WEC 2025 result after Round 3: 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps

Toyota Gazoo Racing continued its FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) campaign with a hard-earned double points finish from an incident-packed and exciting 6 Hours of Imola. How did this third race of the season pan out? Read on for our WEC 2025 review of round three.

WEC 2025: 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps

Preview

As the precursor to the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps represents a vital proving ground in Toyota’s preparations for a hopeful sixth win at La Sarthe. Since last year’s race, a large proportion of the high-speed Belgian circuit has been resurfaced. So between rounds two and three Toyota spent a couple of days testing and fine-tuning the cars at the venue, which is also something of a home circuit due to its proximity to the team’s base in Cologne, Germany. As such, a large contingent of TGR employees always make the hour-long journey to cheer on the crews as they rub shoulders with a highly competitive, 18-strong field of Hypercar prototypes.

Free practice

Mild and sunny weather provided the ideal environment for the drivers to reacquaint themselves with the circuit, test the medium compound tyres, and provide feedback on different mechanical settings. However, the team’s plan to evaluate the tyres over longer distances in the second practice session was disrupted by three red flags, which scrubbed away almost two-thirds of the 90-minute running time. The session was therefore extended by half an hour – enough for the crews to practice front and rear bodywork changes, as well as further pit stop practice.

Data analysis gathered from these two sessions, as well as intensive debriefings before qualifying day, were used to help the team optimise the two GR010 Hybrids. These settings were then given a final checkover during the third practice session the following morning.

Qualifying

With preparations from the three practice sessions completed, it was decided that Kamui Kobayashi (#7 GR010 Hybrid) and Brendon Hartley (#8 GR010 Hybrid) would take the lead for the 15-minute qualifying session. Kobayashi set his fastest lap on his first attempt, while Hartley took one lap longer to get more heat into the medium compound tyres. Both tried valiantly to improve on subsequent laps but they were not able to extract more performance from the cars – a fact proved by the pair ending the session just 0.003 seconds apart.

Finishing in 15th and 16th position meant that both drivers missed out on the top ten Hyperpole shootout and the opportunity to move forward. Starting the race from the eighth row of the grid meant that the team would have to rely on all its driving experience, tyre strategies and race craft to move into a point-winning position.

WEC 2025 race: 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps

Cheered on by a weekend crowd of almost 100,000 people, including employees from the team’s base in Cologne and colleagues from Toyota Motor Europe, the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps delivered an epic battle. An exciting opening stint set the tone for the rest of the race, with wheel-to-wheel action throughout the 18-strong Hypercar field. Right from the off, Mike Conway (#7) and Brendon Hartley (#8) fought hard to gain positions and move closer to the top ten, although Conway’s progress was hindered by a puncture after 23 minutes.

A virtual safety car late in the second hour allowed Conway to make his next pit stop while losing less time than a stop in green flag conditions, which lifted the #7 into the top ten. Then at the next round of pit stops midway through the third hour, team principal Kamui Kobayashi took over the car in eighth while Ryo Hirakawa took the wheel of the #8 car in eleventh place.

A thrilling duel for seventh then erupted between Kobayashi and the #5 Porsche, before a safety car at half distance gave him a further opportunity to gain positions. When the field pitted together, a faster two-tyre rather than four-tyre stop allowed Kobayashi to leapfrog several rivals and emerge in third at the restart. However, when racing resumed Kobayashi came under intense pressure from behind. So when he made a small mistake and ran wide through the chicane, four close-running cars were able to dive past and pushed Kobayashi back into seventh.

Yet another safety car late in the fourth hour prompted both cars to pit for a driver change. Nyck de Vries took over the #7 in fourth, and in strapping himself into the ninth-placed #8 car Sébastien Buemi equalled the record for participating in the most WEC races – 89 since his debut at Le Mans in 2012.

Entering the final two hours, different fuel strategies emerged. The #8 GR010 Hybrid opted for a bold plan by cutting short its penultimate stint to move out of traffic and allow Buemi to set faster lap times. As rivals made their regular stops, Buemi even moved into the lead until his final stop 45 minutes before the end. The #8 crept back up the order as the other Hypercars made their last stops. And as the clock ticked down, Buemi progressed to fourth while de Vries also gained positions and crossed the line in seventh.

Against the odds, it was a result that maintained the team’s 100% success in scoring points this season. The double points finish also elevated Toyota into second place in the manufacturers championship.