Antibes driver Norman Nato wins the fifth round of the World Endurance Championship in Brazil with ease

"Cadillac is back!" This Sunday evening, as soon as he crossed the finish line of the 6 Hours of São Paulo, he let his joy burst forth in three words over the onboard radio.

Along with British teammates Alex Lynn and Will Stevens, Norman Nato managed to break Ferrari's dominance in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) by winning hands down on the other side of the Atlantic in a fifth round dominated by the Cadillac V-Series.RN°12 in the race as well as in qualifying the day before.

In Brazil, the American manufacturer has just achieved a resounding one-two finish thanks to the trio Sébastien Bourdais-Jenson Button-Earl Bamber (No. 38) who beat the Porsche 963 No. 5 (Julien Andlauer-Michael Christensen) in extremis.

In front of the 84,741 spectators gathered around the Interlagos track, the Antibes native, the final relay runner, finished the job in fine style to seal the victory with a margin of no less than 57 seconds. "Apart from the penalty received just after the start (a drive-through for low rear tire pressure, editor's note) , everything went perfectly, we turned in a clean performance," said the fastest man in the race (1'24''498). "Very happy for Cadillac and Jota (the English team in charge of the official program). .. After the 24 Hours of Le Mans, we continued to work, to progress. It's going in the right direction. Looking forward to the next stage!"

Last month, on Sarthe soil, Lynn, the team's regular sprinter, had already propelled his "Caddy" to pole position. This attempt was unsuccessful, as the double-lap finish ended just off the podium (4th). There, neither Ferrari nor Porsche regained the upper hand.

For Nato, this success has a special flavor: "In 2024, I was absent when my teammates won with the Porsche Jota (6 Hours of Spa) because I was racing in Formula E the same weekend. Today, the story is different (he has crossed out the Berlin E-Prix on Saturday and Sunday in order to focus on endurance racing). Since it coincides with my birthday (33 years old since July 8), we will mark the occasion here by opening a good bottle of French wine together!"

The Brazilian clean sweep allows Cadillac to take second place in the constructors' championship, between Ferrari and Porsche, as the American leg looms on the horizon. The event is scheduled for eight weeks in Austin, Texas (Lone Star Le Mans, September 5-7).