Toyota is world champion again. On Sunday, October 18, the Toyota TR010 Hybrid finished first and second in the inaugural 6 Hours of Barcelona. That result sealed the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship manufacturers’ title in the car’s first season.
The No. 8 car of Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa won the race. Then the sister No. 7 of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries crossed the line right behind it. As a result, the two Toyota crews are now the only ones left in the drivers’ fight.
Barcelona was the seventh of eight rounds, so the finale at Monza on November 8 will decide which of them takes that crown. For Toyota, though, the bigger prize is already in the trophy case.
How the Toyota TR010 Hybrid won Barcelona
The race started on a wet track after two dry days, and the circuit dried as the afternoon went on. According to the series’ official race report, Buemi led most of the race. He did it despite a five-second penalty for a start procedure infringement.
Pole had gone to Genesis, but its lead did not last. The official report says the pole-sitting car ran through the gravel at Turn 5 early on. Later, Sportscar365 reported that the two Genesis GMR-001s finished 11th and 16th. The race also had safety car periods in the first hour and again in the fourth, per Sportscar365.
In the end, the No. 8 car covered 198 laps. The official classification puts the No. 7 car 0.583 seconds behind, matching Toyota’s race release, though the series’ race report calls it a formation finish. Either way, the team says it was Toyota’s first one-two since Bahrain last season.
The rest of the top six
Ferrari’s No. 50 499P of Miguel Molina, Antonio Fuoco and Nicklas Nielsen took third. Toyota’s release has it 39.725 seconds behind the winner. Next came the No. 38 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota car of Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber and Sébastien Bourdais, 52.811 seconds back.
Meanwhile, Aitken held off Robert Kubica in the No. 83 AF Corse Ferrari, which Kubica shares with Phil Hanson and Ye Yifei. That car finished fifth, 53.353 seconds down. The second Jota Cadillac, No. 12, was sixth, and both reports put the No. 15 WRT BMW seventh.
By contrast, the defending champion crew had a hard day. The No. 51 Ferrari of Antonio Giovinazzi, James Calado and Alessandro Pier Guidi finished 15th, three laps down. According to the official report, that result ended its drivers’ title defense.
Eighth title, first season for the car
The win gave Toyota its eighth manufacturers’ world championship. In its own words, the team won “for the fourth time this season.” That run includes the Le Mans 24 Hours and the team’s home race, the 6 Hours of Fuji. The Le Mans win in June went to Conway, Kobayashi and de Vries.
The series puts the title in context. It is Toyota’s eighth in 14 seasons and its fifth in six years of the Hypercar era. Also, the official report notes that the Toyota TR010 Hybrid won the title in its debut season, just as its predecessors did.
This is also the first year the team has raced as TOYOTA RACING, the release says. Kobayashi runs the team as well as driving the No. 7 car. In fact, both he and Buemi pointed to the comeback after a difficult 2025. Buemi, for his part, made his 100th WEC start at Barcelona.
The drivers’ title goes to Monza
Now the only question is which Toyota crew takes the drivers’ title. Sportscar365 reports that Buemi, Hartley and Hirakawa lead the standings by 17 points. That leaves Conway, Kobayashi and de Vries one race to close the gap.
Kobayashi summed it up after the race. “The drivers’ title is now between car #7 and car #8, so I think we can enjoy the last race,” he said in the team’s release.
LMGT3: Manthey Porsche wins
In LMGT3, the No. 92 Manthey Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo of Yasser Shahin, Riccardo Pera and Richard Lietz took its first win of the season. According to Sportscar365, it beat the No. 10 Garage 59 McLaren by 4.750 seconds. The official report adds that the class has now had seven different winners in seven races.
The championship ends with the 6 Hours of Monza on November 8. When the TR010s take the start there, Toyota’s eighth manufacturers’ title will already be won.
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