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CORVETTE RACING AT BAHRAIN: Van Rompuy Leads Hyperpole Effort

Both TF Sport Corvettes advance to Hyperpole for second straight race MANAMA, Bahrain (Nov. 1, 2024) – Tom Van Rompuy led TF Sport’s effort in time trials Friday ahead of the FIA World Endurance Championship’s Eight Hours of Bahrain as the team looks to close its first season with the Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R in style.
Van Rompuy will start Saturday’s race eighth in the LMGT3 class behind the wheel of the No. 81 Corvette that he shares with Rui Andrade and factory pilot Charlie Eastwood. It marked the sixth time in seven attempts that Van Rompuy advanced out of the first round of qualifying, and his best lap in Hyperpole was a 2:03.125 (98.301 mph).
For the second consecutive race, both Corvettes advanced to the 10-car Hyperpole session following Friday’s opening 12-minute qualifying period. Hiroshi Koizumi made it through at Bahrain as he did in his home race at Fuji the last time out. He will start ninth in class following his lap of 2:03.176 (98.292 mph) and will share with Sebastien Baud and Corvette factory driver Daniel Juncadella – all three making their first career starts at Bahrain in any series.
The pace of the Corvettes has been strong and consistent since the opening laps of practice. That was evident early, just as it has been for the balance of the summer. Both TF Sport entries each were inside the top-10 in class in each practice, and the No. 82 had three of the 13 fastest individual laps across the three sessions – led by Koizumi, who was second-quickest in Thursday’s night practice. The Eight Hours of Bahrain is scheduled for 2 p.m. Arabian Standard Time / 7 a.m. ET on Saturday. MotorTrend TV will air full and live television coverage from 6:30-3:30 p.m. ET. Full live streaming coverage – including the No. 81 Corvette on-board camera – will be available on the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S. Radio Le Mans also will stream audio coverage of the race.
TF SPORT POST-QUALIFYING DRIVER QUOTESTOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “We have progressed quite well throughout the sessions in the last couple days. In qualifying I struggled to the perfect lap; every lap was a bit of here and a bit of there. We ended up P8 and P9 with both cars, which is good. But I do think we have a really strong car for the race. So maybe we are not fastest on one lap or in qualifying, but I think we are really strong especially in the second stint with our tires. We have eight hours to play for it, so let’s hope we can climb some places tomorrow and end up on the podium.”
CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “The week has been good so far. The pace has been hard to understand. For everyone the tire degradation is significant. Nobody has gone to a double-stint but already there is five to six seconds of deg over a double-stint. Managing that is going to be key. Obviously getting both Corvettes in Hyperpole is great. If anything we’ve lacked a little bit of pace when the tires are brand new, but we’ve been very strong when they have been old. It’s an eight-hour race. I’d rather have a car that’s better on older tires than on one lap. So I think we are in a pretty good spot.” 
HIROSHI KOIZUMI, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “The first three practices Thursday and Friday were really good, so maybe I used up too much for qualifying! But I am happy and very much looking forward to the race. We haven’t confirmed our driving plan yet but I’m very hopeful for a good result for the team.”
DANIEL JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R: “It’s my first time here, and the track is quite interesting. Tire degradation is going to play a massive role in the race, which is exciting. I like those kind of conditions where as a driver you can make a difference by implementing some different driving styles. The Corvette has been super-rapid this week. My teammates were really good today and the team did a great job with the car setup. I’m excited to see where we stand tomorrow.”