Skip advert
Advertisement
Partnership

My evo Year: Anthony Davidson - Overview of the WEC race at Fuji, Japan

Anthony Davidson talks about his commanding win in Fuji and looks ahead to Shanghai

In partnership with

Ahead of the race weekend, we were optimistic. We were surprised by our pace in Austin as last year it was Audi’s strongest circuit, so rolling on to Fuji we had lots of hope for a good result.

After initial running we did feel a little more nervous however. We always seemed to have a very good race car, as it was very kind on its Michelins through the long stints in practice. But we had to work hard to improve our short run performance for qualifying.

Advertisement - Article continues below

Even with the nerves, we just about snuck in pole after a good fight against Porsche. They looked like they had it for some time, but we got there in the end and earned a valuable point for the Championship. Over a six-hour race normally it’s less important to grab pole, but now with the point there’s a real motivation to go for it.

For the race we remained mildly confident, making quite a conservative choice for the tyres that meant that they lasted pretty well even towards the end of the stint. We did suffer slightly poor warm up with the tyres as a result, which made qualifying difficult, but in the race it paid dividends for longevity.

Skip advert
Advertisement
Advertisement - Article continues below

We did think about doing the double stint on the tyres but it would have taken too much management, plus we would have lost out in terms of strategy by driving well within the tyre.

It was actually beneficial to drive flat out in a single stint and change tyres each stop. Porsche and Audi both tried the double and were unable to make it work. I’m fairly sure we could have done it, but with the pace we had in the car compared to others, it wasn’t worth the risk.

Up next is Shanghai and that’s been a good hunting ground for us at Toyota. It’s a track that rewards high downforce and it’s very aggressive on tyre wear, so things look good for us, but you never know.

We had a good fight last year with Audi and they’re our main contenders for the championship. But we can’t forget that last year we had a suspension failure that put us out of the race from the lead, so you never know in motorsport. Whilst things look good, anything can happen.

Anthony and teammate Sebastien Buemi lead the World Endurance Championship by 126 points with three races to go. You can next catch Anthony on track at the 6 Hours of Shanghai on 2 November.

Skip advert
Advertisement
Skip advert
Advertisement

Most Popular

New Jaguar GT seen on the road: 1000bhp production car prepares to launch Jag’s new era
Jaguar 2026 front
News

New Jaguar GT seen on the road: 1000bhp production car prepares to launch Jag’s new era

Jaguar’s new electric GT continues testing ahead its late-2025 reveal
7 Feb 2025
This is why youngsters aren't interested in cars
Lamborghini Revuelto
Opinion

This is why youngsters aren't interested in cars

Youngsters not into cars any more? The remedy’s obvious, reckons Richard Porter
7 Feb 2025
Best GT cars 2025 – the ultimate continent crossers
Best GT cars 2025
Best cars

Best GT cars 2025 – the ultimate continent crossers

The best GTs must marry the opulence, comfort, refinement and appointment of a luxury saloon, with the style, performance, engagement and sense of occ…
10 Feb 2025