The Velocitta track, host of the second stage of the 2026 Porsche Cup calendar this weekend, entered Brazilian motorsport history in Antonella Bassani’s Porsche.
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Currently the holder of Porsche #72 in the Carrera Cup, the Santa Catarina native who has always raced with Mobil™ sponsorship recorded the first pole position by a woman at the event in 2023 and, in the following season, won the race in the Challenge class. They were very productive years for Antonella, with the category title in her debut year and the runner-up championship in the following season.
Last year she took new flights, joining the regular Carrera Cup grid.
Her debut in the main category came with a podium in Mogi Guaçu in the first half. The track also marked her first participation in Stock Car, replacing Rubens Barrichello in car #111 also with Mobil™ colors.
It is the ideal stage in the driver’s view to begin her recovery in the points table.
At the opening of the 2026 season at Interlagos, Antonella had speed but failed to translate the performance she showed on track into many points. A penalty in Saturday’s race dropped the Porsche #72 holder to 17th, after finishing the first race of the year in the top ten. On Sunday she managed a recovery drive, advancing from 17th on the grid to tenth at the checkered flag.
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As a result, Antonella appears in 12th in the championship, among a grid of 37 competitors. The second stage of the calendar marks the adoption of performance ballast in the Porsche Cup and starting the qualifying with a car without additional weight could represent yet another advantage for the first woman in history to score a pole, win a race and championship in the category of the most produced competition cars on the planet.
The weekend schedule includes an optional practice session on Thursday and another on Friday, when free practice 1 also takes place. On Saturday the track opens with qualifying in the morning, with race 1 starting at 13:50. Sunday’s race will have grid inversion, with the start scheduled for 13:20.
The races are broadcast live on Band and Bandsports, as well as the official digital channels of the Porsche Cup.
What she said:
“Very happy to be able to return to racing at Velocitta, the second stage of the championship. I’m very anxious, happy about all the preparation I did for this race. We know that Velocitta is a track where I’ve always done very well. I achieved my first pole there in 2023, in 2024 I won the race, and last year, in my debut in the Carrera Cup, I had my first podium on this track. So I always arrive confident, with my expectations high. Let’s focus on scoring well in both races to recover in the championship”.
Antonella Bassani
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