In only its fifth race as a manufacturer entry in the FIA World Endurance Championship, JOTA Sport achieved a commanding one-two finish in Brazil last month – demonstrating that its new relationship with Cadillac is rapidly bearing fruit.
Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA was formed over the winter off-season, with the Anglo/American alliance immediately illustrating its potential by briefly running first and second in the curtain-raising Qatar 1812km, until its two cars dramatically collided at a safety car re-start.
Round two at Imola would prove to be a disappointing affair, but a double top six next time out at Spa-Francorchamps hinted at better things to come, and a front row Hyperpole lockout at Le Mans made headlines on a global scale.
Although the team was unable to replicate that form in the race at La Sarthe – winding up fourth and seventh following the disqualification of the #50 Ferrari – Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA’s star was nonetheless clearly in the ascendancy, and that momentum was maintained in the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo.
The squad looked to have sewn up the front row of the grid again, only for Sébastien Bourdais to be docked a position for impeding another car during the qualifying session, but in the race, the two V-Series.R prototypes were unstoppable, leading 165 of the 242 laps on their way to securing the maiden one-two result by a US marque in the history of FIA WEC’s top-tier.
For decorated British outfit JOTA – winner of the most recent two FIA World Cups for Hypercar Teams, ten times a podium-finisher in the 24 Hours of Le Mans’ LMP2 category and a title-holder in both the European Le Mans Series and Asian Le Mans Series – Interlagos marked the latest step on an extraordinary journey.
“After an incredible qualifying at Le Mans with the historic front row lockout and a very convincing qualifying in Brazil, the one-two finish is absolute testimony to the phenomenal teamwork of everyone at Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA,” affirmed JOTA co-founder and director, David Clark. “Sam [Hignett] and I could not be prouder of every single individual who has contributed to this breathtaking performance.
“Without doubt, our gratitude goes to General Motors and Cadillac for their trust in us, and a special thank you to the whole JOTA family. Their passion and belief has been rewarded. To be the first team to win with two manufacturers in little over a year (after prevailing outright with Porsche in Belgium in 2024) is a huge honour and a clear indicator that we’re getting something very right. It genuinely doesn’t get better than this.”
“I think for the programme, what everyone’s worked for since the very beginning in 2022, this is a proud moment,” echoed Earl Bamber, one of the undisputed stars of the early part of the race. “We’ve had a tough season in the #38 car, so to get second place is great and the #12 guys did an amazing job!”
Indeed, while Bamber, Bourdais and Jenson Button did not enjoy such a smooth weekend as their team-mates in the sister V-Series.R, they nonetheless did enough to fend off the threat of the #5 Porsche in the closing stages of the six-hour Brazilian contest to cement their own first podium appearance of 2025.
“It’s been a very emotional year in terms of a rollercoaster, but to finally get a one-two for this amazing team is special,” reflected 2009 Formula 1 World Champion, Button. “I’m really proud of everyone – they’ve worked so hard.
“The partnership between JOTA and Cadillac just shows how well we’ve gelled and how we’re one big family. Well done to the #12 car for the win – untouchable. I enjoyed it out there. The car was the best I’ve had all year. Long may that continue!”
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