João Paulo Lima de Oliveira (born 13 July 1981) is a Brazilian professional racing driver currently competing in the Japanese

Super GT Super GT (stylized as SUPER GT) is a sports car racing series that began in 1993. Launched as the , generally referred to as the All Japan Grand Touring Car Championship (JGTC), the series was renamed to Super GT in 2005. It is the top level of ...

series and in the

FIA World Endurance Championship The FIA World Endurance Championship, abbreviated as WEC, is a world championship for automobile endurance racing organized by the Automobile Club de l'Ouest (ACO) and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The se ...

driving for the Vanwall Racing Team. He won the Super GT GT300 class championship in both

2020 The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...

and

2022 The year began with another wave in the COVID-19 pandemic, with SARS-CoV-2 Omicron variant, Omicron spreading rapidly and becoming the dominant variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus worldwide. Tracking a decrease in cases and deaths, 2022 saw ...

and the

Formula Nippon The Japanese Super Formula Championship is a formula racing series held primarily in Japan. It is considered to be the pinnacle of single-seater racing in Japan or Asia as a whole, making it one of the top motorsport series in the region. The s ...

championship in

2010 The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...

. He is regarded as one of the most successful racing drivers to race in Japan in the last decade. JP, as he is known, has won in every category he competed in. After becoming the German F3 champion in 2003 by far, winning 13 out of 16 races, he arrived in Japan in 2004 and took the Japanese F3 title in next year with 7 wins. After that, he joined Nissan as their official factory driver for the next 13 years in Super GT and Super Formula. He is known for his speed and his in-depth ability for car development.

Racing career

Born in

São Paulo São Paulo (; ; Portuguese for 'Paul the Apostle, Saint Paul') is the capital of the São Paulo (state), state of São Paulo, as well as the List of cities in Brazil by population, most populous city in Brazil, the List of largest cities in the ...

, de Oliveira competed in

kart racing Kart racing or karting is a motorsport discipline using open-wheel, four-wheeled vehicles known as go-karts or shifter karts. They are usually raced on kart circuit, scaled-down circuits, although some professional kart races are also held on fu ...

only in 1997, then he moved on to Brazilian national

Formula Ford Formula Ford, also known as F1600 and Formula F, is an entry-level class of single-seater, open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held across the world have historically been an important step for many prospective Formula One dri ...

and Formula Chevrolet championships in 1998. Beginning in 1999, he started competing in

Formula Three Formula Three (F3) is a third-tier class of open-wheel formula racing. The various championships held in Europe, Australia, South America and Asia form an important step for many prospective Formula One drivers. History Formula Three (adop ...

category. He won the 1999 South American Formula Three (Class B), the 2003 German Formula Three, and the 2005 Japanese Formula Three championships. In 2006, de Oliveira debuted in the

with a Hasemi Nissan Z GT500. The Brazilian continued as a Nissan Super GT driver with Kondo (2007-2010, 2017) and Impul (2011-2016). He won two titles, in 2020 and 2022, was runner-up in 2015, and claimed 9 wins and 19 podiums overall. Also in 2006, he entered the last round of the

with 5Zigen. He also drove in Formula Nippon for Kondo in 2007 and 2008. After skipping 2009, he returned in 2010 with Impul. He won one title in 2020, was runner-up in 2014, and won 10 races and earned 23 podiums in the category. He retired from formula racing after the 2016 season. de Oliveira made his

World Touring Car Championship The FIA World Touring Car Championship was an international touring car championship promoted by Eurosport Events and sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). It has had several different incarnations, including a sing ...

debut at the 2009 FIA WTCC Race of Japan for

SUNRED Engineering Sunred (short for ''Sun Race Engineering Development S.L.'') is a Spanish-based auto racing team and constructor. They are best known for competing in the World Touring Car Championship. Racing History While in the past Sunred had participated i ...

. He drove as a wildcard entry in the finale round of the

2019 World Touring Car Cup The 2019 World Touring Car Cup was the second season of the World Touring Car Cup and 15th overall of World Touring Cars promoted by Discovery Sports Events, which dates back to the 2005 World Touring Car Championship. The drivers' championship ...

Sepang International Circuit Sepang International Circuit () (known as Petronas Sepang International Circuit for commercial reasons) is a motorsport race track in Sepang District, Sepang, Selangor, Malaysia. It is located approximately south of Kuala Lumpur, close to Ku ...

in a

Honda Civic Type R TCR The Honda Civic Type R TCR is a racing car built on the basis of the TCR rules established in 2015, which is included in the World Touring Car Cup under the direction of the FIA. In 2019, 2020, and 2024, it won the TCR Model of the Year award ...

run by KCMG. He qualified 13th with a time of 2:14.746. In race one, de Oliveira's experience on the track allowed him to finish the race in 5th overall and set the fastest lap of the track, and even assist championship contender

Esteban Guerrieri Esteban Guerrieri (born 19 January 1985) is an Argentina, Argentine racing driver currently competing in the FIA TCR World Tour for the GOAT Racing JAS Motorsport, Honda team. His early career in single-seaters saw him become Formula Renault Euro ...

. He dropped to 18th in race two, which was followed by a retirement in race 3 on lap 10 from 25th on the grid. His fifth place is the best position a wildcard driver had in 2019. de Oliveira joined the Vanwall Racing Team in June 2023 to race in the

, replacing the departing

Tom Dillmann Tom Aston Dillmann (born 6 April 1989 in Mulhouse) is a French racing driver who competes for Inter Europol Competition in the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans, 2025 European Le Mans Series and in the 2025 IMSA SportsCar Championship. He has won the 2025 ...

; he had previously spoken of a desire to drive for the team and hoped to "escape his comfort zone". de Oliveira is scheduled to compete in the Monza and Fuji rounds of the championship; he will not compete at Bahrain due to clashing commitments with

Racing record

Career summary

^† As de Oliveira was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points. As de Oliveira was a wildcard entry in the WTCR, he was not eligible for points. ‡ Team standings. ^* Season still in progress.

Complete Formula Nippon / Super Formula results

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

Complete Super GT results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^‡ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed. ^* Season still in progress.

Complete World Touring Car Championship results

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

American open–wheel racing results

( key)

IndyCar Series

Complete World Touring Car Cup results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^‡ As de Oliveira was a Wildcard entry, he was ineligible to score points.

Complete FIA World Endurance Championship results

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

Complete Stock Car Pro Series results

( key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in ''italics'' indicate fastest lap) ^† As Massa was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points. ^* Season still in progress.

References

External links

*
João Paulo de Oliveira on Twitter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Oliveira, Joao Paulo De Living people Brazilian racing drivers 1981 births Formula Nippon drivers Formula 3 Sudamericana drivers German Formula Three Championship drivers British Formula Three Championship drivers Japanese Formula 3 Championship drivers Super GT drivers Brazilian World Touring Car Championship drivers Brazilian World Touring Car Cup drivers IndyCar Series drivers Super Formula drivers Stock Car Brasil drivers Racing drivers from São Paulo Austrian Formula Three Championship drivers Kolles Racing drivers Alan Docking Racing drivers TOM'S drivers Kondō Racing drivers KCMG drivers Nismo drivers Conquest Racing drivers Nürburgring 24 Hours drivers FIA World Endurance Championship drivers Craft-Bamboo Racing drivers