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Rui Andrade
Andrade in 2023
Nationality	Angolan Portuguese via dual nationality
Born	(1999-09-23) 23 September 1999 (age 25) Luanda, Angola
WEC career
Debut season	2021
Current team	Team WRT
Racing licence	FIA Silver
Car number	41
Former teams	G-Drive Racing
Starts	23
Wins	4
Podiums	10
Poles	1
Fastest laps	0
Best finish	1st in 2023
Previous series
2021 2019–2020 2020 2019 2019 2018	Asian Le Mans Series Euroformula Open Championship Toyota Racing Series Formula 4 UAE Championship Formula Renault Eurocup F4 Spanish Championship

Rui Pinto de Andrade (born 23 September 1999) is an Angolan-Portuguese racing driver who is currently racing in the FIA World Endurance Championship for TF Sport.

Single-seater career

Spanish F4 Championship

Andrade's first experience in single-seaters came in 2018, where he competed for Drivex in the F4 Spanish Championship. He competed from the second round in Valencia until the end of the season, finishing 12th in the standings, having achieved his best results at Barcelona and Navarra where he finished 5th respectively.

Formula 4 UAE Championship

Andrade drove for Emirate team Dragon Racing in the 2019 Formula 4 UAE Championship. With 201 points Andrade attained 5th in the standings while standing on the podium 6 times, none of which were wins however two of them were second places. The two second places came at the first race at Dubai Autodrome and second race at Yas Marina Circuit.

Toyota Racing Series

At the 2020 Toyota Racing Series Andrade raced for M2 Competition alongside the top two driver in the championship, Igor Fraga and Liam Lawson. Andrade won 70 points over the course of the season meaning he finished 16th, 2 points behind French teammate Émilien Denner. Two 9th places were the Angolan's best results at the first 2 races at Pukekohe Park.

Euroformula Open Championship

Andrade's first season at the Euroformula Open Championship was in 2019 with Spanish outfit Drivex Racing. Andrade only finished in the points once and it was at the last round in Monza, ultimately this contributed to a 22nd-place finish with 6 points.

In 2020 Andrade switched to CryptoTower Racing, driving alongside Yifei Ye. Whilst the Angolan improved compared to the previous year, scoring points in the majority of races, he ended up 14th in the standings.

Endurance racing

2021: ALMS, ELMS and Le Mans debut

For 2021, Andrade made the transition to sportscars, signing up to compete in the Asian and European Le Mans Series with G-Drive Racing. The former championship would yield major success, as Andrade and his teammates, John Falb and Franco Colapinto scored three podiums, leading the team to finish third in the standings. Meanwhile, their European efforts were just as successful, with six class podiums out of six race starts, including an overall podium at the Red Bull Ring. and won the Pro-Am title alongside Falb. That year, Andrade also took part at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he retired following a nighttime accident.

2022: WEC and first victory

The following season, the Angolan competed in the World Endurance Championship on a full-time basis, partnering Ferdinand Habsburg and Norman Nato at RealTeam by WRT. Having taken two podiums in the opening two races, the outfit experienced a disappointing Le Mans, finishing 17th in class. That result was quickly forgotten, with Andrade and his teammates taking victory at the 6 Hours of Monza, thus making Andrade the first Angolan to win an FIA-sanctioned World Championship race. A pair of top-five finishes ended their season, with the team ending up fourth in the championship.

In addition, Andrade raced in the Michelin Endurance Cup races of the IMSA SportsCar Championship, where he took three class podiums including a victory at Petit Le Mans for Tower Motorsport alongside Louis Delétraz and John Farano.

2023: Return to WRT and WEC Title

Andrade returned to Team WRT for the 2023 WEC season, where he would be driving alongside 2022 Prema teammates Louis Delétraz and Robert Kubica. Andrade also took on a full-season effort in the European Le Mans Series with Inter Europol Competition, where he joined Olli Caldwell and Jonathan Aberdein.

After starting the WEC campaign with a fifth-placed finish at Sebring, Andrade and his teammates began their title charge at Portimão, scoring a podium as a result of a late-race overtake by Delétraz for third place. The 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps provided even more momentum, with the #41 taking their first victory of the season. At the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Andrade, Kubica and Delétraz managed to finish second, missing out only to the #34 of Inter Europol Competition, before expanding their championship lead at Monza, where another third place would be added to their tally. Despite a collision with Josh Pierson during his opening stint, Andrade managed to help his squad to victory at the 6 Hours of Fuji, which put them in a near-championship-clinching position going into the season finale in Bahrain. There, both WRTs ran at the front, and with an issue at the final pit stop throwing the sister #31 car to second, the #41 crew were able to cross the finish line first, thereby winning the final championship of the LMP2 class in the WEC.

2024: GT switch

Having made his GT racing debut at the start of 2024, driving for Dragon Racing in the AsLMS, Andrade embarked on a WEC campaign in the LMGT3 class. He would partner Corvette factory driver Charlie Eastwood and bronze Tom van Rompuy at TF Sport, whilst also signing up to IMSA's GTD class with Lone Star Racing, driving in the endurance rounds.

Racing record

Career summary

As Andrade was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.

Complete F4 Spanish Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Complete Formula 4 UAE Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Complete Euroformula Open Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Complete Toyota Racing Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Complete Asian Le Mans Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Complete European Le Mans Series results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; races in italics indicate fastest lap)

As Andrade was a guest driver, he was ineligible for championship points.

Complete 24 Hours of Le Mans results

Year	Team	Co-Drivers	Car	Class	Laps	Pos.	Class Pos.
2021	G-Drive Racing	Roberto Merhi John Falb	Aurus 01-Gibson	LMP2 Pro-Am	108	DNF	DNF
2022	RealTeam by WRT	Ferdinand Habsburg Norman Nato	Oreca 07-Gibson	LMP2	362	21st	17th
2023	Team WRT	Louis Delétraz Robert Kubica	Oreca 07-Gibson	LMP2	328	10th	2nd
2024	TF Sport	Charlie Eastwood Tom van Rompuy	Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R	LMGT3	267	43rd	15th

Complete IMSA SportsCar Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position; results in italics indicate fastest lap)

Points only counted towards the Michelin Endurance Cup, and not the overall LMP2 Championship.

References

1. "Piloto Rui Andrade coloca nome de Angola na história do automobilismo mundial". Carga Magazine (in Portuguese). Retrieved 2022-06-24.
2. "NEW RACING ROOKIES ARRIVE IN DUBAI FOR THIRD SEASON OF F4UAE". Formula 4 UAE. Archived from the original on 2021-01-30. Retrieved 2020-05-09.
3. "2020 Season Drivers". Toyota NZ.
4. "Rui Andrade signs with Drivex for Euroformula Open debut season". www.euroformulaopen.net.
5. "CryptoTower Racing Team, first Japanese team to enter the Euroformula". www.euroformulaopen.net.
6. Lloyd, Daniel (11 December 2020). "Algarve Pro Introduces New Lineup for LMP2 Title Defense – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
7. "Algarve Pro Set For Asian Le Mans Title Defence With Falb, Colapinto and Andrade". Dailysportscar. 11 December 2020. Retrieved 11 December 2020.
8. Lloyd, Daniel (16 May 2021). "WRT Beats G-Drive to Win Rain-Affected 4H Red Bull Ring – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
9. Lloyd, Daniel (11 January 2022). "WRT Expands to Two Cars as Gelael, Realteam Join – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
10. Euwema, Davey (11 July 2022). "Habsburg: Early Triple Stint Strategy "Paid Off in Long Term" – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2022-11-14.
11. Dagys, John (January 7, 2022). "Habsburg, Deletraz Headline Tower Motorsport LMP2 Lineup". Sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
12. Euwema, Davey (2022-10-01). "MSR Captures DPi Title with Drama-Filled PLM Victory – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-03-20.
13. Goodwin, Graham (11 January 2023). "FIA WEC Reveal 38 Car Full Season Entry – 13 Hypercars For Breakthrough Season". Dailysportscar. Retrieved 11 January 2023.
14. Brandworks.be. "WRT | Kubica and Delétraz back with ORLEN Team WRT as they join Andrade in FIA WEC bid". w-racingteam.com. Retrieved 2023-02-03.
15. Lloyd, Daniel (23 March 2023). "WEC Drivers in All-New Inter Europol LMP2 Lineup". Sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 23 March 2023.
16. "#8 Toyota Wins 6H Portimao, Five Factories In The Top Five". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2023-09-15.
17. "#7 Toyota Wins Dramatic 6H Spa". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2023-09-15.
18. "Breakthrough Victory For Inter Europol In LMP2". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2023-09-15.
19. Dagys, John (2023-09-10). "Kubica: Fuji Win Puts WRT in "Good Shape" for LMP2 Title – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2023-09-15.
20. Kilbey, Stephen (4 November 2023). "#8 Toyota Crew Crowned Champions After Dominant Bahrain Victory". dailysportscar.com.
21. Dagys, John (2023-11-04). "LMP2 Champions 'Didn't Expect' to Win Race in WRT 1-2 Finish – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2023-11-09.
22. Goodwin, Graham (20 December 2023). "Dragon Racing Confirms Asian LMS & Dubai 24 Crews". Dailysportscar. Retrieved 20 December 2023.
23. "TF Sport Confirms Eastwood, Andrade & Van Rompuy". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2024-03-18.
24. Dagys, John (January 11, 2024). "Lone Star Commits to Endurance Cup With Mercedes-AMG". Sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Retrieved January 11, 2024.

External links

• Rui Andrade career summary at DriverDB.com

• 1999 births
• Living people
• Portuguese people of Angolan descent
• Sportspeople from Luanda
• Angolan racing drivers
• Spanish F4 Championship drivers
• Formula Renault Eurocup drivers
• Euroformula Open Championship drivers
• UAE F4 Championship drivers
• Formula Ford drivers
• Toyota Racing Series drivers
• European Le Mans Series drivers
• Asian Le Mans Series drivers
• FIA World Endurance Championship drivers
• 24 Hours of Le Mans drivers
• Portuguese racing drivers
• WeatherTech SportsCar Championship drivers
• Drivex drivers
• FA Racing drivers
• M2 Competition drivers
• Motopark Academy drivers
• G-Drive Racing drivers
• W Racing Team drivers
• Starworks Motorsport drivers
• Duqueine Team drivers
• TF Sport drivers