After a seven month break, the FIA World Endurance Championship is back with Round Six at the Circuit of the Americas.
COTA hasn't been raced in the WEC since 2020, meaning it's new to most drivers and teams.
The majority of HYPERCAR entries have tested here - the exceptions being Alpine Endurance Team and Proton Competition. The track has, however, undergone resurfacing work since these tests, which will mitigate some of their advantage.
Michelin have brought the Medium and Hard compounds this weekend. I'm expecting the Medium to be the preferred race tyre.
High temperatures are expected to prove a challenge this weekend. This will especially be an issue for Cadillac Racing - who only have two drivers. Temperatures should decrease in the closing stages of the race, with the chequered flag due under an hour before sunset.
In LMGT3, everyone is starting their Bronze-ranked drivers. The challenge for the Bronze drivers will be to try and complete their 105-minute minimum drive time in a single stint behind the wheel. This ability is something that local driver and WEC returnee Ben Keating has earned a reputation for in the past.
We could see the first title mathematically sealed today. Hertz Team JOTA's #12 Porsche 963 currently leads the FIA World Cup for Hypercar Teams by 54 points, with 63 left up for grabs after this weekend.
(P.S. Sorry this is a shorter post - time constraints got the better of me!)