining rookies in the hypercars, seventh place went to ELMS LMP2 regular Rene Binder, who clocked a time of 1 minute 49.704 seconds in the No. 99 Proton Competition Porsche. Nico Varone was eighth fastest in the No. 2 Cadillac with a time of 1:50.048.
Julian Andlauer lapped the circuit in a Proton Porsche in 1 minute 50.308 seconds. The run followed a recent test at Portimao with one of Proton’s LMP2 machines.
Marte Jacobsen was a rookie who joined Peugeot last year. He rejoined the team and is now the official development driver, clocking a time of 1:50.568. This was faster than the team’s fastest lap in yesterday’s race.
Thomas Planing recorded a time of 1 minute 50.603 seconds in the No. 5 Porsche Penske 963, while Ben Barnicoat was the fastest of the three drivers who tried the No. 7 GR010 HYBRID. His 1:50.740 was set without the benefit of a reference time from one of his TGR factory drivers. This surpassed the efforts of Josh Pearson (1:51.085) and Barnicoat’s IMSA GTD Pro teammate Jack Hawksworth (1:51.316).
Next up was 2023 ELMS Champion Kiffin Simpson with a time of 1:51.380 in his Cadillac V-Series.R. The teenager who competes in his IndyCar series was impressed with the car, he told RACER.
“Honestly, it was a lot of fun,” he said. “I thought it was a really cool car to drive and a new experience for me. It’s a very high tech car and I learned a lot. It was a great experience and I’m grateful for this opportunity. I would like to thank GM and Chip Ganassi Racing for their support.
“This drives more like a GT car.” [compared to LMP2], I thought it was very interesting. In the corners it struggles a bit because the car is so heavy. Maybe it doesn’t have enough downforce because the car is heavy and big, but it has a lot of power so it reaches speed quickly.
“Today went well and I think the team is very happy with it. I think Nico and I were able to notice some things that drivers who drive this all the time are somehow used to.
“Hopefully they can use that information to improve the car for next year.”
Dutchman Job van Uytert became the last Hypercar driver to win outside of a full season. He lapped the No. 4 Vanwall Vandervell in a time of 1:51.680, significantly faster than the car he managed in yesterday’s race despite experiencing early trouble.
Only five LMP2 cars took part in the test, but the time was led by F2 driver Clement Novarac, who drove the Inter-Europol Competition No. 31 Oreca in the morning with a time of 1 minute 54.285 seconds. was recorded. Charles Wierts ended up driving both cars in second and third place, with Valentino Rossi following closely behind.
Rossi’s appearance naturally attracted a lot of attention. The MotoGP legend appears to be almost confirmed to compete in the FIA WEC LMGT3 in WRT next season.
On Saturday, the Italian, who is in Bahrain to test Oreca, spoke to WEC TV during the race and confirmed he was working on the program.
“I raced with this team for two years and it’s a very good team,” Rossi said. “I’m very happy. The reason I came here to watch the race is because maybe I’ll be competing in the WEC next year. Let’s see how it goes.
“I asked Vincent (Vosse) to try this car, so tomorrow I will be trying an LMP2 car for the first time. It will be a good option tomorrow. I was very interested in driving the car.
“[To be in WEC next year] is the goal. we’ll try it. “
Interestingly, he completed 67 laps on Sunday in one of WRT’s 2023 WEC Orecas, wearing overalls featuring BMW, WEC and Goodyear patches, and those laps were marked with the new number 46. Ta.
Rossi’s best time was 1 minute 55.118 seconds in the afternoon session, placing him third in class. This was 0.8 seconds behind Team WRT teammate Charles Weerts, who drove both WRT ORECAs and had the second fastest time in P2.
In the No. 9 Prema Oreca, Harry Tincknell set the benchmark time for Mikkel Pedersen (1 minute 57.260 seconds) and PJ Hyett (1 minute 57.570 seconds). This driver is from AO Racing, which is scheduled to participate in the Asian Le Mans Series with a two-car fleet. A former Prema car will be released next month.
Four GTE cars participated in the test. The fastest time was Lorenzo Patrese in his AF Corse 488 in the #83 Richard Mille car with a time of 1 minute 58.261 seconds. The second fastest rookie in the AF Corse No. 54 was Nicola Marinangeli, who clocked a time of 2:00.091.
Corvette Racing fielded rookie candidate Antoine Doquin, who clocked a time of 2:01.035. Timur Boguslavskiy, who joined the team in the second half, seems to have recorded a time of 2:01.450.
Finally, the No. 21 AF Corse 488 GTE EVO was driven all day by WEC returner Christoph Ullrich. The Swiss driver finished the day with a bittersweet double, clocking a time of 2:01.498 in the morning session, with a minor off at Turn 10 resulting in the last red flag in GTE history, making him the last driver to complete a competitive lap in GTE Am. It became.
Car No. 21 was the last to pit, marking the end of the last official session in its class.
Morning session results
PM session results