Bahrain: Presentation in Figures

This weekend marks the fourth round of the 2019/2020 World Endurance Championship, the 8 Hours of Bahrain, at the Sakhir circuit and its 5.412 kilometers. On Saturday, the race will be broadcast in full from 1 PM to 9 PM on Motorsport.tv or the WEC’s paid streaming service. On the channel L’Équipe, the live broadcast will start at 6:30 PM and Eurosport at 6 PM.

Before that, let’s start the week with some historical figures on a race that has become a classic.

1:41.511

The fastest lap in the race in Bahrain was set by Lucas Di Grassi in 2016, during Audi’s last race in the WEC. The Germans achieved a one-two finish, offering themselves the most splendid farewell.

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In 2015, the race saw no withdrawals, with 32 entrants.

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Alpine, despite its three poles, has never won in Bahrain in LMP2. It should also be noted that neither Ford, BMW, nor Corvette have been victorious in GTE-Pro.

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The 8 Hours of Bahrain becomes the first race in the history of the WEC to take place over such a duration. In Sebring, they talk more about 1000 miles.

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In case of victory, Rebellion could become the first team to win in LMP1 and LMP2 in Bahrain.

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Bahrain reached the championship final three times, in 2013, 2016, and 2017.

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Nicki Thiim has won three times in Bahrain. Twice in GTE-Am (2013 and 2014) and once in GTE-Pro (2016). He is the only driver to have won in two different categories, each time with Aston Martin.

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Toyota holds the record for overall victories in Bahrain with three wins.

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In LMP2, it is G-drive that holds the record for victories with three wins (2013, 2015, 2016), each time with Roman Rusinov at the wheel. The Russians even climbed to the third step of the overall podium in 2013, the only LMP2 in history to do so, in Bahrain.

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If Ferrari has still not won in Shanghai in GTE-Pro, it holds the record for success in Bahrain, with four victories (2012, 2013, 2014, and 2017), including three with the Finn Toni Vilander.

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For a long time, the absolute reference in GTE-Am, Aston Martin Racing experienced four victories in Bahrain (2013, 2014, 2015, 2017), a record. The trio Paul Dalla Lana, Matthias Lauda, and Pedro Lamy, terrors of the category for several years, won twice.

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The victory of the Audi R18 #8 in 2016 was the first success achieved from pole position in Bahrain in five visits. The longest wait for a circuit in WEC history. (@WECdata)

6.8 In 2016, the G-Drive of Roman Rusinov, René Rast, and Alex Brundle beat the RGR Sport by Morand of Gonzales, Albuquerque, and Senna by 6.8 seconds, marking the smallest margin recorded at the finish in LMP2.

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The 2019 8 Hours of Bahrain is the seventh edition of the Sakhir round in the WEC, previously contested over six hours. It was only absent during the 2018/2019 Super Season.

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Italian driver Gianmaria Bruni, then with Ferrari, became the first driver to reach ten victories in WEC during the 6 Hours of Bahrain 2014, in his 21st start. This amounts to a winning percentage of 48%. (@WECdata)

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Bahrain in 2016 saw Loic Duval secure the thirtieth victory for a French driver in WEC. The first and only nation, until the 2018/2019 season, to reach this figure in LMP1. The following season in 2017 would become the only year until now without any French winner in the overall standings. (@WECdata)

174

Unlike at Le Mans 66, it was Ferrari that achieved the double victory in GT-Pro in 2017 in Bahrain. The two Italian cars finished side by side, separated by 174 thousandths, setting a record in the history of the WEC in the category.

201

201 laps were covered by the victorious Audi in 2016, driven by Loic Duval, Lucas Di Grassi, and Oliver Jarvis. A record that shouldn’t stand for long with the switch to 8 hours.

303

No car has reached a higher speed in Bahrain than the Rebellion R1 in 2016. Swiss driver Mathéo Tucher reached 303.5 km/h in the AER-powered prototype, breaking the record set at 295.3 km/h in 2015 by Lucas Di Grassi in the Audi R-18 e-tron quattro. (@WECdata)