Mike Conway is set for his FIA World Endurance Championship return at Sao Paulo after missing the 24 Hours of Le Mans due to incurring cycling injuries beforehand, causing him to sit out the event.
The two-time WEC champion will reunite with his #7 Toyota GR010 Hybrid teammates, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries, at the upcoming 6 Hours of Sao Paulo on 14 July.
It will mark Conway’s first appearance since the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps because Jose Maria Lopez replaced Conway at last month’s Le Mans 24 Hours, whilst the British driver was recovering from his rib and collarbone injuries.
Furthermore, the WEC will return to the iconic Brazilian venue since 2014 when Conway entered just his third outing for the Toyota LMP1 team, having debuted in the previous season for the #26 G-Drive Oreca 03 LMP2 team.
Conway scored a fourth-placed finish in the #7 TS040 Hybrid with teammates Alex Wurz and Stephane Sarrazin, as the trio claimed victory together at the previous round in Bahrain.
“It’s great to be back and I can’t wait to be behind the wheel again,” said Conway.
“Watching Le Mans from a distance was tough for me.
“I went through all the ups and downs with Kamui, Nyck and Jose but it was incredibly frustrating that I could not be part of it.
“I always knew we were in safe hands with Jose, and he did a great job.
“Now I am just looking forward to competing again, fighting at the front and hopefully helping Kamui, Nyck and the team win the World Championship.”
At Le Mans, the #7 Toyota fought for the win to the end with the #50 Ferrari 499P crew with Lopez chasing down Nicklas Nielsen, eventually resulting in the second-closest finish between the top-two cars in event history – just 14.221 seconds.
Next week’s fifth round of the 2024 WEC calendar will continue the championship fight for Kobayashi and de Vries who reside third in the standings on 82 points.
They sit behind the #50 Le Mans-winning trio of Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina and Nicklas Nielsen on 90 points, who are behind the #6 Porsche Penske 963 leaders – Andre Lotterer, Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor – on 99.