With just a few days to go before the start of the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans, Toyota has declared it is aiming for victory, nothing less.
Next weekend, the circuit hosts the 94th edition of the famed endurance race. Toyota has taken the win in five of the previous 93, so it has some right to talk big. The automaker stated via a communique that it has “the ambition to return to the top step of the podium for this 2026 edition, which marks Toyota's 28th participation at Le Mans.”
On the track this year, Toyota is sending two TR010 Hybrids to the starting line of this year’s race. The number 7 car will be driven by Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Conway and Nyck de Vries; Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryō Hirakawa will share the wheel of the number 8 car.
Aerodynamic improvements
On the technical side, Toyota says both of its cars benefit from aerodynamic improvements compared to previous years.
The TR010 Hybrids are powered by a 3.5L twin-turbo V6 engine. Output from that powertrain exceeds 700 hp.
“We’re all looking forward to Le Mans, but more importantly we’re looking forward to fighting for victory at Le Mans. We have an updated car, the TR010 HYBRID, which has not yet driven at Le Mans, so we are excited to see our performance. The whole team has worked incredibly hard to be ready, but we know it is a big challenge,” stated Kamui Kobayashi a few days before the race. A Japanese driver, Kamui Kobayashi won the 24 Hours of Le Mans with Toyota in 2021.
A fierce battle
Since the start of the ’26 FIA World Endurance Championship season, the number 8 car took top honours at Imola, the first of the two races run so far. Car number 7 wasn’t far behind, finishing in third.
The 24 Hours of Le Mans race begins this coming Saturday, June 13 and finishes, logically enough, the following day. Among the highlights this year is the arrival of Genesis on the scene, alongside Ferrari, which won the three previous editions.