[h=2]Davidson not surprised by Le Mans test day pace[/h] By Stephen Kilbey / Image by JEP/LAT
Toyota Gazoo Racing's Anthony Davidson says he's not surprised by the pace shown by Toyota at the Le Mans Test Day. The team's advantage, he says, is down to the amount of testing with the low-downforce Le Mans aero kit prior to hitting the track at La Sarthe.
"The thing that's often missed in the hype for this race, is that we've done endless amounts of endurance tests with the Le Mans aero, at Aragon, Paul Ricard and circuits like that," he said when asked about the amount of running he'd had with the new aero package for the 2017 TS050. "When we went to Monza for the Prologue it was also confirmed that the car performed well on a high-speed track.
"When you come here it feels like you run more downforce than at Monza, the car always feels under-winged, and at Le Mans it feels like you've stepped up the downforce. The circuit is also kinder on the tires too.
"The wind tunnel results have had a good correlation on the circuit. The only surprise is the gap between ourselves and Porsche, at the moment I can't believe it at this stage, and I won't be disappointed if it gets eroded, because I'm expecting it to."