Ranked at eighth coming into the race, drivers, Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley, and Ryo Hirakawa, finished first to bag the 2024 World Endurance Championship constructors title for Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR).
The trio claimed TGR’s fourth consecutive championship after winning the coveted, 8 Hours in Bahrain,—the final race of the 2024 season.
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TGR had a rocky start in Bahrain with Swiss racer Sébastien Buemi spinning out in just the first hour. After losing the lead, the race then became a grueling fight back up to the top with juggernauts like Ferrari and Peugeot in their way.
Buemi and TGR had their eyes set on the Porsche, who took the lead after Buemi spun out. Ranked at fifth and expected to win it all, Porsche kept a steady lead while TGR fervently bounced back and overtook every car in their way.
In the final hour of the race, TGR had finally caught up to Porsche and took the lead to win it all. It was an exciting and dramatic eight hours for the racers and fans in Bahrain.
The hypercar that crossed the checkered line for TGR's fourth WEC title was the ever reliable and battle tested, GR010 Hybrid. Built out of mostly carbon fiber, the hybrid generates 929hp between its 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 engine and the Toyota-builted lithium-ion battery.
Debuted in 2021, the GR010 has been the prize model for TGR's endurance division. After finishing first in Bahrain and second in Le Mans this year, it will be interesting to see how Toyota will fine tune the GR010 for the next season of endurance racing in 2025.
