Spa 24: Third win for ROWE racing
Third triumph for ROWE Racing at the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps! In a thrilling race that remained close until the final hour, Philipp Eng, Marco Wittmann and Nick Yelloly drove the #98 BMW M4 GT3 to victory, securing the 25th overall win for BMW, the most successful manufacturer in the event's history.
Three different manufacturers on the podium
With a 70-strong field, the endurance classic in the Belgian Ardennes is considered the biggest event for GT3 cars worldwide. This classic race counts towards the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup and the Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC).
The #98 Rowe Racing BMW M4 GT3 is the winner of the 2023 Crowdstrike 24 Hours of Spa ahead of #88 Akkodis ASP Team Mercedes-AMG GT3 and #17 Scherer Sport PHX Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO.
Marco Wittmann, Nick Yelloly and Phillip Eng with #98 BMW M4 GT3 wins the 24 hours of Spa.
Phillip Eng claimed his third Spa triumph for BMW M Motorsport, following his victories in 2016 and 2018.
📷 © Luc Warnotte at Crowdstrike 24 hours of Spa. #98 BMW M4 GT3
Philipp Eng (#98 BMW M4 GT3, ROWE Racing, 1st place): “Winning a 24-hour race is every racing driver's dream, and this is the most difficult GT race to win. Therefore, it means a lot to me to experience this for the third time in my career. It's a great honour for me. The race was anything but easy for us. At one point, we were one lap behind, and there was no indication that we could still win, but the team did a fantastic job to bring us back into the race. The last two hours felt like an eternity.”
Marco Wittmann (#98 BMW M4 GT3, ROWE Racing, 1st place): “I've been trying to win a 24-hour race for about ten years now. Finally, it worked out! It's an incredible feeling. A big compliment to the team and my fellow drivers. We had an extremely good package of driver, team, and car that gave me my long-awaited first 24-hour victory.”
Nick Yelloly (#98 BMW M4 GT3, ROWE Racing, 1st place): “A fantastic performance from the entire team. To win a race like this, so many things need to come together, and today, they did. Many thanks to everyone who made this success possible! Personally, this is the culmination of an outstanding week that started with the first GTP victory for the BMW M Hybrid V8 at Watkins Glen.” Source: BMW Group
2. Raffaele Marciello, Timur Boguslavskiy, Jules Gounon with #88 Akkodis ASP Team Mercedes-AMG GT3.
📷 © Luc Warnotte at Crowdstrike 24 hours of Spa. #88 Akkodis ASP Team Mercedes-AMG GT3.
3. Luca Engstler, Kelvin van der Linde, Nicki Thiim with #17 Scherer Sport PHX Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO.
📷 © Luc Warnotte at Crowdstrike 24 hours of Spa. Tight battle between Nicki Thiim with #17 Scherer Sport PHX Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO and Kevin Estre with #92 Manthey EMA Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) for P3.
“With Daytona, Le Mans and the Nürburgring, Spa is one of the big 24-hour races that you really want to win as a GT driver,” says Kelvin van der Linde, driver of the #17 Audi. “I've been there two times already time on the podium, but unfortunately it wasn't enough for victory. The race will not be easy because the starting field is perhaps the strongest in GT3 racing every year. That's why everything has to run perfectly in the race in order to achieve a good result in the end. I'm confident we can do it. A top 5 result or even a podium place is realistic.”
"The expectations are clear: We don't just want to be there with our line-up," says teammate and Spa 24h newcomer Luca Engstler. “I drove in the sister car in the prologue and we found a good basic set-up with which we can start free practice. The race will definitely be very hard and intense. We want to find a good rhythm and be up there at the end.” Source: SCHERER SPORT PHX
Two Porsche 911 GT3 R in the top 5
4. Julien Andlauer, Laurens Vanthoor, Kevin Estre with #92 Manthey EMA Porsche 911 GT3 R (992)
They led the race a couple of times but faced two penalties for exceeding the track limits and a damaged rear diffuser then fought for third place until the last lap.
📷 © Luc Warnotte at Test Day 2 of Crowdstrike 24 hours of Spa. #92 Porsche 911 GT3 R (992).
Julien Andlauer (Porsche 911 GT3 R #92): “That was a very exciting race weekend. We were absolutely up with the play at all times and did our very best in difficult conditions. Unfortunately, we were handed two time penalties for exceeding the track limits – given the fierceness of the duels, it was practically impossible to always drive an absolutely clean line. But we never gave up. Kévin Estre, in particular, pulled out all stops again during his last stint with some incredible manoeuvres. Unfortunately, it didn’t quite work out in the end. Still, we can be very happy with fourth place.” Source: Porsche
5. Thomas Preining, Laurin Heinrich, Dennis Olsen with #96 Rutronik Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R (992).
From the early hours of the morning, the No. 96 car rejoined the leading pack and from then on remained within striking distance of the Manthey EMA car – and at times ahead of it.
📷 © Luc Warnotte at Test Day 1 of Crowdstrike 24 hours of Spa. #96 Rutronik Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R (992).
Laurin Heinrich (Porsche 911 GT3R #96): “From 30th on the grid we quickly ploughed our way into the top 10. After four hours we were already in seventh, then made it through the night without any mistakes and stayed on the same lap as the leader. Towards the end, it turned into more of a sprint race, with everyone going flat out. So it was close to the very end.” Source: Porsche.
6. The #46 BMW M4 GT3 from BMW M Team WRT, driven by Augusto Farfus, Maxime Martin, and Valentino Rossi.
📷 © Luc Warnotte at Test Day 2 of Crowdstrike 24 hours of Spa. #98 BMW M4 GT3.
They also showed strong speed but were repeatedly set back by time penalties.
Valentino Rossi (#46 BMW M4 GT3, BMW M Team WRT, 6th place): “I'm happy. It was a positive race for me. It was my second time taking part in the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. After finishing 17th last year, sixth place was a big step forward this time, but of course we want more and will make another attempt next year. Many thanks to the team and my fellow drivers for their great effort!” Source: BMW Group
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📷 © Luc Warnotte at Crowdstrike 24 hours of Spa. Spa 24: Overall ranking with 6 hours to go.
📷 © Luc Warnotte at Crowdstrike 24 hours of Spa. Spa 24: Overall ranking after 6 hours.
📷 © Luc Warnotte at Monza: GTWorldChEu at Monza: Race top 10
