6 Hours of Imola – H+4: Porsche provisionally takes the lead
After temporarily taking control of the race, Porsche could do nothing about the pressure and speed of the Ferraris. Valentino Rossi caused an accident in GT3, which resulted in a virtual safety car.
What a start to the third hour! Jules Gounon in the Alpine #36 executed a magnificent maneuver. The Frenchman overtook the two most high-performing cars in this race in one swoop. The Ferrari #50 and the BMW #15 were swallowed up in an instant. The soft tires on the French car certainly helped.
Read also: 6 Hours of Imola – H+1: Ferrari already relegates the competition
In the GT3 category, the Lexus #87 lost two places in quick succession. The BMW #31 and the Ferrari #21 put pressure on it and managed the exits of Tamburello and the Villeneuve chicane well. At the same time, through pit stops and strategies, the Porsche #6 took the lead in the race. The Toyota #7 moved into fourth position. The gaps are very narrow.
The situation was surprising with 2 hours and 45 minutes to go. Porsche was widening the gap on Ferrari. The German manufacturer had old tires while at Scuderia, they were new. As for the weather, the sky was starting to cloud over at Imola.
Read also: 6 Hours of Imola – H+2: The health walk continues for Ferrari
The Ferrari #83 regained the advantage over the Ferrari #50, which experienced a setback in this race. After its frenzied climb at the start of the event, the Scuderia seemed less comfortable.
Heavy penalty for the Lexus #87, which was fighting for the win. The GT3 was penalized with a 25-second stop-and-go for not respecting the procedures in the pit lane. After 1 hour and 30 minutes of deliberation, the BMW #31 of WRT was given a drive-through penalty for causing the accident with the Heart of Racing’s Aston Martin.
#27 Heart of Racing is OUT of the race ❌
This is the incident with #31 which prompted a safety car. Driver Ian James climbed out of the car unaided.
Watch LIVE on https://t.co/IPZa0nvsLu 🎥#WEC #6HImola @Heart_Of_Racing @AMR_Official pic.twitter.com/UV3YAzgQoy
— FIA World Endurance Championship (@FIAWEC) April 20, 2025
The Alpine #36 ultimately lost ground to the BMW #15, which managed to regain the upper hand over the tricolor hypercar. At the same time, at the front of the race, the Ferrari #51 closed in on Matt Campbell’s Porsche #6. Antonio Giovinazzi often encountered traffic, preventing him from overtaking the German car.
Also read: 6 Hours of Imola – H+3: The French forces awaken
In GT3, the BMW #31 made headlines once again. It collided with the Racing Spirit of Léman’s Aston Martin at Tamburello. The WRT car ended up facing the wrong way on the track. While attempting to get back in the right direction, it nearly caused an accident with a Corvette.
Valentino Rossi sends the GT3 leader into the wall.
Faced with pressure from Antonio Giovinazzi, Matt Campbell locked his wheels in the penultimate corner. The Italian did not need more than that to regain the lead in the 6 Hours of Imola. The BMW #15 took huge risks to snatch the provisional third place from the Toyota #7. In the maneuver, the Aston Martin #10 almost got involved in a new accident.
In the last corner, Valentino Rossi sent the leader of the GT3 category into the gravel while trying to overtake. The Ferrari #21 even touched the wall, albeit at low speed. It remained immobilized for quite some time. The virtual safety car was deployed. The former motorcycle rider made a significant mistake. The Vista AF Corse GT3 took a while to get going again; it was in a very bad state.
The raindrops appeared 2:15 to the end.
A second safety car appeared with 2 hours and 8 minutes remaining in the race.
