Written by Owen Bradley
The World Endurance Championship (WEC) returns this weekend for the 6 Hours of Fuji in Japan. With both the Hypercar and LMGT3 championships on the line, the penultimate round of the season will be one that you don't want to miss. Here, you can find all the session times, where to watch the 6 Hours of Fuji and a preview of the weekend ahead.
The Fuji Speedway
This iconic circuit has hosted many iconic races throughout motorsport history, who could forget the 1976 championship decider in Formula One between Niki Lauda and James Hunt in the pouring rain, or another F1 race in 2008 that saw Felipe Massa and Robert Kubica duel intensely throughout, in the rain once again, aquaplaning and pushing one another off the circuit. Rain may potentially be a familiar sight around the Fuji Speedway this weekend.
With 16 corners of varying braking zones and angles, this circuit is a fast flowing and undulating circuit at the bottom of the iconic Mount Fuji. The main overtaking zones will likely be found at Turn 1, coming at the end of an incredibly long straight into a hard-braking right-hander, which then flows through to a brief straight, the Turn 2 flat-out kink leads into the fast and quick braking zone of Turn 3, where drivers will likely be hung out to dry on the outside.
The quick Turn 3 then flows into a tough long double right-hander, where the racing line tightens up as the drivers then dive into the Turn 6 hairpin, another poignant place to overtake at. A flat out sequence of right-hand corners then leads us into Turns 11 and 12, a slow chicane where drivers may attempt a move at, albeit running the risk of sending another car across the grass on the outside.
Finally, the incredibly long and winding corners of Turns 14, 15 and 16 all provide opportunities to run multiple different racing lines, in order to get prepared to run down the main straight, with the start/finish line a long way down the straight, it can be expected to see drivers slipstreaming one another and running multiple offensive and defensive lines into Turn 1 as we complete a lap of Fuji.
Fuji's Weather Forecast
The WEC has seen a lot of rain this season, particularly in Le Mans, where it caught a number of drivers out. But rain has been present at around half of the events this season, with Fuji likely to be no different.
There is around a 60% chance of rain on Sunday with multiple showers expected, and as we know, rain typically plays a crucial role in developing the outcome of a race in the mountains of Fuji. With six hours on the clock, it may be a race where the conditions change multiple times.
The Championship on the Line
The No.6 Porsche squad currently leads the World Championship in Hypercar, leading by just 12 points to Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck De Vries' No.7 Toyota, with the No.50 Ferrari crew, who won the Le Mans 24 Hours, also equal on points with the Toyota.
The No.6 Porsche team have frequently been able to consistently deliver strong points finishes, however their sixth place finish last time out at the Circuit of the Americas, has put them at risk for the remaining two rounds in the championship.
Fuji is Toyota's home circuit, and the Japanese manufacturer has an incredibly impressive record around the circuit, so there is potential for the gap in the championship to be erased come the end of the weekend.
LMGT3 Preview
The No.92 Manthey Porsche team lead by 28 points in the championship to the sister No.91 Manthey Porsche - therefore, with a podium finish at Fuji, the No.92 crew could solidify themselves as the LMGT3 World Champions this weekend.
The No.27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin team absolutely dominated the last race at COTA, with many people expecting the American-based team to likely storm to the front of the field once again.
Valentino Rossi's No.46 BMW squad will also compete, as they chase their first victory in the WEC, in just their rookie season. The team, with Maxime Martin and Ahmad Al-Harthy, has retired from half of the races this season so far, and will not want that record to continue through for the remaining races.
Owen's Predictions!
I am predicting an incredibly tense and dramatic race in the Hypercar field, it will be a race of attrition and strategy, with the rain playing a crucial role. If the opening practice session is to be looked into, Porsche will likely be the strongest manufacturer after a Balance Of Performance (BOP) re-adjustment for Toyota. However, nobody can count Toyota out of this race, looking at their history around the venue.
Therefore, I'm predicting a Toyota victory, with the Ferrari's and Porsche's duelling in the wet weather. At the end of the race, I think the championship will come down to Bahrain between the No.7 Toyota and the No.6 Porsche, with the No.50 Ferrari perhaps a little bit further in deficit, but still in contention at the final race.
In LMGT3, I'm predicting another tough race with a lot of crashes. I do think that the No.46 BMW team are due their victory, with the sister No.31 BMW also duelling with them for the podium, with the No.55 Ferrari, No.92 Manthey Porsche and No.27 Aston Martin all likely playing their own role in the battle for glory in Japan.
Session Times - UK Time
Friday September 13th
FP1: 03:00 FP2: 07:30
Saturday FP3: 02:20
Qualifying and Hyperpole, LMGT3: 06:20 - 06:50
Qualifying and Hyperpole, Hypercar: 07:00 - 07:30
Sunday
Fuji 6 Hours, Race Start - 03:00
Where to Watch?
UK Viewers can watch all the racing action via Eurosport, which is also available through Discovery+, with another way to access on Amazon Prime.
U.S viewers can watch via MAX, and Canadian viewers will be able to watch via Discovery Velocity.
Stay with DIVEBOMB to follow the 6 Hours of Fuji LIVE on Sunday, starting at 3am right here on the website.
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