Competing in the FIA WEC’s new LMGT3 class with WRT this year was an opportunity that Sean Gelael simply couldn’t pass up.
In 2024 the Indonesian racer will share a BMW M4 GT3 with works driver Augusto Farfus and reigning British GT3 champion Darren Leung. He believes that the combination of the M4, his teammates and WRT’s engineering staff gives him his best chance yet to win a WEC title.
Gelael has come close since joining the WEC full-time back in 2021, with two second-place finishes in the LMP2 championship in 2021 and 2022 with JOTA and then WRT. Yet on the face of it, he appears more optimistic and relaxed than ever before about his title chances ahead of this season, despite the volume of unknowns in the new, 18-car-strong, LMGT3 class.
“The expectation at WRT is always to win, every time you get in the car,” he says to DSC. “It’s a family, I felt like a part of it the moment I moved there.”
The journey to this point has had many twists and turns, from single-seaters, to prototypes and now to GT racing. “Like many, my initial goal was Formula 1. But maybe I should have come to sportscar racing sooner?” He ponders when asked about the path he has taken.
Gelael admits too, that he initially took some convincing to try his hand at GT racing.
“At the end of 2022 Vincent (Vosse), when they were finalising the deal for GT and Hypercar with BMW, said it would be a good thing for me to do. So he asked me to try the Dubai 24.
“I wasn’t sure, I didn’t think GT racing was going to be the way for me. But, it was a good opportunity. I was placed in the Valentino (Rossi) car and we finished third. It wasn’t a win but it was respectable. It opened doors.”
As 2024 edged closer, during his third full season of LMP2 racing in the WEC, it became clear that Gelael had multiple options to consider. Initially, a Hypercar drive was on the cards with the Belgian team, which has been entrusted to represent BMW in both WEC classes this year. But the long-rumoured third M Hybrid V8 for this season didn’t come together, forcing him to think again.
I didn’t think GT racing was going to be the way for me
“We were talking about a possible third car,” Gelael recalls. “It was me and some other drivers that were interested. But for WRT to keep running in World Challenge, plus two cars in LMGT3, it was too much.
“And then at Monza last year we got the answer that it wasn’t going to happen.”
It was a sliding doors moment of sorts, leading him to the full-season GT drive announced last week. Gelael doesn’t consider himself wedded to GT racing just yet though. He still has an eye on returning to prototype racing in the future.
“You want to be in the pinnacle of whatever it is you’re doing,” he said. “If it’s WEC, then it’s Hypercar. I enjoy GTs but I’m not closing any opportunities.”
Thankfully, even with the Hypecar deal off the table by midseason last year, Gelael still had options to carry on with Vincent Vosse’s team. The number of opportunities he’d get to further his career was a key part of his switch from LMP2 rival JOTA in the first place.
“I chose to focus on the GT programme and stay in the BMW family. Right now though, this year, I just really want to win, I’ve been second a lot. And I feel that if you’re with WRT you always have a chance.”
Even with his plans to race in Hypercar on hold, Gelael remains energised by the prospect of racing with Farfus and Leung and soaking up more time in a GT car.
Leung’s now-trademark work ethic is something that Gelael is particularly looking forward to experiencing first-hand.
“It’s his rookie season,” he said, “but his approach and race craft is what you need. He’s just a fan of the sport, he soaks it up.”
The M4 is a car that can win straight away
As for the M4, he still feels he has a lot to learn despite getting a good chunk of seat time in over the winter. Gelael got two races under his belt with Project 1 at Sepang in the Asian Le Mans Series in December, then a start in the Dubai 24 Hours a couple of weeks back.
“This all still feels new,” he explained. “My first time in a GT was at the Dubai 24 last year. So the Asian Le Mans races in Sepang and the 24 at Dubai were important, so I could get back to driving a front-engined GT car. It’s been super fun, GT racing is hugely competitive.
“BMW clearly wants to put on a good show now they’re back in the WEC, and the M4 is a car that can win straight away. Expectations are high.
“This new direction for me feels like a win-win.”
