Porsche entries run by Herberth Motorsport ultimately dominated this weekend’s second round of the Michelin 24H SERIES European Series, the Michelin 12H SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, with the Ziggo Sport Tempesta Racing car of Christopher Froggatt, Jonathan Hui and Loek Hartog taking a clear win.

The race ended under a Code 60 period after high drama with 10 minutes to go at the chicane, contact involving the GTX leading Vortex 2.0 of Cyril Calmon and the Ajith Kumar Racing by Red Ant Racing 992 class Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992) car of Fabian Duffieux. Such was the advantage in GTX for the Vortex though, Calmon, Lionel Amrouche and Philippe Bonnel still won the class.

Victory in GT3 AM, an excellent outright third, was claimed by HOFOR Racing’s pole qualifying Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO of Alexander and Chantal Prinz, Michael Kroll and Torsten Kratz. Success in GT3 PRO-AM, meanwhile, was earned by fourth placed finishers Josef Kral, Dennis Waszek and Miroslav and Matus Vyboh in the Scuderia Praha Ferrari 296 GT3.

Red Camel-Jordans.nl won again in 992, a particularly impressive showing from Rik, Luc and Ivo Breukers, partnered with Fabian Danz. Having to battle from the back after being caught-up in a multi-car tangle at Les Combes on lap one on Saturday, the quartet ended a lofty fifth overall. RPM Racing’s Tracy Krohn, Niclas Jonsson and Philip Hamprecht won 992 AM in a strong seventh overall.

In GT4, SRS Team Sorg Rennsport took a one-two with the No.427 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport of Marc Girard, Michel Sallenbach and Thierry Chkondali nine laps clear of the sister No.452 car of Guy Stewart, Harley Haughton, Benito Tagle and Maximilian Hill. Kevin Clarke and James Collins dominated TCE-TCX for the entire 12 hours, winning for J-Mec Engineering.

Gerrie Willems, the retiring Technical Coordinator of Creventic, was presented with the Spirit of Race award in recognition and celebration of his integral role within the company since it was formed 20 years ago.

GT3

HOFOR Racing enjoyed an excellent first 30 laps on Saturday, Alexander Prinz making the most of the team’s maiden outright pole to open a 14 second advantage in the No.11 Mercedes-AMG. Red Ant Racing’s Mercedes-AMG, which had run second early on in the hands of Ayrton Redant, had slipped to fourth but a tyre blow-out on lap 26 cost huge time.

Froggatt was one of those to make good early progress, rising from fifth to second for Ziggo Sport, and so too Kyle Marcelli in the No.29 Pellin Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 who rocketed from row 10 to climb into the top three.

Following the first stops Hui took over behind the wheel of the Ziggo Sport Porsche to lead, then Heinrich moved to the front in the SP4 class in-development Porsche 911. For the remainder of the first five hours both Porsches were right there and Ziggo Sport took the flag over 30 seconds ahead.

HOFOR Racing ended Saturday’s action third overall and leading GT3 AM, three laps off the overall leaders, ahead of Scuderia Praha’s Ferrari in the lead of PRO-AM. There were, though, major dramas for a large number of other GT3 runners over the course of the first five hours.

Proton Huber Competition’s Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) had a series of troubles, but showed terrific speed with Klaus Bachler, while HAAS RT’s No.21 Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO II had to stop from the race lead at the midway point due to an engine fire. Era Motorsport, another with great pace, was at the front with just over two hours to go but a change of gearbox was needed in the No.81 Ferrari 296.

Part two of the race on Sunday started similarly to Saturday, a very early Code 60 period called due to the Red Ant Racing Mercedes sliding into the gravel on a damp patch on the formation lap. Before the cautionary period kicked-in, though, Alexander Prinz starred to pass Heinrich for second and then take the on-the-road lead from Hartog at Les Combes.

Following a second Code 60 in quick order, almost the entire entry took the chance to make early stops but at the front it remained a Porsche lock-out. Then, around half an hour in, Hui spun at the chicane and lost a lot of time to Heinrich, but the Ziggo Sport Porsche did retake the lead.

Prinz was incredibly impressive once again, fourth overall but closing rapidly on Scuderia Praha’s Kral as the first hour ended. By the conclusion of the second hour it was the two Porsches clear at the front, Hartog from Bohn, and the battle for third continued to rage between HOFOR and Praha.

Ziggo Sport Tempesta Racing’s challenge was impacted by a 115 second penalty in the pits, linked to a mistake with the Code 60 refueling regulations, but from there things ran smoothly for the Herberth Motorsport-run Porsches – Hartog setting a lap record of 2m16.808 seconds in the No.193.

992

Qualifying’s two fastest 992 cars, the No.921 Muhlner Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992) and the No.909 Red Camel-Jordans.nl Porsche, were caught-up in the first lap tangle on Saturday – an incident also involving the No.918 Muhlner car. Rik Breukers was able to get going under his own steam in the No.909, but the latter of the Muhlner entries had to be retired.

Julian Hanses, in the No.921 Porsche, soon had to pit with a water leak but Muhlner’s crew swiftly changed the left radiator. All of this turned the expected order of 992 on its head, but as the first five hours progressed the Red Camel-Jordans.nl car charged back through the order.

Van Berlo Motorsport by Bas Koeten Racing impressed as they went about their own strategy, the team of Marcel and Glenn Van Berlo and Bart van Helden led 992 overall and 992 AM at the end of part one. Holmgaard Motorsport’s Magnus and Jonas Holmgaard, Martin Vedel Mortensen and Patrick Steen Rasmussen were second and Red Camel third, vitally on the 992 lead lap.

Marcel Van Berlo continued to lead from the off on Sunday, but a late pit-stop before the finish on Saturday for Red Camel-Jordans.nl now paid dividends. Rik Breukers took the first stint on day two and rapidly worked his way into the 992 lead, fourth overall.

The 992 AM car of SebLajoux Racing came into contention in hour two, with Paul Meijer driving, but the team’s bid ended soon after when Marlon Menden launched over the kerbs at Raidillon before slamming into the tyre barriers.

At the front Red Camel really began to dominate, as high as third overall at one stage, and the team went on to win by four laps. RPM Racing came through to second in 992 and the 992 AM victory after heartbreak for the Van Berlo squad with 20 minutes to run, due to an issue with an engine belt. Holmgaard, therefore, ended third overall in 992.

GT4, GTX and TCE-TCX

Mercedes-AMG GT4 squad Venture, with drivers Matthew George, Matthew Higgins and Christopher and Neville Jones, really took control of GT4 during Saturday’s final couple of hours. The No.421 car ended two laps clear of the No.452 SRS Team Sorg Rennsport Porsche 718 Cayman.

Cruel disappointment followed for Venture just eight minutes into part two on Sunday, though, when Christopher Jones made contact with the wall at the outside of Raidillon. Such was the extent of the damage to the car, retirement duly followed and the battle for victory was blown wide open.

SRS Team Sorg Rennsport held first and second with their twin Porsche 718 entries, No. 452 ahead of the No.427, but problems for the former with four hours to go meant Girard took the GT4 lead and the car ultimately won nine laps clear.

Hamofa Motorsport, pole position qualifiers in GT4, lost 15 laps on Saturday due to a puncture and damage to the BMW M4 GT4 EVO (G82) but the squad of Rob, Kris and Mark Verhoeven did finish the encounter in third.

The 111 Racing squad converted GTX pole into an early lead on Saturday for the IRC GT car, in the hands of Daniel Studdard, and Geoffrey Emery and Darren Currie also performed strongly over the first five hours. Even so, the No.701 Vortex of Lionel Amrouche, Philippe Bonnel and Cyril Calmon was consistent and did take the overnight lead after being able to move a lap clear.

Unfortunately for the Vortex 2.0, an issue with the fuel cap during a stop under Code 60 conditions in the opening minutes of Sunday’s action necessitated a return to the pits straight after, enabling 111 Racing’s IRC GT to move through into a clear GTX lead again.

What had seemed a largely bullet-proof event for the IRC GT entry then went awry when a wheel bearing issue caused delays, latterly followed by power steering gremlins. Although the late contact for the No.701 at the chicane brought drama, it had more than enough laps in hand to beat the sister No.702 in which Amrouche doubled-up with Julien Boillot and Alexandre Der Bernardinis.

Everything went as well as could have for the J-Mec Engineering BMW M3 E46 across the entire 12 hours, dominating from the beginning in TCE-TCX. Class winners Clarke and Collins were eight laps to the good at the finish from the AsBest Racing Cupra TCR DSG of Christian Ladurner, Pia Ohlsson and Junichi Umemoto.

Round three of the Michelin 24H SERIES European Series brings a return to Italy for the Michelin 12H MISANO – qualifying will be on Friday, 23 May, and the full 12-hour race will take place on Saturday, 24 May. For full championship tables visit www.24hseries.com/standings