Vosse: Magnussen’s Stint Key to Sao Paulo Victory

WRT team boss Vincent Vosse has hailed a strong first stint from Kevin Magnussen as being key to BMW’s victory in the 6 Hours of Sao Paulo, saying the No. 15 crew executed a “faultless” race despite not having the quickest car.

The BMW M Hybrid V8 achieved its second FIA World Endurance Championship victory at Interlagos thanks to Magnussen, Raffaele Marciello and Dries Vanthoor.

The No. 15 machine had qualified fourth but Magnussen was able to jump the third-placed Alpine A424 at the start before an aggressive move on Earl Bamber at Turn 6 in the first hour allowed Magnussen to split the two Hertz Team JOTA Cadillac V-Series.Rs that locked out the front row in qualifying.

This meant BMW was in a position to pounce when both Cadillacs lost time during the opening round of stops and was eventually able to take victory by just over two seconds from the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari 499P.

When asked about Magnussen’s beginning of the race, Vosse told Sportscar365: “He makes a great effort in his first stints and grabbing position.

“All the drivers did an incredible job but the start of Kevin was a key — we could see it gave us track position at the start.”

Vosse admitted it was “difficult to say” whether BMW would have been able to triumph without Cadillac’s pit stop woes that dropped the American manufacturer’s cars into the pack, but added: “We were not the quickest car but we did a faultless race — it was close, but it was enough.”

Magnussen was delighted to score his first WEC victory in Brazil at a venue that holds a “great memory” for him after taking a shock Formula 1 pole position for Haas at Interlagos in 2022.

“Every time I come here, I still get that amazing support from the Brazilian fans,” he said.

“When we got the pole with Haas, we were the underdogs and the roar from the crowd was crazy.

“They were so cool, and even the day after on the drivers’ parade, sitting next to seven-time world champions and whatnot, they were screaming my name.

“It touched me, and it touches me every time I see the support.”

The result was particularly sweet for the No. 15 crew after they failed to score in the 24 Hours of Le Mans last time out and narrowly missed out on victory at Spa to the sister No. 20 car of Rene Rast, Robin Frijns and Sheldon van der Linde.

“At Spa we felt we were on a winning course and then the sister car grabbed it in front of us,” said Magnussen.

“Of course a 1-2 for BMW was great but, on our side, we felt like we got robbed a little bit so it’s great to get that win today.”

Vanthoor had the honor of taking the checkered flag but felt ill and was unable to fully enjoy that final stint.

“It was’t my best feeling of being in the race car today,” he said. “I just didn’t really feel very well — I felt a bit dizzy and had a bit of a stomach issue.

“So, I’m happy I have brought it home for the team, and just super happy as well with the win. It’s been a long time in the making for us.”

The result means Magnussen and Marciello are now sixth in the drivers’ standings 25 points behind joint leaders, Rast/Frijns and the No. 7 Toyota, while Vanthoor is six points further back after missing the Imola opener due to an IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship clash.