The ultimate drivers' test

27/07/2010

Spa-Francorchamps has always had a special place in the hearts of GT drivers – not only is the famous grand prix track a major test of driving skill, it is also the home of GT racing’s blue riband event, the 24 Hours of Spa.

This year the FIA GT1 World Championship will hold the fifth round at the unique circuit in the Ardennes forest as the inaugural season reaches its half-way point.

While the 24 Hours of Spa will be reserved for the GT2, GT3, GT4 and GTN classes, the GT1 cars will lock horns in their customary one-hour Qualifying and Championship Races.

The fourth round at Paul Ricard was dominated by the Vitaphone Maserati of Michael Bartels and Andrea Bertolini, who claimed victory in both events.

In the duel for the final podium positions, the Sumo Power Nissan GT-R of Michael Krumm and Peter Dumbreck finished ahead of Altfrid Heger and Alex Margaritis, who claimed their first ever podium finish in the Triple H Team Hegersport Maserati.

Spa-Francorchamps will provide a different challenge for cars and drivers. The Corvette Z06 and Maserati MC12 have won at Spa in 2009 and 2008 respectively but a 60-minute race will be a different proposition from the 24 hours that these teams have experienced in Belgium in previous seasons.

Local interest will centre on the Belgian entries - Bert Longin races the Triple H Maserati, while Bas Leinders, Maxime Martin and Renaud Kuppens will pilot Ford GTs under the Marc VDS Racing banner. Mad-Croc Racing is based in Merchtem, near Brussels. Dutch pairing Mike Hezemans and Xavier Maassen, racing the team’s No.11 Corvette, view Spa as their home event.

In a driver change at Matech Competition, Romain Grosjean moves to the No.6 Ford GT and will be partnered by fellow-Swiss driver Neel Jani, while Thomas Mutsch will be joined in the No.5 car by current FIA GT2 champion Richard Westbrook.

In the No.34 Triple H Maserati Longin will partner fellow Belgian Nico Verdonck who replaces Matteo Bobbi. Frank Kechele rejoins the championship and will share the Reiter Lamborghini No.25 with Ricardo Zonta.

The two victories in Paul Ricard have given Andrea Bertolini and Michael Bartels a 15-point advantage over their nearest rivals Grosjean/Mutsch.

Vitaphone Racing also hold the top spot in the teams’ standings, with a 23-point cushion to Sumo Power GT, after the British team’s Nissan GT-Rs scored two podium finishes in France.

You can follow live streaming of the Qualifying and Championship Races on GT1TV.

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