Three weeks ago, TOYOTA RACING claimed victory in the TR010 HYBRID’s debut at the 6 Hours of Imola, the race that opened the 2026 WEC season, and took the lead in both the constructors’ and drivers’ championships. Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley, and Ryo Hirakawa won in Italy with the number 8 hypercar, and the sister car, number 7, driven by Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi, and Nyck de Vries, finished in third, securing a double podium.
The team aims to keep this momentum for the second of eight rounds on the season at Spa, which is one of the tracks that fans and most drivers favor. The circuit threads through the Ardennes forest across 7,004 meters, composed of fast and twisty sectors from start to finish, separated by a second, tighter and more technical sector.
This will be the last opportunity that TOYOTA RACING and the other teams will have to optimize operations in a competition ahead of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, scheduled for June 13-14. The Spa race will challenge drivers and engineers to prepare the TR010 HYBRID to tackle high-speed corners such as Eau Rouge-Raidillon, Pouhon, and Blanchimont, as well as the long downhill stretch on the Kemmel Straight. The track requires a car setup similar to that of the Circuit de la Sarthe.
Spa is one of TOYOTA RACING’s two home races in the WEC, alongside Fuji in Japan, and the team has a strong track record there. In 13 races in Belgium, the squad has eight wins, 14 podiums, and four pole positions.
“We started the season very well in Imola thanks to the hard work of the entire team. Now we want to maintain that pace throughout the season, and Spa is another important race for us. Besides being one of our home events, it’s a crucial step in our preparations for Le Mans,” said Kamui Kobayashi, head of TOYOTA RACING in the WEC.
“The TR010 HYBRID proved itself competitive in Imola, which gives us momentum, but we must push to the limit again to extract maximum performance at Spa,” added the Japanese driver, who is also one of the TOYOTA RACING pilots.
A large contingent of TOYOTA RACING GmbH staff, the team’s operating base located just 120 km away in Cologne, Germany, will be cheering them on. Colleagues from Toyota Motor Europe, in Brussels, Toyota’s European headquarters, will also lend their support.
In addition to the current generation of Hypercars, the latest engine technology will also be showcased at Spa. A hydrogen-powered GR Yaris — delivering all the sound and feel of a combustion engine with nearly zero exhaust emissions — will undertake exhibition laps at the legendary Spa circuit on Saturday, just before the start, scheduled for 9:00, broadcast on BandSports and YouTube.
