Kobayashi claimed the top spot in qualifying by just over one hundredth of a second aboard the #7 Toyota GR010 HYBRID Le Mans Hypercar, in a closely fought session in which the top three cars were separated by a tenth.
A 1m35.358s from Kobayashi compared with Fuoco’s 1m35.375s in the #50 Ferrari 499P LMH, while Brendon Hartley was just behind on a 1m35.480s in the second of the Toyotas.
Peugeot driver Jean-Eric Vergne was a further two tenths behind courtesy of 1m35.662s, which left him only three tenths off the pace in the fastest of the French manufacturer’s 9X8 LMHs.
Alex Lynn took fifth for Cadillac with a 1m35.720s aboard the Ganassi-run V-Series.R LMDh.
He was run close by the second of the AF Corse-run factory Ferraris, which posted a 1m35.771s in Antonio Giovinazzi’s hands.
Gustavo Menezes took seventh in the second Peugeot, while Frederic Makowiecki was the fastest Porsche 963 LMDh driver in eighth.
The top nine cars in Hypercar down to Yifei Ye in the Jota Porsche were all within one second at the end of the 15-minute session.
Source: Autosport