Samwise Sportscar & Endurance Newsletter
Monday, July 13, 2026
BMW M Team WRT Claims São Paulo 6 Hours to Ignite Hypercar Title Fight
BMW M Team WRT's #15 of Kevin Magnussen, Raffaele Marciello and Dries Vanthoor won the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo, claiming BMW's second Hypercar victory of the 2026 FIA WEC season. Starting fourth on the grid, the trio contested the lead with the #51 Ferrari AF Corse 499P for much of the race before a fuel strategy advantage proved decisive. Carrying more fuel, the BMW ran almost twelve minutes longer before its final stop, returning Vanthoor to the front. He crossed the line 2.254 seconds ahead of the Ferrari; the #12 Cadillac Hertz Team Jota completed the podium. Toyota's manufacturers' lead now stands at just five points over BMW.
Sources: Motorsport.com Share ↗
Toyota Endures Double Penalty Blow at Interlagos, Surrenders Drivers' Lead
Toyota Racing's São Paulo campaign unravelled through race-day penalties and a significant pace deficit. The championship-leading #7 GR010 Hybrid of Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Conway and Nyck de Vries received infringement penalties for a start violation and a Full Course Yellow breach during the race, falling to twelfth place and finishing a lap down on the winner. The team surrendered the drivers' championship lead it held entering the weekend. A separate incident involving the #8 Toyota—suspension damage from contact with the #17 Genesis—left Hartley, Buemi and Hirakawa classified seventeenth. Despite the double setback, Toyota retains its lead in the manufacturers' standings with four rounds remaining.
Sources: Toyota Newsroom Share ↗
Vanthoor Battles Illness in Final Stint to Secure BMW's São Paulo Victory
Dries Vanthoor faced a significant personal challenge in the decisive final phase of the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo after entering the #15 BMW M Hybrid V8 feeling unwell. The Belgian immediately reported the illness over team radio and needed to control his breathing while simultaneously managing the car, racing traffic and pressure from James Calado's pursuing Ferrari. A brief off-track excursion during the penultimate hour had handed the virtual lead to the Ferrari before BMW's superior fuel load allowed Vanthoor to run longer and re-emerge ahead from the final pit stop. He maintained his composure to complete the stint and bring the car to victory 2.254 seconds clear.
Vosse Hails 'Faultless Race' as WRT Celebrates São Paulo Double Podium
BMW M Team WRT principal Vincent Vosse praised a 'faultless race' after the WRT organisation celebrated a double podium at the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo. The #15 BMW M Hybrid V8 of Kevin Magnussen, Raffaele Marciello and Dries Vanthoor won the Hypercar class, while the No. 69 WRT BMW secured second place in the LMGT3 category. The #20 BMW of René Rast, Robin Frijns and Sheldon van der Linde also recovered from the rear of the Hypercar grid to finish sixth in class. The result reflected a comprehensive performance for WRT across both the Hypercar and LMGT3 categories at Interlagos, with all three cars completing the race.
Sources: Pit Debrief Share ↗
TF Sport Corvette Claims LMGT3 Class Honors at Interlagos
Racing Team Turkey's #34 TF Sport-run Corvette C8.R of Peter Dempsey, Charlie Eastwood and Salih Yoluc claimed the LMGT3 class victory in the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo at Interlagos. The team deployed a carefully structured driver order, placing Silver-rated Yoluc at the wheel for the opening phase and saving Bronze driver Dempsey for the middle stint, a sequence that kept the Corvette consistently at the front of the class field. Eastwood and Dempsey both posted competitive lap times in their stints to ensure the car came home cleanly. The victory was the team's second LMGT3 win of the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship season.
Sources: Pit Debrief Share ↗
Dillmann and Clarke Win IMSA LMP2 Race at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park
Tom Dillmann and Jeremy Clarke won the IMSA Chevrolet Grand Prix at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park for Inter Europol Competition, the team's second LMP2 victory of the 2026 season. Clarke started from pole—setting a new LMP2 lap record during qualifying—and led the opening phase before handing to Dillmann for the final stint. With around 70 minutes remaining, Dillmann made a decisive pass on the leading Crowdstrike by APR ORECA into Turn 2 during heavier lap traffic and held on to take the win. After the final pit stop cycle, Inter Europol ran unchallenged to the chequered flag, building on the team's strong qualifying form at the Bowmanville circuit.
Hawksworth and Barnicoat Score Back-to-Back GTD Pro Wins for Vasser Sullivan Lexus
Jack Hawksworth and Ben Barnicoat gave Vasser Sullivan Lexus back-to-back IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD Pro victories at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, taking the chequered flag in their #14 Lexus RC F GT3. The team maintained firm control through the race and pit stop cycle to deny the championship-leading #1 Paul Miller Racing BMW M4 GT3 Evo of Neil Verhagen and Connor De Phillippi a points-extending result. Verhagen had claimed GTD Pro pole position with a lap of 1m14.382s, but the starting advantage did not convert into victory. The result keeps the GTD Pro title race competitive heading toward the Road America endurance round later this month.
Ward and Ellis Make Winward Racing First GTD Double Winners of 2026
Russell Ward and Philip Ellis scored their second GTD class win of the 2026 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park in the No. 57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO, making them the first GTD entry to claim two victories this season. Ellis made the decisive move just before halfway, passing defending CTMP race winner Trent Hindman's #45 Wayne Taylor Racing Lamborghini down the Andretti straight to take the class lead. After the final pit stop cycle with approximately an hour remaining, Winward ran unchallenged to the chequered flag. The winning margin over second-placed Vasser Sullivan Lexus was 1.886 seconds.
WEC Hypercar — Drivers
1. Kobayashi / Conway / de Vries — 75 pts
2. Rast / Frijns — 71 pts
3. van der Linde — 61 pts
4. Hartley / Hirakawa / Buemi — 56 pts
5. Pier Guidi / Giovinazzi / Calado — 39 pts
(After Round 3 — Le Mans)
WEC Hypercar — Teams
1. Toyota — 132 pts
2. BMW — 96 pts
3. Ferrari — 62 pts
4. Alpine — 38 pts
5. Cadillac — 32 pts
IMSA GTP — Drivers
1. Jack Aitken — 203 pts
(After Watkins Glen; no GTP at CTMP)
IMSA GTP — Teams
1. No. 31 Cadillac Whelen Racing (leads)
IMSA GTP — Manufacturers
1. Cadillac — 2,182 pts
2. Porsche — 2,102 pts
Curated by JD · samwise.agency