![2025 FIA WEC 6 Hours of Sao Paulo: Race Report and Ramblings [w/video]](https://i3.wp.com/doubleapex.co.za/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/2025-FIA-WEC-6-Hours-of-Sao-Paulo.webp?w=1200&resize=1200,0&ssl=1 "2025 FIA WEC 6 Hours of Sao Paulo: Race Report and Ramblings [w/video]")
This 2025 FIA WEC 6 Hours of Sao Paulo race report was compiled by regular endurance-racing correspondent and motorsport fundi, Dr Nick van der Meulen.
The 6 Hours of Sao Paulo, the fifth round of the 2025 FIA World Endurance Championship, took place at Interlagos (a.k.a. Autodromo José Carlos Pace). It is a short circuit in comparison with others on the WEC calendar: 4,3 kilometres and 15 corners. It is twisty, without much of a straight to use raw speed and strong brakes are necessary.
The track is also not that wide, making overtaking and lapping cars a challenge. Race Direction performed several investigations regarding track-limit overtaking throughout the race. The Balance of Performance figures changed somewhat following the 24 Hours of Le Mans, with both Ferrari and Toyota the heaviest machines on the Hypercar grid, negatively affecting both marques. It was a relatively cool winter day, with track temperature around 31 degrees Celsius.
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Fast from the Get-Go
Alex Lynn (#12 Jota Cadillac, shared with Stevens/Nato) took his second pole position on the trot, but their lead at the start was short lived. Penske Porsche #5 (Andlauer/Chirstensen) had a strong start to the race, taking the lead from Cadillac #12 soon after the start and maintained its lead beyond the first pitstop after the first hour. Cadillac #12 was penalised for low tyre pressure, which they served at their first pit stop.
There was a superb tussle for the lead between Porsche #5 and Cadillacs #38 (Bamber/Bourdais/Button) and #12 just shy of the 2-hour mark. Cadillac #38 muscled its way past the Porsche into the lead, just after #12 pitted and the two Cadillacs dominated proceedings from then on. Cadillac #12 reclaimed the lead after the second round of stops and the two machines cantered to their first WEC victory (a 1-2 at that). Porsche #5 began chasing down the #38 for second place in the dying stages of the race, but could not claim the position.
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Porsche Pace
Penske Porsche had a good day at the office, with #5 finishing third ahead of sister #6 (Estre/L. Vanthoor), despite the latter serving a five-second penalty for a pitstop infringement. Proton Porsche #99 (Jani/Pino/Varrone) had a good race, claiming the final point on offer in tenth place (the second privateer finisher).
WRT BMW had a mixed day at Interlagos. It was a nightmare start for the team when #15 (Marciello/D. Vanthoor/Magnussen) pulled into the pits with less than 10 minutes of racing under the belt. They had a serious braking issue and spent 27 minutes in the pits to sort it out, losing 19 laps. The #20 machine (Rast/S. van der Linde/Wittmann) had a solid, if relatively anonymous, run to fifth position.
Sheldon van der Linde regained fifth place, with less than 10 min remaining, beating both Peugeots to the chequered flag. Peugeot had a better showing at Interlagos following a disastrous Le Mans. Both cars scored points, with #94 (Duval/Jakobsen) leading #93 (Di Resta/Jensen) to the chequered flag in sixth and seventh place, respectively.
Struggling for Pace
The adjusted Balance of Performance numbers prior to the event affected all three Ferrari Hypercars on the grid. AF Corse #83 (Kubica/Ye/Hanson) managed to finish eighth, despite software issues providing error messages before the race began. They were the first ‘privateer’ machine classified. Neither of the works machines finished in the points, although they had their chances to break into the top ten.
Ferrari #50 (Fuoco/Molina/Nielsen) had to pit for repairs after being tagged by LMGT3 TF Sport Corvette #33 (Keating/Edgar/Juncadella) after two-and-a-half hours. Ferrari #51 (Giovinazzi/Pier Guidi/Calado), on the other hand, had to serve a drive-through penalty for a strong defensive move on #99 Proton Porsche with 20 minutes remaining, dropping them outside the top ten.
Other Challengers
Alpine, like BMW, had a mixed day at the office. Alpine #35 (Chatin/Habsburg/Milesi) pitted early in the event with hybrid issues. While it appeared they would retire, they emerged on track 57 minutes later. The sister car #36 (Makowiecki/Gunoun/Schumacher), had a more solid race, claiming points for finishing ninth. Toyota, who won this event last season, had a terrible race. Neither car finished in the points and they were the two slowest cars in the field based on the fastest laps posted.
GT3LM Class
Akkodis Lexus scored their second points-scoring finish of the season in GTLM3 by winning the class at 6 Hours of Sao Paulo. Both of their machines ran strongly throughout the race, with #87 (Umbrarescu/Schnid/Lopez) dominating despite a drive-through penalty for pitlane speeding. The sister machine, #78 (Robin/Nakayama/Gehrsitz) ran strongly in second position, before fading to finish off the podium in fifth place.
TF Sort Corvette #81 had a strong showing at Interlagos, with #81 (van Rompuy/Andrade/Eastwood) finishing a strong second. The #33 machine (Keating/Juncadella/Edgar) was penalised for sending a rival into a spin in the first hour of racing and also had a skirmish with Ferrari #50. Despite this, they finished seventh in class.
Local Lad
Racing Spirit of Le Man Aston Martin #10 took pole position with local lad Eduardo Barrichello behind the wheel. They dropped out of the podium positions early in the race, but recovered strongly in the final hour. Barrichello took the wheel for the final session and carved his way back into a podium position, with 84 000 fans cheering him on. He won the Driver of the Day accolade for his efforts.
Iron Dames Porsche #85 (Gatting/Frey/Martin) were heartbroken to lose third place in the final ten minutes of the event and had to be content with points for fourth place. Stable mates Manthey 1st Phorm #92 (Hardwick/Pera/Lietz) finished in sixth position.
Points Scored
The top ten finishers in each class score points. There are three points-scoring allocation forms, with different allocations for 6-hour, 8-10-hour and 24-hour events, respectively.
Pier Guidi/Calado/Giovinazzi maintain their Hypercar championship lead with 105 points, ahead of Hanson/Kubica/Ye with 93 and Lynn/Nato/Stevens with 68 points. Sheldon van der Linde has 37 points and lies ninth in the standings.
LMGT3 Standings
In the LMGT3 class, Pera/Lietz/Hardwick lead with 89 points ahead of Rovera/Heriau/Mann (Vista AF Corse Ferrari #21) with 76 points. Keating/Juncadella/Edgar lies third with 66 points. Kelvin van der Linde lies 13th in the standings, with 22 points.
The FIA WEC series will enjoy a summer break, before returning for the sixth round at COTA, USA, with the Lone Star Le Mans on 7 September 2025.