Audi have set the early pace in the first session of the annual Le Mans test day.

But it was the good showing of the new Toyota TS030 that was the main talking point.
Anthony Davidson stunned everyone when he set a fastest lap time of 3m31.039s in the Toyota TS030 Hybrid.

“It was a really encouraging start,” said Davidson. “You never know where you stand compared to your competitors before you get here. I had a reference, of course, thanks to my drive with Peugeot, but things have moved on. We’ve still got one or two problems to iron out, but we’re close to the pace.”

Kazuki Nakajima, also in the Toyota went even faster with a 3m30.202s before Alencon local Benoît Tréluyer put Audi back on top with a 3m29.570s in the Audi R18 e-tron quattro.

Tréluyer’s team-mate and fellow Frenchman, Loïc Duval in the Audi R18 ultra then set the fastest time with a 3m27.732s.

The best time in the non-hybrid petrol prototype class was posted by Strakka Racing’s HPD-ARX03a (3m34.243s), ahead of the Rebellion Lola-Toyota and the Pescarolo Team Dome S102.5.

The revolutionary Nissan DeltaWing completed 31 laps and was well back in the pack in 30th place with a fastest lap of 3m47.980s.

In the LMGTE Pro class, Frederic Makowiecki in the Ferrari 458 Italia was quickest.

Live audio of the Test day is available via Radio Le Mans.