Interim Report 2, 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium)

The Porsche customer teams are on their way to top results at the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps after difficult track conditions at night. After more than two-thirds of the distance, the 911 GT3 R fielded by Rutronik Racing was in sixth place and the SSR Herberth car in seventh.

The endurance classic in the Belgian Ardennes had started with a loss for Porsche Motorsport's partner teams: after the first eight hours, half of the twelve 911 GT3 R cars were already out of the race due to accidents and incidents. Despite changeable weather with intermittent heavy rainfall, 15 degrees Celsius air temperature and 21 degrees asphalt temperature, the events calmed down during the night. The right tyre choice was crucial in difficult conditions. At 8:30 a.m., the remaining six GT3 cars from Weissach were still on the road on the 7.004-kilometre track. Depending on the pit stop rhythm, four took over the lead again and again and were thus eligible for a top result.

The nine-eleven from Rutronik Racing with up to 416 kW (565 hp) has an extremely good starting position. Julien Andlauer (France), Sven Müller (Germany) and Patric Niederhauser (Switzerland) were able to make up important ground in the early hours of the morning. After two thirds of the distance, he was in 16th place and has now moved up to sixth position.

SSR Herberth also led the field in the meantime. With Matt Campbell from Australia and the two Frenchmen Mathieu Jaminet and Frédéric Makowiecki, three Porsche works drivers will be in action here, who had competed in Le Mans with the hybrid prototype 963 14 days earlier. Her placement at 8:30 a.m.: seventh place.

Phantom Global Racing's 911 GT3 R is also in the leading group, although it received a 30-second penalty for exceeding the track limits too often shortly before the half-time mark. The Chinese team will be supported by Team75 Motorsport of Porsche Brand Ambassador Timo Bernhard. The Swede Joel Eriksson, Jaxon Evans from New Zealand and the Austrian Thomas Preining were in 14th position eight hours before the finish.

PureRxcing had a good chance of a top result. Klaus Bachler from Austria and the German Joel Sturm were able to take first place for the first time around midnight on a rain-soaked track. They share the race car with the Briton Alex Malykhin. After 16 hours, the No. 911 car was once again in first place. However, an accident at the exit of the fast Blanchimont corner ended the trio's performance a short time later.

With 66 participating race cars, the 24-hour race at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is considered the largest event for GT3 cars in the world. It is part of 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 website www.intercontinentalgtchallenge.com will broadcast the race in a multilingual live stream.

Sebastian Golz (Project Manager Porsche 911 GT3 R): "Tough hours are behind us, accidents and technical problems cost us seven cars. However, SSR Herberth, Phantom Global Racing, Rutronik Racing and Lionspeed X Herberth got through the night well and showed a strong performance. PureRxcing was in a particularly good starting position. After the accident of this vehicle, we are relieved that Joel Sturm is doing well. Now there is still a little less than a third of the distance ahead of us with the transition from wet to dry track. In this difficult phase, the drivers have to keep the slick tyres at temperature and in their working window."

Julien Andlauer (F, Porsche 911 GT3 R #96): "We made it through the night and back into the lead lap. In the changeable conditions, you have to take risks and need a bit of luck to change to the right tyre at the right time."

Joel Eriksson (S, Porsche 911 GT3 R #23): "The conditions are pretty difficult out there. During my stint, the track dried out. We had to bring forward a pit stop a bit when the time came for slicks. If we continue to drive cleanly and avoid penalties, things look good for us."

Matt Campbell (AUS, Porsche 911 GT3 R #92): "The bad weather during the night made for difficult conditions – even when we were slowly following the safety car. But we survived the night without any major problems. Our performance in the open air is good, we are among the frontrunners. In the next few hours, strategy will play an increasingly important role."

Klaus Bachler (A, Porsche 911 GT3 R #911): "Our Porsche 911 GT3 R worked really well in the wet and semi-wet conditions, its balance was top! Eight hours before the end of the race, we were still among the frontrunners, anything was possible. We are very happy that Joel Sturm survived the accident well."

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