Iron Dames strike again with bad luck in Brazil
The Iron Dames were fighting for GT3 victory, but had to throw in the towel with less than two hours to go. A water hose played havoc with the #85 Lamborghini. The women's trio had their sights set on a first win of the season.
In History, there are the winners. And among these winners, there are those who remain in the memories. And on the other hand, those who fall into oblivion. To the extent that losers or unlucky ones have a much greater aura than the winners. In F1, we have Stirling Moss. In motorcycling, we have Andrea Dovizioso. In endurance racing, unfortunately, we place the Iron Dames.
Always very performing, girls rarely, if ever, have a fourth partner. The one we call luck or success. This 2024 season is a perfect example. In pole position at Spa, they were forced to retire. In Le Mans, while they were fighting for the podium, they were sent into the wall by a Hypercar. Losing precious minutes in the process.
A mechanical issue
In France, there is a saying that goes “never two without three”. Unfortunately for the trio, it applied in Sao Paulo this Sunday, July 14. Once again starting from the best position on the grid, the pink Lamborghini completed its race in the pits. The car parked in the garage less than two hours before the checkered flag.
The image was terrible. Smoke that looked oddly like steam was coming out of it. So, where was the problem coming from? According to the team, a water hose had burst on the GT3 with the number 85. A very sad fate for a crew that had a real chance of winning on Ayrton Senna’s home turf.
Our race is over.
Due to an issue with the water hose, we have unfortunately had to retire the #85.
Although Michelle was ready to rejoin the race, we couldn’t keep going.#WEC #6HSãoPaulo pic.twitter.com/KP2EYcf4XI
— Iron Dames (@IronDames_) July 14, 2024
The Iron Ladies were however motivated to get back on track, but the damage was too substantial. This abandonment has major consequences on the world championship. The Iron Dames have lost three positions and are now in eighth place, 58 points behind the leader, the Porsche #92 of Pure Racing.
It is still interesting to note that the trio Gatting-Frey-Bovy is becoming more and more comfortable and faster with this Huracan GT3. From the middle of the table at the season opener in Qatar, the girls are now able to fight for pole position and victory. The rest of the year looks promising.
