The first 180 minutes of the 24 Hours of Spa are over and the protagonists of GT World Challenge Europe/Intercontinental GT Challenge have already started to put on a show right from the start.
Departure took place under a cloudy sky that is slowly obscuring the sun, despite high temperatures and moderate humidity waiting for the much-announced rain to arrive in the evening.
Excellent start from the Lamborghini #163 of poleman Franck Perera, keeping behind the Mercedes #2 of Lucas Auer and the Ferrari #51 of Alessio Rovera, joined in the Eau Rouge by the Audi #88 of Glenn Van Berlo who immediately tried to take the lead third step of the podium.
Auer waited 10 laps before breaking the deadlock and overtaking Perera with a feint and dive inside the ‘Bus Stop’, becoming the new leader, just a handful of laps before the first neutralization with Full Course Yellow/Safety Car was decreed due to a hit by Louis Machiels (Ferrari #52) on Dustin Blattner at ‘Fagnes’, sending the #97 Rutronik Racing Porsche into the gravel.
The damage caused by the collision to the exhaust and gearbox caused what was the first retirement of the race.
Here the first pit stops were carried out in turn, with some driver changes (as chosen by AF Corse-Francorchamps Motors), with Auer finding himself in the #51 296 of Davide Rigon behind him, having passed Perera, who then dropped to fourth, also giving way to the #2 Mercedes of Luca Stolz, while the BMWs dropped to the fringes of the top 20.
Technical problems instead for the Lamborghini #163 that Marco Mapelli had just taken over from Perera, which dropped down the order after the first stop and was forced to return to the pits having visibly slowed its pace at each lap.
Meanwhile, the first penalties also arrived: the BMW #991 received a Drive Through for colliding with a rival and the Porsche #55 10″ at the next pit-stop for exceeding the speed limit in the pit lane at the first stop, as well as the 30″ inflicted on the McLaren #158, Mercedes #4 and Ferrari #74 and #8 for exceeding track-limits too many times.
Just after the halfway point of the 3rd hour, Julius Adomavicius was sent into the wall by Mattia Michelotto at the exit of ‘Les Combes’; with the #38 Haas RT Audi grounded in the gravel, another FCY-SC that everyone seized upon for their third pit stop, as the midfield battles heated up.
This cancelled out the 20″ margin that Alessandro Pier Guidi had gained on his pursuers with the #51 AF Corse-Francorchamps Motors Ferrari, now back in the hands of Rovera, who finds himself behind the #2 GetSpeed Mercedes, while the #99 Audis of Tesor Attempto and #25 Saintéloc are battling it out for the third step of the overall podium.
The R8 of the French team is also first in the Gold Cup Class because the last pit stop of the Audi #88 of Tresor Attempto proved to be slow due to a small problem and the car of the Italian-German team fell sixth, behind the Aston Martins # 7 of Comtoyou Racing and #34 of Walkenhorst Motorsport.
The Mercedes #9 of Boutsen VDS climbs to seventh, followed by the Ferrari #71 of AF Corse-Francorchamps Motors, with the Porsche #96 of Rutronik Racing and the Mercedes #777 of AlManar Racing (third Gold) completing the Top10, joined by the Rowe Racing BMW #998.
The best Lamborghini now was the #63 Iron Lynx which took 15th place, ahead of the #46 WRT BMW shared by Martin/Marciello.
In the Silver Cup Class, the Mercedes of Winward #57 and Boutsen VDS #10 lead, ahead of the Aston Martin #35 of Walkenhorst.
In the Bronze Cup, the #188 McLaren of Garage 59 has the first place in hand, followed by the #93 Ferrari of Sky Tempesta Racing and the #78 Lamborghini of Barwell.
Finally in PRO/AM he drives the #16 Mercedes of Uno Racing-Landgraf on the #100 McLaren of Team RJN and the #4 AMG of Crowdtrike-Riley.
But the fun begins now, not only for the restart from the Safety Car, but also for the arrival of the rain that is expected soon…
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