The fourth round of the FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC) took place at the Interlagos circuit in Brazil this past weekend. BMW M Team WRT had a successful weekend, scoring their second overall victory of the year and putting another car on the podium in the LMGT3 class.
BMW M Team WRT had momentum coming into Brazil in the top Hypercar class. They had a strong second place finish in the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June and finished one-two at the 6 Hours of Spa-Franchorchamps in early May.
In Brazil, the pair of M Hybrid V8 Hypercar class entries weren’t all that quick in the practice sessions before qualifying and the race, but the #15 car of Kevin Magnussen, Raffaele Marciello and Dries Vanthoor put up a solid time in qualifying to start the race in fourth. The #20 entry driven by Sheldon van der Linde, René Rast and Robin Frijns was a bit off all weekend and only qualified in sixteenth position.
In the LMGT3 class, the #69 M4 GT3 EVO of Anthony McIntosh, Parker Thompson and Dan Harper qualified fourth, while the #32 M4 GT3 EVO of Augusto Farfus, Darren Leung and Sean Gelael qualified ninth in class. Both of the M4 GT3 EVO entries were running with a striking Brazil-inspired livery that really stood out on the track.
Kevin Magnussen started the race in the #15 M Hybrid V8 and put in an assertive first lap to move into third and then into second by lap eleven. By mid-race, the #15 car was in the lead with Raffaele Marciello at the wheel, after a quick pit stop by the WRT crew put them out ahead of the leading Cadillac. The #15 lost the lead briefly when the #51 Ferrari got by late in the race, but the BMW got back into the lead after the final pit stop when it jumped ahead of the Ferrari, and Dries Vanthoor was able to hold the lead until the end. The #20 car performed well in the race to move up to eighth spot after starting in sixteenth.
Raffaele Marciello (left), Dries Vanthoor (middle) and Kevin Magnussen celebrate their win.
The win at Interlagos was the second of the year for BMW Team WRT after the win at Spa, and the first FIA WEC win for Vanthoor, Magnussen and Marciello. “I’m incredibly happy for everyone,” said Kevin Magnussen. “The car was simply fantastic. Today, the BMW M Hybrid V8 was one of the fastest cars and a pleasure to drive. The strategy was perfect; the pit stops too – everything just worked today. My two teammates did an excellent job. That’s why I’m overjoyed to have finally achieved this victory. It took a long time, but now we’ve finally done it.” BMW is now second in Hypercar manufacturer points behind Toyota, and the eighth-place finish by van der Linde, Frijns and Rast gave them enough points to lead the Hypercar driver championship.
BMW M Team WRT also had a strong race in the LMGT3 class, with the #69 M4 GT3 EVO of McIntosh, Thompson and Harper finishing second behind the winning 334 Corvette. It was the trio’s second podium finish of the year after winning at Imola back in April. “Second place here in Brazil is a fantastic result,” said Harper. “We didn’t expect that, as the circuit didn’t really suit the BMW M4 GT3 EVO. I think the cooler conditions on race day played into our hands. The longer the race went on, the better our car became. Hats off to my teammates who put us in a great position with their qualifying laps and stints. The team did a perfect job and found the optimal strategy for us. Everyone deserved this podium.” The #32 M4 GT3 EVO finished in twelfth.
The next round of the FIA WEC is the Lone Star Le Mans race here in the US at Circuit of the Americas on the weekend of September 4th-6th.
—David Haueter
[Photos courtesy Michele Scudiero / Drew Gibson Photography]