The No. 12 and No. 38 Cadillacs started at the head of the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo, completing the front row in the Hyperpole. The #36 Alpine completed the top three thanks to Victor Martins finishing third in his first WEC qualifying.
Rain before the start and cool temperatures left the track still damp. Mike Conway also got stuck in the No. 7 Toyota coming out of the pits and ended up in the wall without much consequence.
At the start, the Cadillac was in excellent control. On the other hand, the #35 Alpine, fifth on the grid, dropped to 11th place, while the #36 lost position to the #15 BMW, already in the exhaust of the #38 Cadillac.
The #50 and #83 Ferraris got off to a great start, moving up to fifth and sixth after starting from seventh and tenth. However, on a track that was still challenging, the drivers took great risks to defend their positions.
Having caught up with LMGT3, Kevin Magnussen returned to the No. 38 Cadillac. The Dane tried to pass Earl Bamber on the outside and the two hypercars collided. The BMW driver finally took advantage and set off in pursuit of the #12 Cadillac.
The #83 Ferrari also received a five-second penalty for incorrect starting procedure, which was to be served during the next pit stop. On lap 16, the top ten included the No. 12 and No. 38 Cadillacs, No. 15 BMW, No. 36 Alpine, No. 50 and No. 83 Ferrari, No. 94 Peugeot, No. 19 and No. 17 Genesis, and No. 51 Ferrari. The No. 7 and No. 8 Toyotas were only in 12th and 15th places.
The two GMR-001s battled the #51 Ferrari as Andre Lotterer’s #17 went very close to the LMGT3, losing two positions. The #51 Ferrari took the opportunity to overtake the #94 Peugeot to move up to seventh place.
The game of strategy begins, Cadillac loses big
On lap 29, the #35 Alpine was the first to change its strategy, stopping in the pits. Twelve laps later, the No. 38 Cadillac began its first wave of stops.
However, both Cadillacs lost time in the pits: No. 12 due to a problem in the front end, No. 38 due to stopping incorrectly in its place. They reached 11th and 12th positions, losing all the advantage they had gained.
Its unconventional strategy put the No. 35 Alpine ahead of the No. 93 Peugeot and No. 20 BMW, which were also unusual. Full course yellow was then briefly deployed to clear debris on the track.
The #15 BMW, following a classic strategy, overtook the #36 Alpine for fourth place. The faster #20 BMW missed out on its sister car, while Kevin Magnussen disposed of the #93 Peugeot to chase the leading #35 Alpine.
Start of the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo.
Photo: Jacob Abry/LAT Images via Getty Images
The No. 8 Toyota remained motionless in the pits, likely the victim of a technical problem after contact with Genesis. Will Stevens, on the other hand, quickly moved up the peloton, taking advantage of his tire advantage.
Three cars were given a pass for a full course yellow violation: the #50 Ferrari, then the #4, #19 Genesis and #7 Toyota. The 499P immediately served its penalty and finished in 14th place.
As the two-hour race approached, the #35 Alpine returned to the pits, leaving the #15 BMW ahead of the #12 Cadillac. Toyota No. 8, which dropped out of the race after a long stop, returned to the track.
New blow for Cadillac
After a second wave of stops, the No. 35 and 36 Alpines changed strategy and took the top two spots ahead of the two BMWs. No sooner had he settled into the No. 12 Cadillac than Norman Nato spun out of the pits, erasing Will Stevens’ recovery.
The number 36 Alpine then received a five-second penalty for breaking the rules in the pits. Despite several overtakes by Ferrari to move up to fifth, Norman Nato was also penalized five seconds after making contact with the LMGT3.
The shower of penalties continued and each of the Peugeots received sanctions: a 30-second stop for the #94, which was guilty of speeding in the pitlane, and a drive-through for the #93, which failed to comply with blue flags.
Genesis GMR-001-n°19 by Mathieu Jaminet, Paul-Loup Chatin and Daniel Juncadella.
Photo: James Moy Photography via Getty Images
Around the third hour of the race, the two Alpines and the #20 BMW pitted, temporarily leaving the #15 BMW in the lead ahead of the #12 Cadillac. He was soon followed by the rest of the peloton, which had not yet stopped.
Once the pit stops were over, the No. 35 Alpine regained control of the race, ahead of the No. 15 BMW. The No. 12 Cadillac, which had served a penalty during the stop, found itself in fifth place, with the No. 51 Ferrari and No. 20 BMW in between. The No. 36 Alpine dropped to 11th place.
With two and a half hours to go, Raffaele Marcello returned to the number 35 Alpine and attempted an attack, but was forced to give up his position after completing an overtake outside the track. A few laps later, the French hypercar returned to the pits and handed over the lead to the number 15 BMW.
The #83 Ferrari received a ten-second penalty for contact with LMGT3. His sister, number 51, touched the wall on the way out of the pits, just like Mike Conway before the start. The panel in the left front air intake remained stuck, but James Calado continued the race with continued speed.
The peloton stopped again and the #35 Alpine retook the lead ahead of the #15 BMW and #51 Ferrari. The 499P, still equipped with the panel, finished second ahead of Dries Vanthoor. The #20 BMW, as well as the #12 and #38 Cadillacs completed the preliminary top six.
Thick fog has settled over Interlagos with just over an hour left. Charles Milesi then returned to the pits in the #35 Alpine, leaving the #51 Ferrari in the lead.
With the final stops, the end of the race will now depend on the energy management between Ferrari, Cadillac and BMW to determine who best masters their strategy to finish the race.
The #35 Alpine was in the lead but unfortunately had to return to the pits one last time before the finish to avoid running out of power. They were followed by the #15 BMW, #51 Ferrari and two Cadillacs.
Peugeot 9X8 n°94 by Loïc Duval, Malthe Jacobsen and Theo Pourcher.
Photo: Jacob Abry/LAT Images via Getty Images
The #15 BMW stayed in the Alpine exhaust and, while the A424 got in the way of the LMGT3, tried to pass it on the outside. But Dries Vantur blocked his wheels and had to stay behind the French car.
Fifth, the #38 Cadillac received a five-second penalty for contact with another vehicle. With 40 minutes remaining, the #35 Alpine made its final stop and emerged in tenth position… just ahead of its teammate.
The #15 BMW then inherited the lead, ahead of the #51 Ferrari and #12 Cadillac. Ten minutes before the checkered flag, Robin Frijns sent the #50 Ferrari into a spin after contact, allowing the #83 to gain two positions. Number 50 was relegated to the eighth position.
In the end, despite a little rain at the end of the race, the podium remained unchanged. The #15 BMW won the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo – its second win of the season – ahead of the #51 Ferrari and #12 Cadillac. Rounding out the top ten were the No. 38 Cadillac, No. 20 BMW, No. 83 Ferrari, No. 20 BMW, No. 007 Aston Martin, No. 51 Ferrari, No. 009 Aston Martin and No. 35 Alpine.
Taking advantage of Toyota’s misfortunes, BMW returned to within one point of the Japanese manufacturer in the World Championship. However, the No. 20 BMW led the drivers’ standings against the No. 7 Toyota, the 24 Hours of Le Mans winner.
In LMGT3, the #34 Turkey Racing Team TF Corvette won the race ahead of the #69 WRT BMW and the #92 Porsche of The Bend Manthey.
6 hours Sao Paulo – Course
6 hours Sao Paulo – CourseAll statistics
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