Early Race Developments at Interlagos
The Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo began on a track that was slightly damp, leading to an early incident for Mike Conway. During his reconnaissance lap, the recent 24 Hours of Le Mans winner made contact with the pit wall, necessitating a front bodywork change on the #7 Toyota TR010 Hybrid Hypercar.
At the start of the race, Will Stevens took an early lead, establishing a five-second advantage. This was ahead of the #15 BMW M Team WRT entry, driven by Kevin Magnussen. Magnussen had overtaken the #38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R of Earl Bamber, which started on the front row.
Magnussen initially reported a lack of power but later regained pace, running in second position behind the #35 Alpine A424, piloted by Ferdinand Habsburg. The Alpine team opted for short-stinting to gain track position, taking the lead in the second hour before dropping down the order after Habsburg handed over to António Félix da Costa during a pit stop.
Stevens, the initial leader, experienced a setback during his first pit stop when a front-right wheel nut appeared to get stuck, causing a delay of approximately 15 seconds. This incident cost the American Hypercar eight places, forcing Stevens into a recovery drive where he overtook several competitors, including the #8 Toyota driven by Brendon Hartley and the #51 Ferrari AF Corse 499P of Antonio Giovinazzi.
At the two-hour mark, the #12 car was running second behind the BMW driven by Magnussen. The #83 AF Corse Ferrari, with Yifei Ye at the wheel, was the highest-placed Ferrari, recovering to third after a five-second stop-and-go penalty for a starting infringement. The #94 Team Peugeot TotalEnergies 9X8, driven by Loïc Duval, was running behind it.
Giovinazzi’s #51 Ferrari was in fifth position after an eventful first two hours, which included multiple contacts. The car was under investigation for a clash with the #61 Iron Lynx Mercedes-AMG LMGT3 entry, driven by Martin Berry. The #38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R also recovered into the top six after losing time during its first pit stop due to an out-of-position entry.
The #17 Genesis Magma Racing GMR-001 was in seventh, having survived a significant clash with the #8 Toyota. The #8 Toyota was later forced to pit for repairs after contact with the #009 Aston Martin Valkyrie of Marco Sørensen and then the #19 Genesis of Daniel Juncadella, rejoining the field 13 laps behind the leader. A brief Full Course Yellow occurred after 70 minutes for debris on the track.
LMGT3 Class Action and Local Talent
In the LMGT3 class, the two Proton Competition Ford Mustangs initially performed strongly, running in first and second positions. Stefano Gattuso in the #88 car overtook Petru Umbrărescu in the #87 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus for the lead. Eric Powell in the sister #77 Mustang followed, placing both Fords at the front for the first 80 minutes of the race.
Following the initial scheduled pit stops, the Akkodis ASP Team Lexus, driven by Umbrărescu, regained the lead through short-fuelling. Umbrărescu then led the #34 Racing Team Turkey by TF Corvette. The close intra-team racing between the Mustangs became contentious after 90 minutes when Gattuso and Powell made contact, affecting Powell’s momentum.
However, the Proton pair returned to a one-two position after two hours, though the net lead was held by the Racing Team Turkey by TF Corvette. This car had moved to the front between pit stops due to a double stint by Salih Yoluç, who later handed over to Peter Dempsey. Ian James in the #27 Heart of Racing Team Aston Martin Vantage completed solid stints.
Local driver Pipo Derani, a São Paulo native, expressed his happiness at racing in his home round of the FIA World Endurance Championship at Interlagos. Derani, driving the #17 Genesis GMR-001 alongside Andre Lotterer and Mathys Jaubert, noted that he had waited 11 years to compete on home soil in the category. He had attended the 2014 event with aspirations of securing a drive in sports car racing.
The Genesis team achieved a milestone by topping a practice session for the first time, with Mathieu Jaminet setting the pace in the sister #19 car during FP2. Derani acknowledged the team’s unexpected competitiveness in the car’s debut campaign. However, qualifying proved challenging for Derani, as two of his flying laps were deleted due to the car’s powertrain exceeding the prescribed limit, resulting in a 12th-place start.
Jaminet secured a spot in the final shoot-out, qualifying sixth quickest, but received a one-place grid penalty for impeding. Derani expressed that the car appeared to have strong race pace despite his qualifying difficulties. Another Brazilian driver, Augusto Farfus, was set to start ninth in the LMGT3 division in the #32 WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO, which featured a special livery of the Brazilian flag.
Farfus aimed for a strong result at his home race, having previously finished tenth and 12th in the past two years. He emphasized the team’s effort for the year, including testing a month prior and competing in a local GT championship race to gain more mileage at Interlagos.
Read Also
Source: fiawec.com
As NewsGB.org's Sports News Writer, Theo Marsden reports on rugby union, golf and boxing for readers across the country. He began on a regional sports desk in Yorkshire. He holds a degree in Journalism from the University of Hull and completed an NCTJ diploma. Theo lives in Hull, where he follows the European Tour and amateur rugby. “Sport moves fast; readers deserve it right the first time.”