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Speedy Sebastien Buemi has returned to the kingdom he calls home to race his heart out in the final round of the World Endurance Championship (WEC) series as well as bid farewell to his retiring teammate Alex Wurz and the double-title-winning TS040 HYBRID.
Last year, the 27-year-old Swiss Toyota Gazoo Racing driver was crowned 2014 World Endurance champion alongside his teammate Anthony Davidson, despite finishing only 11th in Bahrain in the 1,000hp, four-wheel-drive hybrid prototype that was marked No 1.
That race was won by the second Toyota shared by Wurz, Mike Conway and Stephane Sarrazin.
This year, Buemi is in sixth position in the drivers’ championship with 67 points after Toyota came a disappointing third in the manufacturer’s World Championship placing.
While this may not have been the best season for Buemi with Toyota, the former Bahrain resident is still looking forward to ending the series in style at the Bahrain International Circuit in Sakhir, a track that he has many fond memories of.
Buemi said: “For me, coming back to Bahrain is always very special. First of all, because of fond memories of the many races I had in Formula BMW, GP2, Formula 1 and now in the Endurance Championship.
“Secondly, because of the close relationship I have always had with Bahrain, a place where I was residing at some stage. It’s also always good to be back ‘home’ because I get to visit my family’s place in Saar.”
In 2009, Buemi lived with his uncle Humbert, 54, an executive director and senior representative at UBS Wealth Management Bahrain and the Swiss honorary consul general, his aunt Silvia and cousins Frederic, 19, Steve, 17, and Laura.
He had dedicated the team’s victory in 2013 to his much-loved cousin Laura who lost her battle against leukaemia in July 2012 at the age of 11.
Aside from WEC racing, he remains reserve driver for F1’s Red Bull Racing, as well as a member of e.dams Renault in the new Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA) single-seater Formula E Championship, a fully-electric racing series.
Buemi said: “In terms of performance, it has not been going as good as last year; the car being much less competitive. It is somewhat a transition year before we get our new car in 2016.
“But returning this year with the No 1 on the Toyota car is something really special, meaning that we are the current world champions in the category with my teammate Anthony Davidson. I am really looking forward to meeting a lot of our fans at the BIC.”
The Six Hours of Bahrain weekend will also be Wurz’s final race before retirement. According to Toyota, in his four seasons with the team, he has played a central role in technical development, as well as contributing to the development of the whole team to meet the specific demands of endurance racing.
