FIA WEC Barcelona: Difficult Weekend Despite Strong Recovery Drive.
Barcelona. BMW M Team WRT produced a strong recovery drive at the penultimate round of the FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC) in Barcelona (ESP). In changeable conditions, Kevin Magnussen (DEN), Dries Vanthoor (BEL) and Raffaele Marciello (SUI) fought their way from 16th on the grid to seventh place in the #15 BMW M Hybrid V8. In the LMGT3 category, BMW M works driver Dan Harper (GBR), alongside Parker Thompson (CAN) and Anthony McIntosh (USA), secured his third podium finish of the season for Team WRT.
Both BMW M Hybrid V8 cars struggled for pace in qualifying. The #20 Shell BMW M Hybrid V8 started the “6 Hours of Barcelona” from 13th place, three positions ahead of its sister car. However, Magnussen quickly worked his way up the field in the #15 BMW M Hybrid V8 during the opening stages on the wet track. After receiving a ten-second time penalty for contact with a rival, the Dane handed the car over to Vanthoor in 13th place. On the drying Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, the Belgian fought his way up to fifth. After a brief refuelling stop a few laps before the finish, Marciello brought the #15 BMW M Hybrid V8 home in seventh place.
Meanwhile, René Rast (GER), Sheldon van der Linde (RSA) and Robin Frijns (NED) endured a bitter Sunday in Catalonia. Shortly after a Safety Car period during the first hour of the race, the #20 Shell BMW M Hybrid V8 had to pit due to insufficient tyre pressure. The car was subsequently also handed a 20-second time penalty. As a result, the crew dropped well down the order early in the race and eventually finished no higher than 14th.
Ahead of the season finale in Monza, Magnussen and Marciello moved up to third place in the drivers’ standings, with Rast and Frijns tied on points in fourth. BMW M Motorsport retained second place in the manufacturers’ standings and holds a 24-point advantage over third place heading into the final round. However, Toyota secured both the manufacturers’ and drivers’ titles with a one-two finish in Barcelona.
In the LMGT3 category, Harper, Thompson and McIntosh had reason to celebrate. The #69 BMW M4 GT3 EVO charged impressively through the field. Starting from 15th on the grid, Thompson and McIntosh had already brought Team WRT into the podium positions. BMW M works driver Harper brought home third place, securing the team’s third podium of the season. The trio had already finished on the podium in Imola (ITA) and São Paulo (BRA).
The sister car, the #32 BMW M4 GT3 EVO driven by BMW M works driver Augusto Farfus (BRA), Sean Gelael (IND) and Darren Leung (GBR), started from sixth place but gradually dropped back due to a series of penalties. Just three weeks after their triumph in Fuji, the trio ultimately had to settle for 12th place in the LMGT3 category.
Quotes after the race.
Andreas Roos (Head of BMW M Motorsport): “Unfortunately, we have had a disappointing weekend in Barcelona. We were already lacking pace with the Hypercar in qualifying. Our plan was to work our way forward in the race through strategy in the difficult weather conditions, which initially worked well. Unfortunately, neither car had a trouble-free race, particularly the #20 Shell BMW M Hybrid V8, with its additional, unplanned pit stop and the penalty. This set us back a long way. The #15 delivered a strong recovery drive and finished in seventh place. Naturally, we had hoped to still be in contention for the title in Monza, but unfortunately, we were unable to score enough points to keep the championship battle alive. Congratulations to Toyota on its well-deserved titles in both championships. The #69 BMW M4 GT3 EVO achieved a top result with third place in difficult conditions, and I am very pleased for the team.”
Vincent Vosse (Team Principal of BMW M Team WRT): “Unfortunately it is not the result we were hoping for. We didn’t have a trouble-free race. The tyre pressure issue cost us a lot on car #20 and put it out of contention. The number 15 had a strong race. But we did not have the ultimate pace. But we scored points and are still third and fourth in the drivers’ championship and second in the manufacturers’ championship. Congratulations to Toyota for the strong effort and the triumph in both championships, they were in another world today. In the drivers’ championship we are still fighting for the second position, but it is going to be tough with one race to go in Monza. In LMGT3, we celebrated a strong podium for the #69, which is always nice but, of course, we were hoping for a better overall result. Unfortunately the #32 had penalties, which dropped them into the mid-pack. A podium is always nice but, of course, we were hoping for more. Let’s see what we can do in Monza.”
Dries Vanthoor (BMW M Team WRT, #15 BMW M Hybrid V8, 7th place): “Obviously, not the weekend we had hoped for. We’ve been struggling throughout the week, with yesterday’s qualifying session being the low point in terms of pace. During the race, we had some good stints as we tried to make our way back through the field, and we managed to get back up to P5. However, we lost pace again towards the end of the race and couldn’t fight with the others, eventually dropping back to P7. Congratulations to Toyota! We had a good battle with them fighting for the manufacturers’ world championship. Looking back at last season, we’ve also made a big step forward, so we have to take some positives away from this, even though we’re disappointed today. At the same time, we can be happy that we were in contention for the world championship until the penultimate race of the season.”
René Rast (BMW M Team WRT, #20 Shell BMW M Hybrid V8, 14th place): “We already noticed during free practice that we were lacking grip and pace. That was confirmed in the race. Unfortunately, our tyre pressure was too low, so we had to pit and were penalised, which put us a lap down. We couldn’t recover from that, and we weren’t fast enough either. All in all, it was a very disappointing weekend, and we have lost the championship to Toyota. But they deserved it; they did a better job than we did. Congratulations.”
Dan Harper (Team WRT, #69 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, 3rd place in LMGT3): “It has been my first time here for FIA WEC. Obviously, I’ve had some experience here in GTWC, but not with Hypercars coming from behind. That was a new challenge, and, obviously, it’s not our strongest track. We had low expectations but, of course, high hopes, and, to be honest, we’ve done the perfect job. Qualifying was difficult, of course. Things just didn’t quite fall into place, so we started further back than we should have. Tony did a mega job in the first two stints under tricky conditions and got us back up to the front. Then Parker and a good strategy brought us right into the fight for the top five. I then jumped in and tried to hold on with everything I had. It was very close and very tricky, especially when it came to managing tyre pressures and energy towards the end, but I’m absolutely delighted to have secured a podium!”
Augusto Farfus (Team WRT, #32 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, 12th place in LMGT3): “It’s a real shame how the race went today, but, in the end, we gave it our best. We can’t win every weekend. We had a sensational race in Fuji, but we couldn’t repeat that performance here. Nevertheless, we’ll keep fighting and try to finish the season in Monza with a smile.”