A month after equalling the record for the most victories by a single tyre manufacturer in the 24 Hours of Le Mans with its 34th success at La Sarthe, Michelin is fully focused on its next challenge – a trip to South America for this weekend’s Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo (12-13 July).
The Brazilian fixture marks a striking contrast to Le Mans, as competitors trade the FIA World Endurance Championship’s fastest and longest circuit (13.626km) for its shortest, with anti-clockwise Interlagos measuring just 4.309km. Located in São Paulo’s southern suburbs and officially known as the Autódromo José Carlos Pace, it is also notoriously twisty and hilly.
“The track has been entirely resurfaced since 2024, so we will be starting practically from scratch this time around,” notes Pierre Alves, the manager of Michelin Motorsport’s endurance racing programmes.
“We will consequently need to analyse every lap of each car during free practice and qualifying in order to evaluate the optimal performance windows of our two compound options. Interlagos can make big demands on tyres, especially the rear-lefts, including a vertical load of 1,025kg on the rears through Turn 11!”
Last season saw world-class endurance racing visit São Paulo for the first time since Porsche’s LMP1 919 Hybrid prevailed at the circuit with Michelin ten years earlier. Hypercars have since taken over as the stars of FIA WEC, and the simulator-developed MICHELIN Pilot Sport tyres on today’s extremely sophisticated prototypes are clearly very different to those that raced in 2014.
“We saw a variety of strategies here last year, with teams even running a combination of our medium and hard compound at the same time,” adds Alves. “Careful tyre management will be key to benefitting fully from the Pilot Sport’s consistency when multi-stinting.”
The 18 Hypercars fielded by the eight different manufacturers contesting the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo will all compete on Michelin rubber, with a total allocation of 18 tyres for qualifying and the race.
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