Callum Ilott, driver of #12 JOTA Porsche 963, expressed his joy at achieving a second place in his debut in the Hypercar race at the FIA World Endurance Championship in Qatar, covering 1812 km. Alongside his teammates Will Stevens and Norman Nato, Ilott secured the team’s first Hypercar podium in Qatar, marking his first race in this category. The 25-year-old Ilott stated: “I am extremely pleased with our second place overall, which also puts us as the top ‘private’ team in the FIA World Hypercar Championship standings. The Hertz Team JOTA did an exceptional job and it was a pleasure to work with them. They made my Hypercar debut very easy, and my teammates Norman [Nato] and Will [Stevens] were quick and performed admirably. We arrived in Qatar with a fantastic car, thanks to JOTA’s hard work during the winter. Our Porsche consistently showed great performance from the start of testing after the prologue, during which we led two sessions.”
Before competing in Qatar, Ilott’s only participation in the WEC was in the 2021 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he finished third in the GTE Am class for Iron Lynx. During his first qualifying attempt in the Porsche #12, he secured a spot in the top-10 of the Hyperpole and ended up qualifying in third position, with a fastest lap time of 1:39.511. Reflecting on his performance, Ilott commented: “I managed to achieve the third fastest time in the Hyperpole qualifying session, securing a starting position on the second row. It was a good result for the team. I believe there was potential for a slightly better time, but considering it was my first qualifying session in a hypercar, I am satisfied with the result. The race itself was incredibly long and challenging. We executed our strategy perfectly, maintaining a solid pace and taking a different approach from our competitors by extending our stints. Our efforts paid off. Through great teamwork and strategic decisions, I managed to close in on the car that was in second place in the final laps. Unfortunately for them, their car stopped on the penultimate lap.”
After nearly 10 hours of racing in Qatar, their second place finish propelled them to the top of the World Hypercar Teams Championship standings, overtaking the Ferrari #83 AF Corse 499P, the Porsche #99 Proton Competition, and their sister car, the #38 JOTA. The next stage of the championship will take place in Imola, a six-hour event scheduled for April 21. Ilott commented: “Now, let’s see what Imola has in store for us. It’s a track that I am familiar with, as I raced there in Formula 3 in 2016. I don’t believe it has changed much since then. We will all give our best to further extend our lead in the championship.”
