João Paulo "J.P." Lima de Oliveira (born 13 July 1981) is a Brazilian professional racing driver currently competing in the Japanese Super GT series and in the FIA World Endurance Championship driving for the Vanwall Racing Team. He won the Super GT GT300 class championship in both 2020 and 2022 and the Formula Nippon championship in 2010, and the ATS Formel 3 Cup in 2003.

De Oliveira 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 thirteen out of sixteen races, he arrived in Japan in 2004 and took the Japanese F3 title in next year with seven wins. After that, he joined Nissan as their official factory driver for the next thirteen 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, de Oliveira competed in kart racing only in 1997, then he moved on to Brazilian national Formula Ford and Formula Chevrolet championships in 1998.

Beginning in 1999, de Oliveira started competing in Formula Three 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 Super GT with a Hasemi Nissan Z GT500. He 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 nine wins and nineteen podiums overall.

Also in 2006, de Oliveira entered the last round of the Formula Nippon 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 ten 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 debut at the 2009 FIA WTCC Race of Japan for SUNRED Engineering. He drove as a wildcard entry in the finale round of the 2019 World Touring Car Cup at Sepang International Circuit in a Honda Civic Type R TCR 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 fifth overall and set the fastest lap of the track, and even assist championship contender Esteban Guerrieri. He dropped to eighteenth 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 FIA World Endurance Championship, replacing the departing Tom Dillmann; he had previously spoken of a desire to drive for the team and hoped to "escape his comfort zone". De Oliveira was scheduled to compete in the Monza and Fuji rounds of the championship; he would not compete at Bahrain due to clashing commitments with Super GT.

Racing record

Career summary Season Series Team Races Wins Poles F/Laps Podiums Points Position 1999 Formula 3 SudamericanaCesário Fórmula 18 ? ? ? ? 26 12th Formula 3 Sudamericana - Light 18 9 10 9 14 244 1st 2000 Formula 3 Sudamericana Cesário F3 18 5 7 7 11 228 2nd 2001 German Formula 3 Championship Swiss Racing Team 20 1 3 1 4 116 7th Masters of Formula 3 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 13th Korea Super Prix 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 18th FIA European Formula Three Cup 1 0 0 0 0 N/A NC Macau Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 N/A NC Formula 3 Sudamericana Cesário Fórmula 1 0 0 1 0 0† NC† 2002 German Formula 3 Championship Team Kolles Racing1200201612th JB Motorsport20000 Masters of Formula 3 JB Motorsport 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 16th 2003 German Formula 3 Championship JB Motorsport 16 13 12 15 15 329 1st Austria Formula 3 Cup 2 2 1 2 2 23 9th Masters of Formula 3 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 12th British Formula 3 Championship Alan Docking Racing 4 0 0 0 0 0 NC 2004 Japanese Formula 3 Championship Dome Project 19 6 8 10 11 211 2nd 2005 Japanese Formula 3 Championship TOM'S 20 7 8 8 16 300 1st Macau Grand Prix 1 0 0 0 0 N/A 4th 2006 Super GT - GT500 Hasemi Motorsport 9 0 0 0 0 32 15th Formula Nippon 5Zigen 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC 2007 Super GT - GT500 Kondo Racing 9 1 0 0 1 34 10th Formula Nippon 9 0 0 0 1 18 8th 2008 Super GT - GT500 Kondo Racing 9 1 0 0 1 34 14th Formula Nippon 11 1 1 0 3 33 6th 2009 Super GT - GT500 Kondo Racing 9 1 0 0 2 48 8th World Touring Car Championship SUNRED 2 0 0 0 0 0 NC 2010 Super GT - GT500 Kondo Racing 7 1 0 0 1 32 10th Formula Nippon Team Impul 8 2 2 2 5 47.5 1st 2011 Super GT - GT500 Team Impul 8 1 0 0 3 49 5th Formula Nippon 7 1 2 2 2 28 3rd IndyCar Series Conquest Racing 1 0 0 0 0 10 44th 2012 Super GT - GT500 Team Impul 8 1 1 1 1 45 4th Formula Nippon 8 1 2 3 3 34.5 5th 2013 Super GT - GT500 Team Impul 8 1 1 0 1 46 9th Super Formula 8 0 0 0 1 19 5th 2014 Super GT - GT500 Team Impul 8 1 1 1 4 60 6th Super Formula 9 3 2 6 5 39.5 2nd 2015 Super GT - GT500 Team Impul 8 0 1 0 4 74 2nd Super Formula 8 1 0 2 3 34 4th 2016 Super GT - GT500 Team Impul 8 1 2 0 1 43 8th Super Formula 9 1 0 0 1 15.5 7th 2017 Super GT - GT500 Kondo Racing 8 0 1 1 0 12 16th 2018 Super GT - GT500 Kondō Racing 8 0 0 0 0 23 14th Super Formula Vantelin Team TOM'S 1 0 0 0 0 0 23rd Stock Car Brasil Eurofarma RC 1 1 1 1 1 0 NC† 2019 Super GT - GT300 D'station Racing AMR 8 0 0 0 0 0 NC World Touring Car Cup KCMG 3 0 0 1 0 0 NC† Intercontinental GT Challenge 1 0 0 0 0 0 NC 24 Hours of Nürburgring - SP910000N/ADNF 2020 Super GT - GT300 Kondo Racing 7 2 0 0 3 71 1st Super Taikyu - ST-Z SS/YZ Studie1011184‡4th‡ 2021 Super GT - GT300 Kondo Racing 8 1 0 0 3 55 2nd Super Taikyu - ST-Z SS/YZ Racing with Studie1001174‡4th‡ 2022 Super GT - GT300 Kondo Racing 8 1 0 0 2 52 1st 2023 Super GT - GT300 Kondō Racing 8 1 1 0 1 50 3rd FIA World Endurance Championship - Hypercar Floyd Vanwall Racing Team 2 0 0 0 0 0 22nd 2024 Super GT - GT300 Kondo Racing 8 0 0 0 2 32 7th GT World Challenge Asia Craft-Bamboo Racing200?00NC Super Taikyu - ST-X10101130‡ 2nd‡2025 Super GT - GT300 Kondo Racing 6 0 0 1 2 75.5 4th Stock Car Pro Series TGR Team Full Time Sports 19 0 0 0 2 443 21stSuper Taikyu - ST-XSeven x Seven Racing10001129‡ 1st‡ 2026 Super GT - GT300 Kondo Racing 5 1 0 0 2 69 1st*Super Taikyu - ST-XCraft-Bamboo Racing † 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) Year Team Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 DC Points 2006 Team 5Zigen Honda FUJ SUZ MOT SUZ AUT FUJ SUG MOT SUZ NC 0 2007 Kondo Racing Toyota FUJ SUZ MOT OKA SUZ FUJ SUG MOT SUZ 8th 18 2008 Kondo Racing Toyota FUJ SUZ MOT OKA SUZ SUZ MOT MOT FUJ FUJ SUG 6th 33 2010 Team Impul Toyota SUZ MOT FUJ MOT SUG AUT SUZ SUZ 1st 47.5 2011 Team Impul Toyota SUZ AUT FUJ MOT SUZ SUG MOT MOT 3rd 28 2012 Team Impul Toyota SUZ MOT AUT FUJ MOT SUG SUZ SUZ 5th 34.5 2013 Lenovo Team Impul Toyota SUZ AUT FUJ MOT SUG SUZ SUZ 5th 19 2014 Lenovo Team Impul Toyota SUZ FUJ FUJ FUJ MOT AUT SUG SUZ SUZ 2nd 39.5 2015 Lenovo Team Impul Toyota SUZ OKA FUJ MOT AUT SUG SUZ SUZ 4th 34 2016 Itochu Enex Team Impul Toyota SUZ OKA FUJ MOT OKA OKA SUG SUZ SUZ 7th 15.5 2018 Vantelin Team TOM'S Toyota SUZ AUT SUG FUJ MOT OKA SUZ 23rd 0

Complete Super GT results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Team Car Class 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 DC Points 2006 Hasemi Motorsport Nissan Z GT500SUZOKAFUJSEPSUGSUZMOTAUTFUJ15th32 2007 Kondo Racing Nissan Z GT500SUZOKAFUJSEPSUGSUZMOTAUTFUJ10th34 2008 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R GT500SUZOKAFUJSEPSUGSUZMOTAUTFUJ14th34 2009 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R GT500OKASUZFUJSEPSUGSUZFUJAUTMOT8th48 2010 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R GT500SUZOKAFUJSEPSUGSUZFUJMOT10th32 2011 Team Impul Nissan GT-R GT500OKAFUJSEPSUGSUZFUJAUTMOT5th49 2012 Team Impul Nissan GT-R GT500OKAFUJSEPSUGSUZFUJAUTMOT4th45 2013 Team Impul Nissan GT-R GT500OKAFUJSEPSUGSUZFUJAUTMOT9th46 2014 Team Impul Nissan GT-R GT500OKAFUJAUTSUGFUJSUZBURMOT6th 60 2015 Team Impul Nissan GT-R GT500 OKA FUJ CHA FUJ SUZ SUG AUT MOT 2nd 74 2016 Team Impul Nissan GT-R GT500 OKA FUJ SUG FUJ SUZ CHA MOT MOT 8th 43 2017 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R GT500 OKA FUJ AUT SUG FUJ SUZ CHA MOT 16th 12 2018 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R GT500 OKA FUJ SUZ CHA FUJ SUG AUT MOT 14th 23 2019 D'station Racing AMR Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 GT300 OKA FUJ SUZ CHA FUJ AUT SUG MOT 32nd 0 2020 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 GT300 FUJ FUJ SUZ MOT FUJ SUZ MOT FUJ 1st 71 2021 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 GT300 OKA FUJ SUZ MOT SUG AUT MOT FUJ 2nd 55 2022 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 GT300 OKA FUJ SUZ FUJ SUZ SUG AUT MOT 1st 52 2023 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 GT300 OKA FUJ SUZ FUJ SUZ SUG AUT MOT 3rd 50 2024 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 GT300 OKA FUJ SUZ FUJ SUG AUT MOT SUZ 7th 32 2025 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 GT300 OKA FUJ SEP FUJ FUJ SUZ SUG AUT MOT 4th 75.5 2026 Kondo Racing Nissan GT-R Nismo GT3 GT300 OKA FUJ FUJ SUZ SUG AUT MOT 1st* 69* ‡ Half points awarded as less than 75% of race distance was completed. (Number) Driver did not take part in this sprint race, points are still awarded for the teammate's result. * Season still in progress.

Complete World Touring Car Championship results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 DC Points 2009 SUNRED Engineering SEAT León 2.0 TFSI BRA1 BRA2 MEX1 MEX2 MAR1 MAR2 FRA1 FRA2 ESP1 ESP2 CZE1 CZE2 POR1 POR2 GBR1 GBR2 GER1 GER2 ITA1 ITA2 JPN1 JPN2 MAC1 MAC2 NC 0

American open–wheel racing results (key)

IndyCar Series Year Team No. Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Rank Points Ref 2011 Conquest Racing 34 Dallara HondaSTPALALBHSAOINDYTXSTXSMILIOWTOREDMMDONHMSNMBALMOTKTYLVS 44th 10

Complete World Touring Car Cup results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 DC Points 2019 KCMG Honda Civic Type R TCR (FK8) MAR1 MAR2 MAR3 HUN1 HUN2 HUN3 SVK1 SVK2 SVK3 NED1 NED2 NED3 GER1 GER2 GER3 POR1 POR2 POR3 CHN1 CHN2 CHN3 JPN1 JPN2 JPN3 MAC1 MAC2 MAC3 MAL1 MAL2 MAL3 NC‡ 0‡ ‡ 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) Year Entrant Class Chassis Engine 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Rank Points 2023 Floyd Vanwall Racing Team Hypercar Vanwall Vandervell 680 Gibson GL458 4.5 L V8 SEB ALG SPA LMS MNZ FUJ BHR 22nd 0

Complete Stock Car Pro Series results (key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap) Year Team Car 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Rank Points 2018 Eurofarma RC Chevrolet Cruze INT1 CUR1 CUR2 VEL1 VEL2 LON1 LON2 SCZ1 SCZ2 GOI1 MOU1 MOU2 CAS1 CAS2 VCA1 VCA2 TAR1 TAR2 GOI1 GOI2 INT1 NC† 0† 2025 Full Time Gazoo Racing Toyota Corolla Cross INT1 CAS1 CAS2 VEL1 VEL2 VCA1 VCA2 CRS1 CRS2 CAS1 CAS2 VCA1 VCA2 VCA1 VCA2 MOU1 MOU2 CUI1 CUI2 BRA1 BRA2 INT1 INT2 21st 443 † As de Oliveira was a guest driver, he was ineligible for points.

References

External links

João Paulo de Oliveira on Twitter