[WEC Race] WEC 2024: Round 7 - 6 Hours of Fuji

[tomcug]

Might depend who forgets to refuel the car after warmup like Porsche did with the 6 last year In 2023 they were doing between 37-40 laps typically. I read somewhere there's rain expected for the race, that might shake things up considerably if it does rain indeed. Like in Imola where Toyotas had to fuel save heavily in the closing stint.

[Adam43]

And Toyota are practicing lift and coast already…

[S griffin]

Originally Posted by Adam43

And Toyota are practicing lift and coast already…

Might as well get it perfected now

[Gerard C]

Autogearbox, PAS, airco, fly by wire and cruise control, young drivers have an easy life nowadays.

[tomcug]

So... Lambo in P10 and into the hyperpole. Meanwhile the 9X8 with wing... P14 & P18. However I'm quite disappointed with what Jota cars did show compared to the others.

[tomcug]

That was very close, Caddy on pole and BMW in P3. All cars within 0.7 sec:

[Gerard C]

Yes very close. Thinking about the las year's start mess, Hyperpole results will be more important than ever. So good to see the Caddy first!
As to speed trap results I'm really puzzled now. They almost all are even now??

[tomcug]

I don't think anybody had some good tow on the straight, from TV broadcast it looked that way.

[Gerard C]

Not convinced this is the main reason.

[Gerard C]

I hope they will let Milesi do the start. He will be side by side with Estre, easy to have a chat with your grid neighbor when you speak the same language. All the fans of the Le Mans movie know that now!

[flatlandsman]

Is the race start something like 3 am UK time? WEC site sends mixed messages (as usual)

[tomcug]

That's correct, 3 am is the race start.

[Adam43]

Great fun! Cadillac on pole. Nice to see And Super close...

Fun that Lamborghini got into the Hyperpole.

[Adam43]

Who's best prepared?

Peugeot now have the lowest laps of all. Are they saving the car or something? Surely not.

[Adam43]

Top Speed and Sectors.

Different approaches continues. Cadillac on pole and have S2 and S3, but generally doesn't have the speed trap speed.

Similar for Toyota. Looking at the spread they look like they are using the lift and coast for energy use. Not at the end of the straight, but coming out of corners. Accelerate those extra kg! Are others doing this, but it is after the speed trap? As we’ve seen before they are concentrating on the race.

[Adam43]

Finally the lap times.

After qualifying Lynn said that the Cadillac was great over one lap.
https://www.dailysportscar.com/2024/...-cadillac.html
Seems to be more than that...

[Articus]

Originally Posted by TF110

I think this is going to be Porsche's race to lose.

[Articus]

35 Alpine is a darkhorse.

[tomcug]

In the race I think it might be Porsche vs Toyota anyway, the Caddy and the Alpine look good but can they put a race together? Caddy might start dropping like a stone even in 1st stint after chewing its tyres.

[Gerard C]

If it survives the first corner I think from Adam's chart - thank you!- that the Caddy being faster for 50 laps it wont fall. Or like a very light stone imo. Overtaking a Toyota in the straight will be a challenge though.

[chernaudi]

Originally Posted by Adam43

Top Speed and Sectors.

Different approaches continues. Cadillac on pole and have S2 and S3, but generally doesn't have the speed trap speed.

Similar for Toyota. Looking at the spread they look like they are using the lift and coast for energy use. Not at the end of the straight, but coming out of corners. Accelerate those extra kg! Are others doing this, but it is after the speed trap? As we’ve seen before they are concentrating on the race.

Fuji has been that way since the WEC started racing there. You'd think (especially in it's post Tilke form) Fuji would be like Paul Ricard, due to broadly similar layout and PR was used for testing for Le Mans. But then again, for Paul Ricard, Audi during the LMS test in 2008 ran their then sprint race aero package on the R10, in 2010, during practice with the R15, Audi went back and forth between LM-type and sprint aero, with no real difference it seemed in lap times, and did run the LM aero to test for LM (as did the Oreca Peugeot).


It seems that running aero optimized for the long straight doesn't help either there or at Fuji if you were/are going for lap time.

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by Gerard C

If it survives the first corner I think from Adam's chart - thank you!- that the Caddy being faster for 50 laps it wont fall. Or like a very light stone imo. Overtaking a Toyota in the straight will be a challenge though.

I agree, although I am unsure on how it has varied through stints. I've been meaning to set something up that look at this.
They don't have infinite tyres in practice so it can't be all bad.

[S griffin]

Great to see the Cadillac on pole, should set up for a great race

[Adam43]

Originally Posted by chernaudi

Fuji has been that way since the WEC started racing there. You'd think (especially in it's post Tilke form) Fuji would be like Paul Ricard, due to broadly similar layout and PR was used for testing for Le Mans. But then again, for Paul Ricard, Audi during the LMS test in 2008 ran their then sprint race aero package on the R10, in 2010, during practice with the R15, Audi went back and forth between LM-type and sprint aero, with no real difference it seemed in lap times, and did run the LM aero to test for LM (as did the Oreca Peugeot).


It seems that running aero optimized for the long straight doesn't help either there or at Fuji if you were/are going for lap time.

I’d not considered Paul Ricard from 2008 and 2010, but yes both methods work well. It’s a mix this circuit. Which is fun.

Even Le Mans shows this. Especially since 1990. The year when the Alpha Racing Porsche did well as they’d brought the higher downforce spec too. They were quite chuffed about that.

[chernaudi]

I also even think back to the WSC events at Fuji. Even in 1982 and '83 Porsche ran their sprint spec at Fuji (when the track had a much faster layout pre-Tilke rework, and no chicanes on that incarnation).


Granted, the sprint spec on the early Porsche 956 wasn't that different as their LM package, this being Group C with a fuel consumption limit (sprint spec had a taller rear wing and somewhat concave front fender/wheelarch leading edges). Not quite like with the LMP900 or LMP1 first gen cars where you had different wheelarch louvers, different rear wings or at least rear wing settings, and different gurney flaps (or sometimes lack thereof), there being more details/variables to change than Group C for the most part. Let alone the LM and sprint optimized body specs for gen 2 LMP1s and gen 3 LMP1s.


Granted, you're only allowed one main body kit for LMH/GTP and are permitted limited adjustments to it to suit different tracks, not to mention the 4:1 downforce to drag limit of the current regs (previously unlimited).