MOTORSPORT: Webber predicts Toyota win

Aussie hero and Porsche factory racer Mark Webber has predicted Toyota should win the Le Mans 24-hour classic that kicks off at 3:00pm French time this afternoon (11:00pm AET).

But the former Formula One star has warned both Toyota and perennial winner Audi that Porsche, which has returned to world championship sports prototype racing in 2014 after a 16-year break, should not be discounted altogether from having a chance for victory.

“I think it will be a sensational race between those two with us keeping an eye on things,” Webber told the media at Le Mans on Friday.

“It will be a very interesting race between all the manufacturers… but they have 12 years of experience here and we only have 12 hours.

“Hopefully we are still in good shape come Sunday morning and everything after that will be a bonus,” Webber said. “To have very low garage time will be the key. There are many, many guys who have won here without the quickest car.”

Webber also forecast the Porsche factory squad will be more competitive in 2015, although the 919 Hybrid has already shown strong form in 2014.

“I just think this is Toyota’s time,” Webber said. “We will have a sharper weapon next year, but this is their time and they should be there at the end in a strong sense.”

Webber’s 919, which he shares with New Zealander Brendon Hartley and German Timo Bernhard, will start from fourth on the grid with the other team car on the front row. The factory Toyota TS040s will start from first and third.

The three Audi R18 e-tron quattros which make up the balance of the manufacturer-only LMP1-H (Hybrid) class that leads the 55-car field, have qualified fifth through seventh and endured a troubled time in practice and qualifying.

Webber said Toyota’s advantage at Le Mans was simply a matter of having a mature racing package, while Porsche still had multiple improvements to make.

“Their car has three or four years development on it which ours hasn’t, so it’s all those areas you have,” he said. “I have seen how cars develop and when you start off with a new baby you can’t get everything right at your first attempt.”

Toyota has won the first two rounds of the World Endurance Championship with its naturally-aspirated V8 petrol-electric all-wheel drive hybrid, while the 919, which combines a V4 turbo-petrol engine with braking and exhaust regeneration systems and part-time all-wheel drive, has claimed a sole third place in the opening round.

The Audi, which employs a V6 turbo-diesel engine to power the front wheels and a KERS system on the front axle, has struggled to match the Toyotas and Porsches for lap-speed pace in 2014.

Webber, who retired from grands prix racing after 14 years and nine wins to join Porsche for 2014, says he is enjoying the change to long distance racing.

“Sharing the car with the other guys, which is a big facet of endurance racing, is something I enjoy more than I thought I would,” he revealed.
“There is a compromise in your style, seatbelts, driver position, pedals. The whole thing is set up for an endurance nature.”

He also said driving the 919, which requires the driver to pay attention to energy harvesting and the expenditure of electricity, was a challenging experience to drive after years in open-wheelers.

“The cars have a high level of technology with this new hybrid stuff,” he said. “The car is 200kg heavier than a Formula One, but downforce on the car is still very impressive, the power is more than I have had for many years which is nice, the four-wheel drive element is very good and having race tyres on the car is also a nice feeling.”