Sensational Sunday for BMW M Team WRT in Fuji! In the seventh and penultimate race of the FIA World Endurance Championship (FIA WEC) season, the #15 BMW M Hybrid V8 achieved the first overall podium for BMW M Motorsport in the history of the World Endurance Championship. Raffaele Marciello, Dries Vanthoor, and Marco Wittmann first celebrated second place together on the podium and then with the entire team, which did a perfect job over the weekend. There was also a champagne shower in the LMGT3 class. Ahmad Al Harthy, Maxime Martin, and Valentino Rossi topped off a spectacular comeback from twelfth on the grid to third place on the podium.
The BMW M Hybrid V8 impressed at the foot of Mount Fuji in the practice sessions and achieved the best time of the day on Friday. In qualifying, Vanthoor then secured the best start position for the hypercar to date with third place in car #15. In the race, Wittmann improved to second place at the start, which he and his fellow drivers managed to hold onto until the finish with a flawless performance. The previously best season result for the #20 BMW M Hybrid V8 was sixth place at Imola. This time, Robin Frijns, René Rast, and Sheldon van der Linde were not lucky. As early as the second lap, Rast had to avoid an accident in turn one and was hit by debris, which damaged the front so severely that it had to be changed. That cost two laps and any chance of a top result, although the pace of car #20 was very good.
In the LMGT3 class, both BMW M4 GT3s managed spectacular comebacks after disappointing qualifying sessions from twelfth and sixteenth on the grid. At times, both vehicles were on course for the podium. Ultimately, the crew of car #46 celebrated third place, while in the #31 BMW M4 GT3, Augusto Farfus, Sean Gelael, and Darren Leung finished tenth after an unprovoked collision and decreasing pace towards the end of the race.
A mega weekend for us at Fuji! First podium for BMW M Team WRT and the BMW M Hybrid V8 in our debut season in FIA WEC – simply fantastic. Congratulations to the crew of car #15 and the drivers Raffaele Marciello, Dries Vanthoor, and Marco Wittmann! On the LMGT3 side of the garage, we experienced a fantastic race.
Finally! We have finally arrived where we want to be. With the #15 BMW M Hybrid V8, we were fully engaged all weekend. It's an incredible feeling. Everyone did an exceptional job. I am overjoyed for the team, which has been giving their all for this project for a year and a half. Now we have reaped the deserved reward. In the LMGT3 class, we didn't have the fastest car, but we were able to work a bit of magic in terms of strategy.
Driver statements.
Raffaele Marciello (BMW M Team WRT, #15 BMW M Hybrid V8, 2nd place): “It's great for the project and everyone at BMW M Motorsport to have secured the first Hypercar podium in WEC, especially for Vincent Vosse and Andreas Roos, who pushed so hard. We've seen progress throughout the season. After Austin, we thought this track might not be the best for us, but the improvements we made paid off. It's a big boost for us drivers and the team. It's not just about the podium – it's about being able to compete at the front and perform well. That's a great feeling.”
Dries Vanthoor (BMW M Team WRT, #15 BMW M Hybrid V8, 2nd place): “An incredible race. The first podium for BMW M Motorsport in FIA WEC is a fantastic achievement. This is a very special moment for everyone who has worked so hard on this project. Considering where we started this season, and now seeing where we stand, it's huge progress. Second place is great, but we're not quite where we want to be yet – that's a victory.”
Marco Wittmann (BMW M Team WRT, #15 BMW M Hybrid V8, 2nd place): “It's a great feeling for us drivers, for the entire team, and for BMW M Motorsport. That we have now achieved our first WEC podium with this project is fantastic. We gave strong performance throughout the weekend – in practice as well as in qualifying – and had a good pace in the race. We drove flawlessly and had a successful start. Looking at where we started and the progress we've made, we can really be proud. The first podium feels incredibly good, and the entire team has done a fantastic job. I'm super happy. Now we want to achieve a similarly strong result in Bahrain to conclude the season.”
René Rast (BMW M Team WRT, #20 BMW M Hybrid V8, DNF): “There was an incident in turn 1 in lap two. I tried to avoid it and went straight on. At some point, parts flew onto my car – I think even a rear wing from a Porsche – and that tore off the flicks at the front. Something also broke under the car. As a result, we lost time because we had to change the nose which took two laps. That practically ended the race for us. Nevertheless, the second place for the project, Team WRT, and BMW M Motorsport is a huge success. The pace was there in both cars. I'm absolutely thrilled for everyone, especially for Vincent Vosse and Andreas Roos, and for all those working in the background who have invested so much time over the past months. It feels really good.“
Valentino Rossi (Team WRT, #46 BMW M4 GT3, 3rd place): “We are so happy! It feels very good after our DNF in Austin two weeks ago. This race was hard but Ahmad, Maxime and I did a fantastic job in our stints and our team made once again the perfect strategy and the perfect pitstops. It is our second podium this season and we are very happy!”
Augusto Farfus (Team WRT, #31 BMW M4 GT3, 10th place): “Difficult race for us. We lost pace and we will investigate what happened exactly. We could not fight for a better result and unfortunately the championship is gone. Let’s now fight for the vice-championship title!”