Toyota adds second TS030 entry for Shanghai WEC round

The Japanese manufacturer has announced that it will field both its TS030 HYBRID entries in the Chinese event on November 10 in the wake of its victory in Sunday's rain-shortened Fuji round of the series.

Toyota had been expected to run only one TS030 in each of the five WEC rounds after the Le Mans 24 Hours with the exception of its home event.

The decision reflects Toyotas increased competitiveness with the high-downforce version of the TS030 at each of the three post-Le Mans races rather than the victory on home ground.

The Toyota Motorsport GmbH believed that it would have challenged Audi had the race gone the full six-hour duration in dry conditions.

It is understood that it has made the decision to increase its chances of taking a win on merit before the end of the season.

Kazuki Nakajima, who drove the winning Toyota throughout the 16 laps of the shortened Fuji 6 Hours, will not be present in Shanghai courtesy of a clashing date with Super Formula in Japan.

The Japanese is likely to return to the WEC alongside regular team-mates Alex Wurz and Nicolas Lapierre, who will drive as a duo in Shanghai, for the Bahrain finale even if Toyota reverts to one car.

A decision on how many cars the Toyota Motorsport GmbH team will field at the final race will be made at a later date, according to a press statement.