Nyck de Vries collided with the #87 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F LMGT3 driven by Kelvin van der Linde during the morning warm-up session before the 92nd 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The Toyota GAZOO Racing driver was adjusting the settings on his steering wheel when he did not notice that van der Linde suddenly braked at the exit of the Porsche Curves.
A representative from Toyota confirmed that the Toyota GR010 Hybrid #7 only suffered damage to its bodywork and nothing related to the mechanics or suspension.
Considering the low speed of the collision and the increasingly wet conditions, it is expected that car #7 will be ready for the start of the race in less than four hours.
A replay of the collision between Nyck de Vries and the #78 Lexus during the warm-up session was shown. The Toyota Gazoo Racing car #7 is currently in the garage for repairs.
Despite van der Linde’s debut at Le Mans, he has previously participated in various endurance events such as the 24 Hours of Nurburgring. This incident also marks Lexus’ first time at La Sarthe. Unfortunately, de Vries lost valuable track time during the 15-minute warm-up session.
Last year, the Dutch driver started the race with little track time as the warm-up session was his only opportunity to familiarize himself with the circuit before the start of the race.
After Kobayashi’s critical mistake during qualifying, which resulted in a red flag, the #7 team will start from the back of the field of 23 cars in the Hypercar category. Jose Maria Lopez will return to the team after Mike Conway suffered injuries in a bicycle accident.
