Sarah Bovy claims dominant pole position for Iron Dames in Interlagos

She did it again: Iron Dames' Sarah Bovy took a dominant pole position in FIA WEC - the second in the series this year and the seventh of her WEC career - on her first visit to the iconic Interlagos circuit.

Photo credits: Javier Jimenez / DPPI

Sarah Bovy did it again: the Iron Dame, arguably the best qualifier in the LMGT3 field, has secured pole position for the upcoming 6H of Sao Paulo, on her first visit to the Brazilian circuit.

The Belgian was forced to miss the 24 Hours of Spa two weeks ago following a heavy crash at the IMSA 6 Hours of the Glen just a few days before, but only a week later she was back in the Iron Dames Porsche at the ELMS 4H of Imola. Having recovered from a light concussion, it wouldn't take long before she set the team's first pole position of the season in ELMS. The team went on to convert it into a remarkable race victory, the first of the year for the all-female team that is making motorsport history weekend in and weekend out.

With the FIA World Endurance Championship making its return to Interlagos after last racing in Brazil in 2014, all Iron Dames headed to the home of the Brazilian GP for the first time.

And the weekend was off to a good start, as Bovy, Frey and Gatting were in the top five straight away in the first practice session, three tenths off the pace setter United Autosport McLaren, courtesy of a lap by Michelle Gatting in 1:36.168.

In the second practice, the Lamborghinis continued to perform well; Bovy recorded the team best lap in 1:36.794, which gave confidence for her qualifying run. More optimism came from Saturday's morning third practice: a 1:35.639 again by Sarah Bovy became the fourth fastest time of the weekend in LMGT3 - and put Iron Dames third fastest in the session.

As per regulations, bronze-rated then Bovy took over driving duties for the qualifying session, strong from the previous practice performances.

In an overcast Q1, Sarah's first lap placed the #85 Lamborghini in third position. Francois Heriau's Vista AF Corse Ferrari held the top spot, three-tenths ahead of the United Autosport McLaren driven by Josh Caygill.

Darren Leung then improved his position to third before Aliaksandr Malykhin in the #92 Mathey PureRxcing Porsche set the new fastest time of 1:35.462 with only five minutes remaining on the clock. Bovy improved her time but was relegated to ninth after her lap was disallowed due to track limits.

With just over a minute and a half left, Sarah delivered one of her trademark laps, reclaiming the top spot on the leaderboard with a 1:35.299 that placed the Iron Dames Huracan one-tenth ahead of the Manthey Porsche. No one could surpass her time in the closing moments, and Sarah Bovy safely brought the magenta Lamborghini back to the pits, having secured access to the hyperpole session.

The hyperpole began after an early red flag caused by Thomas Flohr's #54 Ferrari spinning on cold tyres. Once the session resumed, Josh Caygill set the early pace; however, Sarah Bovy was determined to fight for pole and recorded the fastest lap with a time of 1:34.413 with just a couple of minutes remaining.

Malykhin improved to second fastest, but was still almost four-tenths behind the Iron Dames Lamborghini. Sarah continued to dominate, posting the fastest time in sector 1. With no other drivers able to challenge her time, though, she returned to the pits, securing yet another pole position surrounded by cheerful Brazilian audience.

This marked Sarah Bovy's seventh pole in her FIA WEC career and her second consecutive one, following her pole position at the ELMS 4 Hours of Imola just a week ago, and the second of the 2024 FIA WEC campaign, after the 6 Hours of Spa.

“Taking pole at São Paulo feels different because it is a track synonymous with Ayrton Senna", Bovy said. "I’m a bit emotional right now because this is very special. Thank you very much to the entire team for giving me a great car again and I can't wait go racing tomorrow.”

She will line up alongside Malykin's #92 Manthey PureRxcing Porsche in tomorrow's 6H of Sao Paulo, with the #95 and #59 United Autosport McLarens sharing the second row.

The race will get underway at 11:30 local time on Sunday, 14th July.