This weekend the fourth round of the Blancpain Endurance Series was held on the French Magny-Cours circuit, some 300 kilometres south of Paris. This was the fourth of five meetings for this brand new endurance championship for GT cars, with the final round being held at the beginning of October on the British F1 circuit of Silverstone. In a brilliantly hard fought battle Louis Machiels, Niek Hommerson and Paul van Splunteren won the Pro/Am class in their Ferrari 458 Italia, ensuring a fantastic revenge following the unjust disqualification during the race in Spa. “This victory really smells very sweet”, were the words uttered by Niek Hommerson and Louis Machiels during the press conference after the race in France “We had every intention of reacting strongly on the track and that’s what we did!” On the other hand the newcomers at ALD Automotive Vita4One Ferrari, Martin Matzke and Filip Salaquarda, together with team principal Michael Bartels, finished in an honourable fourth place, whilst Nico Verdonck, Jean-Karl Vernay and Frank Kechele were forced to throw in the towel near the end of the race. The Ferrari 458′s gearbox gave up the ghost some 35 minutes before the end and they lost out on a definite podium place.
In Magny-Cours the Blancpain Endurance Series was back to its classic three hours or 180 minutes race format, following on from the 24 hours race at Spa. The race was exceptionally held on Saturday evening, by nightfall, offering a rather exceptional atmosphere.
During the qualifying Michael Bartels placed the #29 Ferrari 459 Italia on pole for the race later on in the day.
Michael Bartels: “The car was good and I was finally able to set a fast lap, notwithstanding the traffic and the interruption of the session. I’m delighted with the team’s first pole position, but I’m fully aware that these are the qualifying sessions and not the actual race.”
The race itself ran smoothly for the car manned by Bartels, Matzke and Salaquarda, with a brilliant start from the young Salaquarda. Following a regular race the trio finally crossed the line in fourth place. In the meantime Frank Kechele and Niek Hommerson, who had respectively started from the 10th and 20th place, wended through the pack where at times the battle was being fiercely fought out.
Frank Kechele: “I took a rather careful start, as compared to some of my colleagues who thought that it was a sprint race. Notwithstanding that Nico and I climbed on up into second spot, in the wake of the leader. Jean-Karl (Vernay) then took over, but a problem with the gearbox put an end to our race and my championship’s ambitions. I’m obviously disappointed and I’m just left with the race in Silverstone to seek my revenge.”
However the race of the weekend definitely goes to the Louis Machiels, Niek Hommerson and Paul van Splunteren trio, who following the Spa affair, clinched their first victory of the season in the Pro/Am class after a brilliant catch-up race, and as such have kept their chances of gaining the title intact. The trio are now a mere 5.5 points down on the leaders, with still 25 points to be shared out.
Louis Machiels: “What can I say? This is a great relief, a sporting revenge and a brilliant result for the championship. Three things in one blow, I’m truly relieved and can but thank the team and my team mates for this incredible race. There’s a lump in my throat…”
Source : ALD Automotive