Toyota secured a dramatic home victory in the 6 Hours of Fuji as the #8 TR010 HYBRID of Ryo Hirakawa, Brendon Hartley and Sébastien Buemi snatched victory from Alpine in the closing stages of the race.
Alpine had looked firmly in control for much of the race, with its #36 A424 and sister #35 running at the front. The #35 even led at the halfway mark, while the #36 remained in contention throughout. Toyota, meanwhile, was forced to fight back after starting only eighth, with the #8 car gradually moving into the leading group.
The race was turned on its head with less than an hour remaining when the #58 Garage 59 McLaren suffered a heavy crash following contact with the #27 Aston Martin. The resulting safety-car period triggered a rush of pit stops, allowing Toyota to make a crucial strategic gamble. The #8 took only enough fuel to maximise track position, jumping from sixth to the lead.
After the restart, Victor Martins charged the #36 Alpine back through the field, eventually passing BMW’s Dries Vanthoor for second. He then closed rapidly on Hirakawa, but the Toyota driver held his nerve through the final laps to take the chequered flag just 0.591 seconds ahead.
The result gave Toyota its first Fuji victory since 2023 and moved the #8 crew into the championship lead with two rounds remaining. BMW completed the podium with its #15 M Hybrid V8, while Alpine’s #35 and Cadillac #38 rounded out the top five.
LMGT3
The LMGT3 race was equally dramatic, with the #32 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Augusto Farfus, Sean Gelael and Darren Leung emerging victorious after a late charge.
The Garage 59 #58 McLaren initially dominated the class, building a lead of more than 50 seconds before a safety-car intervention wiped out much of its advantage. That brought the TF Sport Corvettes into contention, with Jonny Edgar and Charlie Eastwood’s cars fighting at the front as the race entered its final phase.
The decisive moment came during the late safety-car period triggered by the McLaren’s crash. Both TF Sport Corvettes elected not to change tyres, leaving Eastwood’s #34 Corvette ahead of Nicky Catsburg’s #33. Farfus, meanwhile, restarted sixth on fresh rubber and immediately began carving through the field.
The BMW driver passed the Manthey Porsche, the surviving Garage 59 McLaren and the #77 Proton Ford before catching the two Corvettes. Farfus dispatched Catsburg and then Eastwood to take the lead, with Mattia Drudi’s Aston Martin following him through into second.
Farfus held on to win by 1.062 seconds over Drudi, Ian James and Zacharie Robichon in the #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin. The #34 Corvette completed the podium, while the #54 Vista AF Corse Ferrari finished fourth. Despite missing out on the podium, the #33 TF Sport Corvette’s fifth place was enough to extend its LMGT3 championship lead.
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