Audi achieved grid positions five and six in qualifying for round five of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) at Fuji (Japan). In the practice sessions, the team of Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich and Chris Reinke, Head of LMP, thoroughly prepared for the 6-hour race on Sunday.
Audi knew that a challenging task had to be mastered in qualifying on the 4.563-kilometer track in the foothills of Mount Fuji. The 1.4-kilometer start-finish straight was not advantageous for the Audi R18 e-tron quattro in the battle for a single fast lap time. André Lotterer and Benoît Tréluyer on their four fastest laps achieved an average time of 1m 28.118s. As a result, the hybrid sports car of the Le Mans winners will be starting from fifth place. Their team-mates Loïc Duval and Tom Kristensen in the sister car were only 47 thousandths of a second slower on the average of their four best laps. Consequently, car number one will be tackling the race from position six. The fastest single lap of an Audi driver was achieved by André Lotterer setting a time of 1m 27.605s.
However, when the fifth race of the season starts on Sunday at 11 a.m. local time in Japan (4 a.m. CEST), lap times will definitely not be the only crucial aspect. In the last race at Austin (Texas), Audi Sport Team Joest proved that in the end an optimal combination of pace, strategy, reliable driving and good tire management prevails. The TV channel Eurosport will start airing a 60-minute summary of the race from 10.45 a.m. CEST.
Audi Will Start From Third Row in Japan
Source: Audi