Drama and triumph unfolded at Interlagos as BMW secured a stunning victory in the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo, the latest round of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). The No. 15 WRT BMW M Hybrid V8, driven by Kevin Magnussen, Raffaele Marciello, and Dries Vanthoor, stormed to their second win of the season after capitalizing on a series of pit-lane disasters that shattered Cadillac’s front-row dominance.
At the checkered flag, Belgium’s Dries Vanthoor crossed the line 2.254 seconds ahead of the No. 51 factory AF Corse Ferrari 499P of Antonio Giovinazzi, Alessandro Pier Guidi, and James Calado. The second-place finish handed the Italian manufacturer an unexpected but highly celebrated first-ever podium at the Interlagos circuit. The pole-sitting No. 12 Hertz Team JOTA Cadillac V-Series.R of Will Stevens and Norman Nato was forced to settle for third after a race that slipped through their fingers.
JOTA’s Heartbreak, Magnussen’s Charge
The race initially seemed to be Cadillac’s to lose, with the JOTA squads locking out the front row. At the green flag, Stevens held the lead from pole over teammate Earl Bamber in the sister No. 38 machine. However, the real mover of the opening hour was former F1 driver Kevin Magnussen. Starting fourth, the Dane instantly dispatched the No. 36 Alpine at the first corner and later split the two leading Cadillacs with a daring, robust move at the Ferradura bend, catching Bamber off-guard in heavy traffic.
The race began to unravel for the British JOTA squad during the first round of pit stops. Bamber locked his brakes heading into the pit box, forcing his mechanics to scramble and readjust their positions. Moments later, the leading No. 12 Cadillac suffered a devastating wheel-nut failure, costing Stevens nearly 10 seconds. The combined blunders blew the race wide open, vaulting the charging BMW into a lead they would rarely relinquish.
Through the middle stints, Magnussen and Italy’s Raffaele Marciello controlled the pace, only briefly losing the top spot to the No. 35 Alpine, which ran an off-strategy sequence. Meanwhile, Cadillac’s day went from bad to worse as Stevens was penalized for a collision with a Lexus GT3, and Nato spun at Turn 7 during a heated battle with the satellite AF Corse Ferrari.
Ferrari’s Late Surge and a Rain-Threatened Finale
The Cadillacs’ setbacks opened the door for the factory Ferrari No. 51 to steadily climb into contention. In the fifth hour, James Calado managed to snatch the lead for the Italian squad despite a heart-stopping moment exiting the pit lane, where he nosed into the barriers and picked up a piece of advertising signage.
Despite the aerodynamic damage, Calado valiantly held onto the lead until the final round of pit stops, when WRT’s flawless strategy allowed Vanthoor to leapfrog the Ferrari once again. The closing laps provided a nerve-wracking finale as dark, descending clouds threatened rain over Interlagos. However, Vanthoor remained ice-cool, keeping Calado at arm’s length until the flag.
Behind the podium finishers, late drama erupted in the battle for fifth. Robin Frijns, piloting the No. 20 BMW, attempted a desperate dive past Antonio Fuoco’s No. 50 Ferrari into the Senna Esses, only to spin the Italian car around. Seizing the opportunity, ex-F1 star Robert Kubica pounced in the No. 83 privateer AF Corse Ferrari (shared with Ye and Hanson), overtaking both to claim an impressive fifth. Frijns’ BMW was later hit with a post-race 5-second penalty, dropping them to eighth. It was a miserable afternoon altogether for titans Toyota, who finished well outside the top ten due to multiple penalties and mechanical damage.
LMGT3: Corvette and TF Sport Do the Double
In the production-based LMGT3 class, Chevrolet extended its winning streak. Following up on their historic victory at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, TF Sport secured another spectacular win in Brazil with the No. 34 Corvette Z06 GT3.R driven by Salih Yoluc, Peter Dempsey, and Charlie Eastwood.
The Anglo-American squad outsmarted the field by executing an alternate strategy, starting their “Silver”-rated driver Yoluc to build an early advantage. Eastwood flawlessly anchored the final stints, taking the checkered flag 8.108 seconds ahead of the No. 69 WRT BMW M4 GT3. The Manthey Porsche 911 GT3 R completed the podium in third, narrowly holding off a late-race charge from the Proton Competition Ford Mustangs.