The Total 24 Hours of Spa is one of the true classic endurance races, and the 2009 edition placed the emphasis on ‘endurance’. Accidents, human error, mechanical problems and the weather all took their toll, but when the chequered flag fell, across all four classes, victory went to the car which had the fewest problems, and spent the least time in the pits. Overall victory went to the nr 4 PK Racing Corvette of Hezemans, Kumpen, Menten and Mollekens, some 11 laps clear of the nr 33 Vitaphone DHL Maserati MC12 of Pier Guidi, Lemeret, Rosenblad and Vosse; third across the line was the nr 111 Phoenix Racing Audi R8 LMS of Fässler, Moser, Margaritis and Basseng – a remarkable result since the car is running in the G2 class, and this is the first time the R8 has competed in the Spa classic. Third in GT1, and the leading 2010-generation GT1 car, was the Nissan Motorsports Nissan GT-R of Krumm, Turner and Davidson, in its first 24-hour race.
The nr 50 AF Corse Ferrari F430 of Vilander, Bruni, Melo and Companc was fourth overall and took the win in GT2 after its competitors fell by the wayside; second, four laps back, was the nr 97 Brixia Racing Porsche of Lucchini, Ragginger, Holzer and Miller, with Kirkaldy, Bell, Kox and Garcia, in the nr 56 CRS Racing Ferrari F430, third. The nr 121 Matech GT Racing Ford GT of Mutsch, Martin, Wyss and Hennerici survived some late scares to take the win in G3, only a lap ahead of the nr 123 Mühlner Motorsport Porsche with the nr 161 Prospeed Competition Porsche a further lap back. Second in G2 went to the nr 116 Jetalliance Racing Porsche, and the nr 110 Guino Kenis Mosler MT900 was third.
As always, the Spa race delivered a wonderful show, from the beautiful, challenging circuit with its notoriously temperamental weather, which threw everything it had at the teams, through the tremendous racing fought out by the drivers and teams, to the fantastic atmosphere of fireworks on and off track, hot air balloons, the funfair atmosphere and the valiant spectators, 35,000 over the weekend, who remained enthralled through rain and sun alike.
GT1 – PK CARSPORT OUTLASTS THEIR COMPETITORS
The battle for the overall win raged for many hours; three Vitaphone Maserati MC 12 cars battled three Corvettes. First to falter was the nr 8 Sangari Team Brazil Corvette, which destroyed itself against the tyre wall at Raidillon in the fourth hour; then, a heavy rain shower seemed to shift the balance in favour of Vitaphone Racing Team. But just before midnight the nr 1 Maserati hit the barriers hard at Fagnes; the car was brought back to the pits but repairs took several hours, the car returning to the track at around 3.00. Repairing the barriers also required an hour-long safety car period. The nr 33 Vitaphone car then lost time to repairs after colliding with a backmarker – but the remaining three cars, the nr 2 Maserati and the nr 3 and 4 Corvettes, put on a terrific show, lapping incredibly quickly with only seconds between them. At first it was the nr 3 SRT Corvette which spent most time in the lead, but then the nr 4 PK Racing car pulled out a small advantage. It then seemed the nr 2 Vitaphone Maserati had the pace to pull clear – until disaster struck. A high-speed blow-out did huge damage and left the car stranded out on the track and out of the race.
And so we were down to two Corvettes – and then there was one. In the final three hours, the nr 3 SRT Corvette developed an oil leak, which could not be fixed; the team were forced to park in the garage, only appearing for the final laps. This left the nr 4 PK Carsport Corvette, which had run a virtually faultless race and took a fine victory as a result. The nr 33 Vitaphone Maserati ran solidly after being repaired, and steadily climbed back to second overall. The third GT1 finisher was the nr 35 Nissan Motorsport Nissan GT-R; however, the car is not eligible for points in the FIA GT Championship, so the points for third went to the nr 1 Vitaphone Maserati. SRT was classified fifth and took points for fourth, while the nr 2 Vitaphone Maserati was classified sixth and took points for fifth.
With two consecutive wins, Hezemans and Kumpen now have a slender one-point lead over Bartels and Bertolini going into the second half of the season. Vitaphone Racing Team still retains a healthy lead in the Teams classification.
GT2 – AF CORSE WIN ATTRITIONAL RACE
The story was the same in GT2; the early leader was the nr 70 IMSA Performance Matmut Porsche, but it dropped back after a long stop to repair damage after a spin; it finally retired with a broken engine. The nr 51 AF Corse Ferrari then held the lead for many hours until gearbox problems forced it out. The nr 50 AF Corse Ferrari assumed the lead and always had the pace to take the win. Behind them the nr 56 CRS Racing Ferrari was competitive until starter motor problems led to lengthy pit-stops and a stop-go penalty; the nr 59 Trackspeed Porsche was on course for a podium finish until the clutch failed with less than three hours remaining.
G2 AND G2 : PHOENIX AND MATECH GT RACING VICTORIOUS
After the first hour it was clear that there was only one car in contention for G2 honours, provided it could stay out of trouble. The nr 111 Phoenix Racing Audi R8 LMS ran almost perfectly; there was a late scare when debris blocking the radiator caused the engine to overheat, but it was not enough to prevent the Audi taking third overall, with a massive 57-lap advantage over the nr 116 Jetalliance Racing Porsche, with the nr 110 Guino Kenis Mosler a further 84 laps back; those three were the only finishers.
From before the halfway-point the nr 121 Matech Ford GT led the G3 category, and appeared to be cruising to an easy win; but then problems with the under-tray and rear wing required several pit-stops to resolve, and the nr 123 Mühlner Motorsport Porsche looked in with a chance of a late upset; but the Ford team did just enough to hold on, barely a lap clear when the chequered flag fell.
NEW POINTS LEADERS IN GT1 AND GT2
The result means that only a single point separates the top two pairings in the GT1 standings. Hezemans and Kumpen are the new Championship leaders on 33 points, with Bartels and Bertolini on 32 points. Despite their engine problems Longin and Ruffier, in the SRT Corvette, picked up the points for fourth in class and are now on 17 points. There are also new leaders in GT2 – their second victory in a row means Bruni and Vilander have 28 points and have overtaken Collard and Westbrook, who finished down in fifth and who are now on 24 points. Ragginger and Lucchini, who were second, and Kirkaldy and Bell, who were third, are tied on 18 points.
The next race in the FIA GT Championship is at the Hungaroring, near Budapest. This is the sixth visit of the series to the Hungarian circuit; on the last visit, in 2006, victory was taken by a Saleen, Hezemans and Kumpen, together with Longin, finished second while the leading Maserati, driven by Bartels and Bertolini, could do no better than fifth.
The results remain provisional pending technical checks on cars 59, 60, 61, 70 and 97.
Source : SRO