Cambridge racer Callum Ilott finishes second with Hertz Team JOTA at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar to open up 11-point lead in FIA World Cup
Callum Ilott finished second on his Hypercar debut while racing for the first time with Hertz Team JOTA at the Losail International Circuit in Qatar on Saturday.
The result by Cambridge-born Ilott and team-mates Will Stevens and Norman Nato not only earned the British team its maiden Hypercar podium finish, but also an 11-point lead in the FIA World Cup for Hypercar Teams for Hertz Team JOTA’s #12 Porsche 963.
The near 1,200-mile race which ran in darkness, under floodlights in the final stages and lasted almost 10 hours, saw the #12 Porsche in podium contention throughout.
“What a start to the year. I’m delighted with second place overall and the first ‘privateer’ team home which gives us the lead in the FIA World Cup for Hypercar Teams standings,” said Ilott.
“Hertz Team JOTA did an amazing job and the team was incredible to work with. They made it super easy for me on my Hypercar debut as did my team-mates Norman and Will, who were both fast and did solid jobs.
“We arrived in Qatar with a great car. JOTA worked very hard over the winter to put everything in the right window and so from the start of practice after the prologue in which we topped two sessions, we were consistently fast with our Porsche showing great pace.
“It was a very, very long race and we battled hard. We made no mistakes, had solid pace and undertook a different strategy to our rivals – trying to extend our stints and it paid off.
“We all kept chipping away and, ultimately, after great strategy and team-work, I was catching the second-placed car in the closing laps. Unfortunately for them, their car stopped on the penultimate lap.”
The eight-race series will resume over the weekend of 19 April at Imola in Italy.
Ilott added: “Let’s now see what Imola holds for us. It’s a track I know reasonably well.
“I raced there in 2016 in Formula 3 and I don’t think too much has changed there. We’ll all be giving it our best to extend our lead in the championship.”
