Cecilia Rabelo kicks off Porsche Sprint Challenge Brazil campaign with double win at Interlagos

“We definitely started the season on the right foot" - Cecilia Rabelo launched her 2026 Porsche Sprint Challenge Brazil campaign in dominant fashion at Interlagos, securing a flawless double Sport class victory, to take an early lead in the championship fight.

Photo credits: Rafael Gagliano

Cecilia Rabelo enjoyed a flawless start to her sophomore Porsche Sprint Challenge Brazil campaign, securing a commanding double class victory in the Sport category at the opening round of the season at Interlagos. The Brazilian driver combined strong qualifying, intelligent racecraft, and consistent pace across both races to leave the São Paulo circuit as the early championship leader in class while also fighting competitively inside the overall top positions.

The results marked another clear step forward in Rabelo’s progression through GT racing, following an encouraging international appearance earlier in the year. At the start of 2026, Rabelo in fact expanded her racing program with a debut in the GSX class of the IMSA VP Racing SportsCar Challenge at Daytona. Competing in Porsche GT4 machinery, the Brazilian showed steady improvement throughout the event while adapting to both wet and dry conditions at the iconic Florida circuit. She ultimately achieved a best result of sixth position, running in contention for a top-five finish.

After competing in Brazilian Formula 4 during the 2023 and 2024 seasons, where she secured a pole position, multiple top-ten finishes, and a career-best fourth-place result at Autódromo Velocittà, Rabelo moved into GT machinery in 2025. Driving the Porsche 991 GT3 Cup car in Porsche Sprint Challenge Brazil, she quickly established herself as a front-runner, claiming podium finishes and a race victory while consistently battling at the front of the Sport class field.

Returning for 2026 with bigger ambitions, Interlagos provided the perfect stage to launch her title campaign. Rabelo showed encouraging pace from the outset of the race weekend, making steady improvements throughout pre-event testing and consistently running inside the top three of the Sport Challenge class.

In official practice, she placed fourth overall and second in class, entering Friday qualifying with strong momentum. During Q1, Rabelo posted a lap time of 1:39.692, securing seventh fastest overall and advancing comfortably into the top-ten pole shootout. She followed this with another solid performance in the decisive session, setting a 1:39.744 lap to again qualify seventh overall - enough to secure pole position in the Sport Challenge category.

Starting seventh overall and from Sport class pole, Rabelo executed a clean rolling start, choosing the inside line into Turn 1 and successfully defending her position from Neto Heil. By the second lap, she gained another overall position while maintaining control of the class lead.

Early drama soon unfolded when Bentivoglio, Peres Jr, and Umbelino spun at Descida do Lago after encountering slippery conditions, prompting the deployment of the safety car.

At that stage, Gerson Campos led the race ahead of Daniel Neumann and Sadak Leite, while Rabelo ran sixth overall and comfortably led the Sport category with 17 minutes remaining.

When racing resumed a few minutes later, Rabelo immediately went on the attack, pressuring Will Cesar in the battle for fifth overall. Meanwhile, her class advantage grew rapidly as she opened a gap of several seconds to her nearest Sport class rivals.

As the field settled into rhythm, battles intensified further up the order for third and fourth positions. However, another major incident interrupted proceedings when Valverde spun at Turn 3 and struck the barriers heavily, triggering a second safety car period with only minutes remaining.

The race ultimately finished under caution, securing Rabelo sixth place overall and her first Sport Challenge class victory of the season.

“This year we are focusing on accumulating points during the stages to win the 2026 title", Rabelo commented on Saturday. "This time I was first in the Sport category and 6th overall. Tomorrow, with the grid inversion, the goal is to accumulate more points to be able to win the category championship and the overall title.”

Photo credits: Porsche Cup Brasil

Sunday’s second race presented an even greater opportunity. Thanks to the reversed grid, Rabelo lined up on overall pole position while also starting from the top spot in the Sport Challenge class. She shared the front row with Will Cesar, while her closest class rival Marco Mascari started seventh overall.

When the safety car pulled into the pits and racing began, Rabelo delivered a perfect getaway, maintaining the overall lead through Turn 1 and immediately establishing a comfortable margin as Sadak Leite and Will Cesar battled behind for second.

Leite soon cleared Cesar and began closing on Rabelo, who had already built nearly a one-second advantage during the opening lap. Leite eventually attempted an outside move at Turn 1, but Rabelo, aware that the fight was not critical for her class leadership, avoided unnecessary risks. Daniel Neumann also capitalized on the moment to move into second overall.

Meanwhile, Neto Heil, running second in the Sport category, held seventh overall, leaving Rabelo firmly in control of the class battle.

On the following lap, Gerson Campos advanced to third overall, while Rabelo settled comfortably into fourth position with a points-focused approach. Establishing a consistent rhythm, she benefited from battles unfolding behind her, which allowed her to maintain a safe margin.

Initially facing some pressure from Will Cesar, Rabelo remained composed, defended effectively while the leading five cars gradually pulled away from the rest of the field. Behind her, Guper moved into second place in the Sport class ahead of Heil, but both remained more than six seconds adrift of Rabelo’s lead.

Despite Cesar remaining close, Rabelo delivered consistently strong lap times without errors, leaving no overtaking opportunities. By lap 14, she was even gaining tenths on the cars ahead.

With another clean and flawless performance, Cecilia Rabelo secured her second consecutive Sport class victory, completing a perfect opening weekend in Porsche Sprint Challenge Brazil.

“We definitely started the season on the right foot. Two races, two wins right in the first weekend. We are confident in winning the Sport category title and getting those points to fight for the overall title.”

With two races, two class victories, and strong overall finishes at Interlagos, Rabelo leaves the season opener firmly positioned as a leading contender for the 2026 title, as she combined maturity in race management with increasingly competitive outright pace.