Interim 1, 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium)

After an uneventful opening phase, chaos hit the 24-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps with multiple full-course yellows and accidents. By 21:30 hrs, the best-placed 911 GT3 R was the No. 23 entry from the Porsche customer team Phantom Global Racing in eleventh position. PureRxcing followed in 17th place.

At its centenary edition, the endurance classic on the 7.004-kilometre Grand Prix circuit in Belgium’s Ardennes region took off with sunny conditions, an air temperature of 25 degrees Celsius and an asphalt temperature of 38 degrees. The opening stage of the race ran without any major dramas. Subsequently, several collisions and off-track excursions resulted in six yellow-flag phases. Of the twelve 911 GT3 R fielded by the Porsche customer teams, eight were still in the running after five hours – five of them on the same lap as the leading pack.

By 21.30 hrs, the best-placed GT3 racing car from Weissach was Phantom Global Racing’s 911 GT3 R in eleventh place. The Chinese squad receives support from Team75 Motorsport owned by Porsche brand ambassador Timo Bernhard. Joel Eriksson from Sweden, New Zealander Jaxon Evans and Austria’s Thomas Preining share driving duties in the ca. 416 kW (565 PS) racing car. After five hours of racing, UK driver Alex Malykhin, Joel Sturm from Germany and Austrian Klaus Bachler were running in 17th place at the wheel of PureRxcing’s 911.

After starting from P27 on the grid, the No. 96 Porsche fielded by Rutronik Racing was chasing down the top-10 pack. However, after a shunt with another competitor, the car driven by Julien Andlauer (France), Sven Müller (Germany) and Patric Niederhauser (Switzerland) had to pit for checks and consequently fell back to 41st place. The same collision knocked Schumacher CLRT’s 911 GT3 R out of the race.

With 66 racing cars entered, the 24-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps is the world’s largest event for GT3 vehicles and counts towards the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup and the Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC). Drivers and teams receive points for the GTWC after six, twelve and 24 hours. The race will be streamed live in several languages on the website www.intercontinentalgtchallenge.com.

Comments on the race after five hours
Sebastian Golz (Project Manager Porsche 911 GT3 R): “The opening phase of this 24-hour race showed just how close the field is. The performance is on an equal footing. The full course yellows and safety car phases proved strategically helpful. Still, we took a bad hit with technology and accidents. Dinamic GT had to retire due to a leak in the clutch hydraulics, while HubAuto Racing had an issue with the wheel suspension. We got a fright when EBM collided with a stationary car. Fortunately, nothing happened to the driver. We’re now expecting heavy rain, which will reshuffle the cards. We’re trying to find the right moment to switch to rain tyres.”

Jaxon Evans (NZ, Porsche 911 GT3 R #23): “This is my first time contesting the 24 Hours of Spa, so it’s something special for me. I simply tried to get through cleanly and maintain a good position in the field with our 911 GT3 R. I even managed to make up a few places and got into a good rhythm.”

Matt Campbell (AUS, Porsche 911 GT3 R #92): “My first stint was tricky. Compared to the test at the beginning of the week, we lacked a bit of pace. But we’re managing to stay out of trouble, and our car is still in one piece. Now we’re waiting for the rain.”

Full results https://www.gt-world-challenge-europe.com/watch-live