BMW Triumphs in Hypercar Class
The WRT BMW team achieved its second victory of the FIA World Endurance Championship season at the 6 Hours of São Paulo. The No. 15 WRT BMW M Hybrid V8, driven by Kevin Magnussen, Raffaele Marciello, and Dries Vanthoor, finished ahead of the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari 499P.
The race saw early challenges for the Hertz Team JOTA Cadillacs, which had started from the front row. The No. 12 Cadillac, piloted by Will Stevens and Norman Nato, secured third place. Stevens initially held the lead from pole position, maintaining an early advantage over the sister No. 38 Cadillac.
Magnussen, in the No. 15 BMW, made an early move, passing the No. 36 Alpine A424 at the first corner. He then positioned the BMW between the two Cadillacs within the first hour, executing a manoeuvre at Ferradura when Earl Bamber in the No. 38 Cadillac encountered traffic.
The race dynamics shifted as both Cadillacs experienced extended first pit stops. The No. 38 crew faced issues when Bamber locked up while entering the pit box, requiring mechanics to adjust their positions. Subsequently, Stevens encountered a wheel nut failure on the No. 12 car, resulting in a time loss that allowed the BMW to take the lead.
Magnussen and Marciello maintained the lead through the middle stages of the race. The No. 35 Alpine A424 briefly held an advantage due to an early pit stop and an off-strategy approach. The Cadillacs continued to face difficulties, with Stevens receiving a penalty for contact with the No. 87 Lexus RC F GT3, and Nato experiencing a brief spin at Turn 7.
These delays, coupled with traffic, allowed the No. 51 factory Ferrari to move into contention. James Calado took the lead in the fifth hour during pit stops, despite making contact with barriers while exiting the pit lane. Vanthoor, driving the BMW, moved ahead of Calado during the final round of stops, securing the German manufacturer’s second win of the season.
LMGT3 Class Sees Corvette Victory
In the LMGT3 category, TF Sport Corvette secured its second consecutive win. The No. 34 Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R, driven by Salih Yoluc, Peter Dempsey, and Charlie Eastwood, triumphed in Brazil, following their success at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The Corvette team employed an alternative strategy, with FIA Silver-graded Yoluc starting the race before handing over to Bronze-graded Dempsey. This differed from most other teams, which began with their Bronze-categorised drivers. The No. 87 Akkodis ASP Lexus RC F GT3 initially led the early stages of the race.
The Proton Competition Ford Mustang GT3 EVOs then took the lead in the first hour. The No. 88 Mustang, driven by Stefano Gattuso, was ahead of its sister No. 77 car. The teams adopted different strategies, with Gattuso exiting his car after completing the minimum drive time, while Eric Powell remained in the sister car.
The No. 34 Corvette moved into the lead towards the end of the third hour, with Eastwood guiding it to the finish. Seb Priaulx in the No. 77 Mustang attempted to complete one fewer stop but struggled on used tires and was passed by Harper in the No. 69 BMW with approximately 20 minutes remaining.
Priaulx subsequently fell behind the No. 92 Manthey Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo of Richard Lietz and the sister Mustang of Logan Sargeant. A drive-through penalty for track limits further impacted Priaulx’s race. The Porsche was under pressure from Sargeant in the final laps, but Lietz secured a third third-placed finish of the season alongside Ricardo Pera and Yasser Shahin.
The sister No. 91 car overtook Sargeant in the closing minutes to claim fourth place, leaving Proton with a fifth-place finish. The points-leading No. 33 Corvette, with Ben Keating, Nico Varrone, and Jonny Edgar, finished eighth despite late contact from the No. 61 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo.
Race Incidents and Penalties
The race began on a slightly damp track, which affected Mike Conway in the No. 7 Toyota TR010 Hybrid Hypercar during his reconnaissance lap, leading to contact with the pit wall and requiring front bodywork changes.
The Cadillacs experienced further struggles, with the No. 38 car swapping places with the No. 12 car with 15 minutes remaining in an attempt to catch the Ferrari, but without success, and they returned to their original order with a couple of laps left.
Late in the race, Robin Frijns in the No. 20 BMW attempted to pass Antonio Fuoco in the No. 50 Ferrari at the Senna Esses, resulting in the Ferrari spinning. This allowed the No. 83 satellite AF Corse Ferrari of Robert Kubica to pass both cars and finish fifth.
The BMW of Frijns, Rene Rast, and Sheldon van der Linde finished sixth but received a five-second post-race penalty for the incident, causing them to drop to eighth. The No. 50 Ferrari finished eighth, before being promoted a place due to the BMW’s penalty. The No. 007 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Valkyrie also benefited from the penalty.
The top ten was completed by the No. 009 Aston Martin and the No. 35 Alpine, whose offset strategy did not yield the desired result after suffering a late slow puncture. Toyota had a challenging event, with the No. 7 TR010 Hybrid finishing 12th after several penalties, and the No. 8 machine losing 12 laps due to repairs for a broken toe rod after contact from the No. 17 Genesis GMR-001 of Andre Lotterer.
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Source: sportscar365.com
