OREANDA-NEWS. China has become established as a regular stop on the endurance racing calendar. The Intercontinental Le Mans Cup, the precursor to today's WEC, first visited Zuhai International Circuit in 2010 and 2011 for 1000km races won by St?phane and Anthony respectively.

Shanghai International Circuit, which was completed in 2004, has been a permanent fixture since the re-birth of WEC in 2012. The circuit, which at 5.451km features 16 corners and two long straights, is located around 40km from Shanghai centre.

Toyota will experience it for the first time with the 2015-specification TS040 Hybrid on Friday, when two practice sessions (10:30 & 15:30) will be used for set-up and tyre work. Final practice (09:00) and qualifying (14:00) take place on Saturday, while Sunday's race begins at 11:00.

Toshio Sato, Team President: "We are looking forward to the Shanghai race. It is a circuit where Toyota has been very strong in the past and we have been on the podium every time we have visited China. We will give everything to fight for the podium again this weekend, even if we know the opposition is very strong. We are coming to the end of a long season but the team is focused and determined to get the best possible result. Everyone will be working hard to achieve this in Shanghai."

Anthony Davidson (TS040 Hybrid #1): "Last year's Shanghai race was one of our best and it put us on track for both World Championship titles. It's a different story this year but that doesn't change our approach to the race; we will concentrate on preparing the car during Friday practice with the target of giving ourselves the best chance in the race. Our team spirit is still strong and I really want to get a decent result in the final two races to give us all a boost going into the winter."