Murilo Rocha closed out the Curvelo stage of NASCAR Brasil with an important objective accomplished: playoff qualification. Even facing problems in the two races held on the oval circuit, the youngest driver on the grid secured a place among the 12 competitors still in the title fight for the season.
“It was a difficult weekend, I faced issues in the first race with the gear stuck, while in the second race I hit a driver who was dealing with mechanical trouble and ended up braking too hard. But the important thing is that we qualified for the playoffs, so we’ll turn the page and pursue the best possible results in the last two rounds,” he said.
Murilo’s debut on a circuit of this kind was marked by difficulties. In the first race, the driver started from sixth position and had to deal with touches, yellow flags and safety car interventions. Even so, he managed to stay on the track and reached eighth place.
The scenario changed when the Ford Mustang #55 became stuck in fourth gear and began to lose performance. Murilo fell to 18th position, but chose to continue in the race to accumulate points. The recovery led the Sorocaba native to 13th place at the checkered flag.
In the second race, Rocha started from 13th and moved up two positions, entering the fight for a top-10 spot. However, with two laps to go, the car in front of him developed a mechanical problem and slowed abruptly. With no room to avoid contact, Murilo hit the competitor and ended his participation in the race.
Despite the setbacks, the result in Curvelo placed the Full Time driver ninth in the overall standings after seven rounds, with 77 points. There are now only two rounds left to close out the 2026 season, in Chapecó (SC) and Brasília (DF).
Murilo Rocha’s next NASCAR Brasil commitment will be on November 1st, at the Chapecó round, in Santa Catarina.
