Kamui Kobayashi has ensured it is advantage Toyota at the Le Mans 24 Hours, setting a blistering lap time of 3:14.791 to break the existing Le Mans lap record set by Neel Jani in 2015 by more than two seconds.

The former Sauber F1 driver claimed pole in the #7 Toyota TS050 – Hybrid that he shares with Mike Conway and Stephane Sarrazin and the time put them +2.337s clear of the #8 Toyota in second position. Porsche’s #1 and #2 cars will start the race third and fourth with Toyota’s third car almost four seconds off the pole position pace in fifth.

G-Drive Racing edged pole position in the LMP2 class over CEFC Manor TRS Racing as Darren Turner smashed the GTE Pro lap record to claim pole position in class for Aston Martin Racing. In GTE Am, the Corvette of Larbre Competition took pole honours.

Four classes, four lap records. An awful lot can happen twice round the clock at Le Mans, but having come three minutes from victory at last year, Toyota has placed itself in prime position to claim overall honours this year.