Fernando Alonso completed his maiden World Endurance Championship test on Sunday, getting behind the wheel of Toyota’s LMP1 car.
After Sébastien Buemi gave the #8 TS050 HYBRID a brief shakedown, Alonso took to the Sakhir circuit in Bahrain and amassed 37 laps before the lunch break.
Alonso continued in the afternoon session, adding another 76 laps, to bring his total to 113 laps, his best time a 1:43.013.
His effort was 2.769s slower than the initial benchmark logged by Porsche’s Timo Bernhard, who turned a few laps in the 919 Hybrid before handing over to Pietro Fittipaldi.
Alonso revelled in the test, as he continues to explore the possibility of competing for victory at Le Mans next year, as part of his quest for the Triple Crown.
“It was a great day,” said Alonso, after his first experience of the machinery.
“Testing an LMP1 car is always a nice thing for any racing driver because these cars are amazing to drive.
“They are very consistent throughout a stint which is a positive thing.
“I have wanted to test a car like this for a long time now and today I could achieve that so I am happy.”
Alonso will continue to race for McLaren in Formula 1 next season, with the outfit having severed its relationship with Honda after a three-year period characterised by reliability and performance issues.
