A Cadillac day: JOTA makes history with 1-2 finish at Interlagos

Text: Rick Kiewiet

Images: Cadillac, Toyota, WEC

The breakthrough finally came. After two and a half seasons Cadillac claimed its first overall victory in the FIA World Endurance Championship — and did so with authority. The American manufacturer didn’t just win the 6 Hours of São Paulo, it locked out the top two steps of the podium in a performance that announced its arrival as a genuine force in Hypercar.

The No. 12 Cadillac V-Series.R of Will Stevens, Alex Lynn and Norman Nato recovered from an early drive-through penalty — issued for a tire pressure infringement at the start — to charge through the field and take a win that had been years in the making. From pole to victory the British-run Hertz Team JOTA operation executed flawlessly. Behind them, the sister No. 38 car of Jenson Button, Earl Bamber and Sébastien Bourdais completed the 1-2 for the Detroit brand, ensuring an unforgettable day in Brazil.

Porsche’s challenge came close once again. The No. 5 Penske 963 led early on with Julien Andlauer but slowly slipped back, eventually ceding the lead to Bamber’s Cadillac with a move around the outside into Turn 1. From there, the fight belonged to JOTA. Michael Christensen joined Andlauer on the third step of the podium, while Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor came home fourth in the No. 6 Porsche, a lap down.

BoP bite for Ferrari and Toyota

While Cadillac and Porsche made the most of their weekends, Ferrari and Toyota were nowhere. Pegged back by Balance of Performance adjustments after dominant results earlier in the season, both manufacturers and championship leaders endured miserable outings.

The highest-placed Ferrari was the No. 83 customer entry — the Le Mans-winning car — in eighth. Neither of the factory 499Ps made it into the top ten. Worse still, Toyota’s streak of scoring points in every Hypercar race came to an abrupt end. The reigning world champions finished 14th and 15th, marking their worst result in the WEC since 2018.

Peugeot showed signs of life with both 9X8s running in the top six for much of the afternoon, eventually finishing sixth and seventh. It was their best combined result of the year and a positive step forward for the French outfit, who, with the lightest car on the grid, quietly capitalized on attrition ahead.

BMW salvaged fifth with the No. 20 car thanks to a late charge on fresher tires, while Alpine again endured a race to forget. A hybrid system issue dropped the No. 35 to the bottom of the Hypercar field, 42 laps down.

Barrichello’s last-gasp podium lifts Interlagos

In LMGT3, Akkodis ASP and Lexus finally secured their maiden win. The No. 87 RC F GT3 of José María López, Clemens Schmid and Petru Umbrărescu dominated the class from the opening hour, even surviving a drive-through penalty for pit-lane speeding for López at mid-distance. Behind them, TF Sport brought the No. 81 Corvette home second after a tense multi-car scrap in the final hour.

But the biggest cheer of the day erupted just minutes before the chequered flag, as Eduardo Barrichello launched a last-gasp attack on Michelle Gatting’s Iron Dames Porsche to steal third in LMGT3. Born just minutes from the track, the young Brazilian got the audience on the benches after pulling off the move in the dying laps to secure a home-soil podium with Racing Spirit of Léman.

For the Iron Dames, it was another frustrating near-miss. A penalty for jumping the end of a Full Course Yellow — the result of Gatting getting on the throttle too early, still nursing the foot injury sustained at Le Mans — cost them a shot at victory. They finished fourth.