The 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) heads to Brazil this weekend for the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo, with Interlagos hosting the first long-haul event of the 2026 season. The round runs from 10 to 12 July at the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, as the championship resumes after the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The Brazilian venue returned to the WEC calendar in 2024 after a decade away and quickly reminded the paddock of its unique atmosphere. Last year, almost 85,000 fans packed the grandstands and spectator banks, making São Paulo the third-best attended event of the season.
Now, the championship arrives with major storylines in both classes. Toyota leads the Hypercar title race after Le Mans, Cadillac returns to the scene of its breakthrough WEC win, BMW continues to build momentum, and Ferrari needs to change its recent Interlagos record. Meanwhile, LMGT3 promises another tight fight as Lexus, Aston Martin, Corvette, BMW, Ferrari and Porsche all carry strong reasons to target victory.
Interlagos gives teams a short but demanding challenge
Interlagos gives the FIA WEC field the shortest lap of the season, but it rarely gives drivers or engineers an easy weekend.
The 4.309km anti-clockwise layout combines flowing corners, heavy braking zones and frequent elevation changes. Hypercars can reach around 305km/h, while drivers spend roughly half of the lap at full throttle. The circuit also sits almost 800 metres above sea level, forcing teams to manage cooling, engine performance and tyre behaviour carefully.
Although endurance racing often reduces the importance of grid position, São Paulo has traditionally rewarded strong Qualifying. No WEC race at the circuit has produced an outright winner from beyond the front row, while no class winner has started lower than fifth. Therefore, Saturday’s Qualifying and Hyperpole sessions could prove just as important as Sunday’s six-hour race.
Toyota arrives with championship control
Toyota heads to Brazil with momentum and history on its side.
Interlagos gave the Japanese manufacturer its first FIA WEC victory in 2012, and Toyota remains the only current Hypercar marque to have won there more than once. This weekend, its Le Mans-winning TR010 Hybrid will try to follow the path set by Toyota’s previous São Paulo winners.
The #7 Toyota crew also arrives as the current championship leader after winning at Le Mans. Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Nyck de Vries will share that car in Brazil, while Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryō Hirakawa return in the #8 entry.
Conway will also reach a major personal milestone in São Paulo. He will become only the third driver to make 90 FIA WEC starts, joining Toyota team-mate Buemi and Manthey LMGT3 driver Richard Lietz.
Cadillac targets another Interlagos breakthrough
Cadillac returns to Brazil with the best recent form at the circuit.
Last year, the American manufacturer claimed its first FIA WEC victory with a dominant one-two performance alongside JOTA. The Cadillac V-Series.R also holds the Hypercar lap record at Interlagos in both Qualifying and race trim.
However, Cadillac has not stood on the WEC podium since that 2025 São Paulo victory. Its best result since came at Le Mans last month, where it finished fourth. As a result, Brazil gives Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA an ideal chance to turn strong circuit history into renewed championship momentum.
The team brings two V-Series.R entries to Interlagos. Will Stevens and Norman Nato share the #12 car, while Earl Bamber, Sébastien Bourdais and Jack Aitken line up in the #38.
BMW enters as the Hypercar dark horse
BMW arrives at Interlagos as one of the most dangerous challengers in the Hypercar field.
The #20 BMW M Team WRT crew of Robin Frijns, René Rast and Sheldon van der Linde already led the standings earlier this season after BMW claimed a one-two at Spa-Francorchamps. The Bavarian manufacturer then backed that up with second place at Le Mans, confirming the M Hybrid V8’s growing strength across different circuit types.
That Spa victory marked BMW’s first outright global endurance racing win in almost 27 years. Although Toyota took the championship lead at Le Mans, BMW now has another chance to close the gap at a shorter, more technical circuit.
With the #15 and #20 cars both on the entry list, BMW has two strong chances to keep its title challenge alive in Brazil.
Ferrari looks for answers in São Paulo
Ferrari faces a very different kind of weekend.
The 499P has not finished higher than fifth at Interlagos, and Ferrari’s dominant early-season run in 2025 stopped at this venue. Since then, the reigning world champion manufacturer has not won a FIA WEC race.
That record gives the Italian marque a clear target. The #50, #51 and #83 Ferrari entries all have the quality to fight at the front, but Interlagos has not yet played to the 499P’s strengths. Therefore, Ferrari needs a clean Friday, a strong Qualifying performance and sharper race execution to challenge Toyota, Cadillac and BMW.
A packed Hypercar field raises the stakes
The provisional entry list features 17 Hypercars, with Aston Martin, Toyota, Cadillac, BMW, Genesis, Alpine, Ferrari and Peugeot all represented. That depth will make traffic management, pit timing and tyre strategy crucial across the six hours.
Interlagos could also make FIA WEC history this weekend. The last four WEC races in Brazil have gone to four different manufacturers, and no circuit has ever produced five different winners consecutively. Toyota and Cadillac have already won at the track among the current Hypercar field, but BMW, Ferrari, Porsche, Peugeot, Alpine, Aston Martin or Genesis could extend that streak.
Brazilian fans will also have a home Hypercar storyline through Pipo Derani. He joins André Lotterer and Mathys Jaubert in Genesis Magma Racing’s #17 GMR-001, giving the local crowd a driver to follow in the top category.
Lexus returns to the scene of LMGT3 success
LMGT3 also brings a compelling form guide into São Paulo.
Last year, Akkodis ASP Team delivered a landmark victory for Lexus at Interlagos. Petru Umbrărescu, Clemens Schmid and José María López won in the #87 Lexus RC F LMGT3, and López became the first driver to win in both current FIA WEC categories.
That win offered redemption for the team after it withdrew one of its cars from the previous São Paulo event following Clemens Schmid’s FP1 accident. This season, Akkodis faced reliability issues at Imola and Spa, but it returned to form with second place at Le Mans. Therefore, the team arrives back in Brazil with renewed confidence.
The #87 Lexus returns with Umbrărescu, Schmid and López, while the #78 Akkodis ASP Team car adds another Lexus entry to the LMGT3 fight.
Aston Martin carries strong GT pedigree
Aston Martin has every reason to feel confident at Interlagos.
The Vantage has repeatedly worked well in São Paulo, and Aston Martin remains the only LMGT3 brand to have scored multiple podiums at the circuit. No GT manufacturer has collected more top-three finishes there, while Aston Martin also shares the record as the joint-winningest marque across all FIA WEC classes at Interlagos.
That pedigree gives Heart of Racing Team a strong foundation. The #23 and #27 Aston Martin entries will try to convert that history into another podium as LMGT3 continues to tighten after Le Mans.
LMGT3 rivals prepare for a multi-marque fight
The 18-car LMGT3 field brings nine manufacturers to São Paulo: McLaren, Ferrari, Aston Martin, BMW, Corvette, Mercedes-AMG, Ford, Lexus and Porsche. That variety should create different strengths across the lap, especially through Interlagos’ flowing middle sector and heavy braking zones.
Lexus, Aston Martin and Corvette all finished on the LMGT3 podium in Brazil last year and repeated that achievement at Le Mans last month. BMW also carries a strong local storyline through Augusto Farfus, who races in the #32 Team WRT M4 LMGT3 Evo as one of Brazil’s home drivers at the event.
Meanwhile, Ferrari and Porsche both need stronger São Paulo results. The Ferrari 296 has not yet taken an Interlagos podium and has no finish better than sixth at the circuit, while Porsche’s 911 GT3 R has not won outside Europe since its 2024 São Paulo success.
Key 2026 Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo schedule
The São Paulo weekend begins with Free Practice on Friday before Qualifying and Hyperpole take centre stage on Saturday. The six-hour race then starts on Sunday morning.
- Friday, 10 July
- Free Practice 1 — 11:00 local time
- Free Practice 2 — 15:50 local time
- Saturday, 11 July
- Free Practice 3 — 10:10 local time
- LMGT3 Qualifying — 14:30 local time
- LMGT3 Hyperpole — 14:50 local time
- Hypercar Qualifying — 15:25 local time
- Hypercar Hyperpole — 15:45 local time
- Sunday, 12 July
- Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo — 11:30 local time
All times are local to São Paulo, Brazil, GMT-3.
What to watch in Hypercar
Qualifying may decide more than usual this weekend. Interlagos has never produced an outright FIA WEC winner from beyond the front row, so the Hyperpole fight should carry significant consequences for Sunday.
Toyota enters as the championship benchmark, Cadillac brings proven São Paulo performance, BMW has recent momentum, and Ferrari needs a reset. However, the short lap and mixed-class traffic could also open opportunities for manufacturers that execute cleanly through pit cycles.
As a result, the key battle may not only come down to outright speed. Teams must manage traffic, tyre wear, energy deployment and cooling across six hours at altitude.
What to watch in LMGT3
LMGT3 should deliver an equally open contest. Lexus returns as the defending São Paulo winner, Aston Martin brings the strongest GT record at the circuit, and Corvette arrives with recent Le Mans podium form. However, BMW has local expertise through Farfus, while Ferrari and Porsche both have clear points to prove.
The short lap will also keep the class under constant pressure from Hypercar traffic. Therefore, Bronze-driver pace, pit stop timing and tyre consistency could decide as much as single-lap performance.
São Paulo starts the next phase of the WEC season
The Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo begins an important stretch of the FIA WEC campaign after Le Mans.
Toyota wants to protect its championship advantage, Cadillac aims to revive its Interlagos magic, BMW hopes to reclaim momentum, and Ferrari needs to show that it can finally make the 499P work in Brazil. In LMGT3, Lexus, Aston Martin and Corvette arrive with recent form, while several major manufacturers chase a breakthrough.
Interlagos may be the shortest circuit on the calendar, but it could play a major role in shaping both championship fights.
