| NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race | |
| Category: | Stock cars |
| Country/Region: | Brazil |
| Inaugural: | 2012 |
| Constructors: | Chevrolet, Ford |
| Engines: | Action Power |
| Region: | South America |
| Current Season: | NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race |
The NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race (formerly known as GT Sprint Race), commonly referred to as NASCAR Brasil or Sprint Race, is a NASCAR stock car series based in Brazil.[1] It is one of NASCAR's four international series alongside the NASCAR Canada Series, NASCAR Mexico Series, and the NASCAR Whelen Euro Series and is the only one to be based in South America.
NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race's roots can be traced to 2011, when rumors of a Super Cup championship first circulated in the Brazilian racing scene. Super Cup is a category that promised a low cost championship hosted in tracks outside of the traditional Brazilian venues.[2] Super Cup ultimately failed to establish themselves, but on January 18, 2012 a spiritual successor series named Sprint Race was founded by Thiago Marques, a former competitor in the Stock Car Pro Series and the younger brother of ex-Formula One driver Tarso Marques.[3] [4] Sprint Race was formed as an entry-level competition series designed to facilitate a beginner driver's transition to the higher racing categories in Brazil.[5]
The inaugural season was held on the same year and a total of 25 drivers entered the 2012 season. It featured a total of 18 races across 9 rounds, with double points being awarded in the final round. The driver pairing of Guilherme Sperafico and Fabio Brecailo were credited as Sprint Race's inaugural race winners on the series' first ever race at Autódromo José Carlos Pace, while Gustavo Martins was crowned as the series' inaugural champion after scoring four race wins.[6]
The 2013 season featured 16 races across 8 rounds and saw the driver pairing of Gaetano di Mauro and Guilherme Salas took the title after winning five races.[7] [8] In 2014, the series was split into two classes: Pro and GP class, with titles being awarded separately towards the drivers that scored the most points in their respective classes. Despite this, both classes continued to ran their races together. Flávio Lisboa was crowned as the overall champion in the now-rebranded Pro class, while Adriano Amaral became the first driver to win the title in the GP class.[9]
In the 2018 season, the series hosted their first races outside of Brazil when they hosted a race at Uruguay's Autódromo Eduardo Prudêncio Cabrera. The series returned to Uruguay in 2019 and on the same year, the series made its first races outside of South America as the series hosted the Sprint Race International Cup in tracks such as Homestead–Miami Speedway and Sebring International Raceway.[10]
In 2020, the series rebranded itself into the GT Sprint Race and numerous changes was made to the series. The GP class was discontinued and in its place, two new divisions were formed: The AM and Pro AM classes. A new car generation, inspired from the cars raced in NASCAR, was also introduced and the series switched their tire suppliers from Pirelli to Yokohama.[11] Thiago Camilo was crowned as the overall champion in the Pro class that year, while Weldes Campos and Luiz Arruda were crowned as the inaugural champions of the Pro AM and AM classes respectively.[12]
The series was later rebranded to the NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race on November 16, 2022 after the series signed an agreement with NASCAR to give the series an official NASCAR-sanctioning status starting from the 2023 season.[13] [14] [15] In 2023, NASCAR intends on adding oval race tracks to the schedule.[15]
NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race's cars featured a peripheral tubular space frame chassis reinforced with aluminum plates. In its original guise, the car used an unbranded hatchback body model based on the Renault Clio. The driver is positioned in the middle of the car for better weight distribution. It uses a six-speed sequential gearbox, independent suspension, and engines supplied by Action Power. For the first two seasons, the cars used a 220 hp, inline-four turbo engines sourced from Renault before it was upgraded to a 270 hp, 3.6 liter V6 engine sourced from Chevrolet in 2014.[5]
A new generation of car was introduced by the series in 2020. The new car featured a brand new body model inspired from the American NASCAR series, with composite body styles based on the Chevrolet Camaro and Ford Mustang being available to be chosen for the teams participating; the NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race is one of two NASCAR series where Toyota does not participate, the other being the NASCAR Canada Series. The new generation of cars featured an improved aerodynamic package and was claimed to have a 20% increase in corner speed, despite the removal of the detached rear wing in favor of integrated rear spoiler.[11]
The new generation car received several changes in the 2022 season. New racing seats, inspired from the seats used in NASCAR, was introduced to increase driver's protection from head and neck injuries due to lateral movement during crashes. A rear stabilizer bar was added, with drivers being able to choose between three settings: Soft, hard, and off. The engine also received an updated electronic injection unit to improve its acceleration.[10]
NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race featured Pirelli as the exclusive tire supplier of the series. Pirelli is the exclusive tire supplier starting from the inaugural season in 2012, with the exception of the 2020 season where the series ran Yokohama tires instead.[11]
The following are the tracks which have been used, currently are in use, and/or are scheduled to be used in the NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race. Tracks marked in bold are tracks used in the 2024 NASCAR Brasil Sprint Race season.[17]
| Season | Pro | Pro AM | AM | GP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | Gustavo Martins | Not held | |||
| 2013 | Gaetano di Mauro Guilhermo Salas | ||||
| 2014 | Flávio Lisboa | Not held | Adriano Amaral | ||
| 2015 | Pietro Rimbano | Fábio Brecailo | |||
| 2016 | Juninho Berlanda Eduardo Berlanda | Vinícius Margiota | |||
| 2017 | Juninho Berlanda | Kau Machado Jorge Martelli | |||
| 2018 | Gerson Campos | Cassio Cortes | |||
| 2019 | João Rosate Bruno Smielevski | Daniel Coutinho Josimar Jr | |||
| 2020 | Ricardo Sperafico | Alex Seid Marcelo Henriques | Luiz Arruda | Not held | |
| 2021 | Júlio Campos Léo Torres | Pedro Aizza | Luis Debes | ||
| 2022 | Luciano Zangirolami Sérgio Ramalho | Arthur Gama | Giovani Girotto | ||
| 2023 | Júlio Campos Léo Torres | Leonardo Reis Rafael Reis | Henry Couto | ||
| Season | Pro | ProAM | AM | GP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | João Rosate Bruno Smielevski | Not held | Daniel Coutinho Dudu Trindade | ||
| 2020 | Pedro Lopes Gabriel Silva | Weldes Campos Ricardo Sperafico | Raphael Teixeira | Not held | |
| 2021 | Thiago Camilo | Pedro Aizza | Giovani Girotto | ||
| 2022 | Thiago Camilo Raphael Teixeira | Diogo Moscato | Giovanni Girotto | ||
| 2023 | Vitor Genz Rafael Dias | Guilherme Backes Gabriel Casagrande | MC Gui | ||
| Season | Pro | ProAM | AM | GP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | João Rosate Bruno Smielevski | Not held | Daniel Coutinho | ||
| 2020 | Thiago Camilo | Weldes Campos | Luiz Arruda | Not held | |
| 2021 | Thiago Camilo | Pedro Aizza | Walter Lester | ||
| 2022 | Raphael Teixeira | Arthur Gama | Giovani Girotto | ||
| 2023 | Léo Torres | Guilherme Backes | Brendon Zonta | ||
| Season | Rookie of the year | Winter Cup | Final Cup | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Yago Cesário Yuri Cesário | Flavio Lisboa | Flavio Lisboa | ||
| 2015 | Enzo Bortoleto | Caito Vianna Flávio Lisboa | Caito Vianna Flávio Lisboa | ||
| 2016 | Eduardo Berlanda | Juninho Berlanda Eduardo Berlanda | Luca Milani | ||
| 2017 | João Rossate | Juninho Berlanda | João Rossate | ||
| 2018 | Diego Ramos | Gerson Campos | Vinicius Kwong | ||
| 2019 | Dante Fibra | Daniel Coutinho | Not held | ||
| 2020 | Weldes Campos | Not held | |||
| 2021 | Nathan Brito | ||||
| 2022 | Arthur Gama | ||||
| 2023 | Diogo Moscato | ||||