WEC- 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps: Hypercars race

WECHyperCar

Apr 30

The 6 hours of Spa-Francorchamps was full of twist today at Spa with many SC or FCY which allowed latest to catch up several times with the leading cars in each category. Only six Hypercars finished ahead of six LMP2s. Both Peugeots and the Glickenhaus finished behind the 6 LMP2 class leaders.

The key moments of the Hypercar race.

The 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps started on a wet track, with the teams betting on different tire strategies. It was enough for the classification of the starting grid to be upset several times in the first hour.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps.

The first lap occurred under Safety Car (SC) but, as soon as the SC let the meute go, the Ferrari 499P #51 took the lead ahead of sister car #50 thanks to their wet tires. The pole Toyota #7 was in P7 behind the Cadillac #2 in P6. A new SC occurred at lap 3 (until lap 8) which enabled the track to dry and slick tires to reach the ideal temperature. As soon as the cars were released, Toyota #7 took the lead back. The two Ferraris fell back in the standings as their wet tires didn’t enable them to follow the pace.

From then on, the #7 GR010 Hybrid lead the next 45 laps. Sister car #8 gradually rose from last place (following Hartley's accident in qualifying) to P4.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Renger van der Zande with #3 Cadillac V-Series.R was running second until “*something went wrong in Eau Rouge”*. The two Ferraris were one lap behind.

From lap 29, Cadillac V-Series.R #3 was second until Renger van der Zande crashed heavily at the Raidillon. The yellow Cadillac was completely destructed but the driver unhurt.

Renger van der Zande: “It’s a tribute to the team how we were running P2 there with the right tire choice. The laps time were really good, we were cruising into the race and making sure we were taking care of the car and everything. But something went wrong in Eau Rouge and that was the end of our day. We’re still investigating to figure out what happened, but I am super lucky to be in a safe Cadillac because that was almost out of a movie scene. Jumping out of that car is a miracle and I’m quite proud that Cadillac builds such strong cars. We’ll bounce back and continue our develop as a team.” Source: Cadillac Racing

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Laurens Vanthoor was in P2 with his Porsche #6 until an electrical system failure forced to abandon.

The abandon of the #3 Cadillac during lap 40, enabled Porsche 969 #6 to become second ahead of Toyota #8 in P3 during 13 laps until a complete loss of electrical power of Porsche #6 stranded Vanthoor at the last curve before Pit access.

Laurens Vanthoor (Porsche 963 #6): “As I drove through the last chicane, suddenly the entire electrical system failed. I ran through certain procedures to restart the system but unfortunately that didn’t work. We still have to analyse what exactly happened. It’s a real shame because our race was going really well up to that point. Our strategy played out perfectly, and the car felt great to drive. We made the right decision to opt for slicks, especially at the start.” Source: Porsche.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina and Nicklas Nielsen had to retire after Fuoco lost control of his #50 Ferrari 499P.

The third contender to retire was Ferrari 499P #50 after Antonio Fuoco had an accident between La Source and Eau Rouge, less than two hours before the chequered flag.

MIGUEL MOLINA: “The race didn’t end as we’d hoped. We are improving, working very hard, and here at Spa, we proved that we have an excellent pace, although we still have to continue to build up experience in this category. Antonio couldn’t do anything to avoid the situation that occurred on his return to the track. Handling the car in weather like today’s at Spa is very difficult with cold tyres. Antonio shouldn’t worry, and together we will look ahead. We are already thinking about the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the year’s most eagerly anticipated race, where I am sure we can achieve an excellent result.” Source: Ferrari

Hypercars top 6

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Conway and Jose Maria Lopez with Toyota GR010 Hybrid #7 won the race.

Kamui Kobayashi, Mike Conway and Jose Maria Lopez with Toyota GR010 Hybrid #7 won the race after leading a total of 132 laps of the 148 covered.

Mike Conway (Driver, car #7): “It was a crazy race but a great result for both cars. It was a tricky call at the beginning on the tyres but we knew it probably wasn’t going to rain again. We just had to survive as best we could. I lost a lot of positions but when the track dried, we had the right tyres and I picked off the guys ahead. The race went well but it was hard because as soon as we built a gap, it was eroded by a safety car. We made some good calls and Kamui and José did mega stints, pushing all the way to the end. Car #8 did well to finish second, so I am really happy to get such a result for the team.” Source: Toyota Gazoo Racing

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Sebastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa with Toyota GR010 Hybrid #7 won the race .

Sister car #8 lead three times for a total of 8 laps but could not resist to #7 despite an amazing race that saw them moving up the ranking from P36 to P1 at lap 55. The trio ended second.

Sébastien Buemi (Driver, car #8): “Second place is a great recovery drive. Starting 36th on the grid and coming back to second place, after actually fighting for the win, is a real achievement. The win for car #7 makes it a perfect day and I am really happy for the team. It was an eventful race, particularly at the beginning with the rain, but I tried to stay out of trouble and just continue to move up the field. This is a good preparation for Le Mans; now we can get ready for June.” Source: Toyota Gazoo Racing

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. the Ferrari 499P crewed by Alessandro Pier Guidi, James Calado and Antonio Giovinazzi secured its first podium overall.

The first SC thwarted Ferrari team strategy of mounting rain tires as the track dried out during that SC period. Both Ferrari slept down the standings to be one lap behind the leading Toyota. Pier Guidi managed to unlap and hand the car over to Giovinazzi who had to stop after damaging a rim following a collision. James Calado started in P4 and overtook Porsche #5 in the last lap. ANTONIO GIOVINAZZI: “It is a big thrill to be back on the podium after such a long time. It was a tricky race, but in the end, James and Alessandro did an exceptional job. I am delighted for the entire team.” Source: Ferrari

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Michael Christensen, Dane Cameron and Frédéric Makowiecki with #5 Porsche 963 ended fourth.

Michael Christensen on board of the #5 Porsche 963 at the start, had to watch the Hypercars race from the back suffering difficulties with the electric clutch control. The problem was eventually solved at the first pit stop which enabled him to chase back and hand the car over to Dane Cameron in third place. When Frédéric Makowiecki took over, he was sixth and moved back to third thanks to a new SC but couldn’t resist to the #51 Ferrari due to the deteriorating performance of the rear tyres.

Dane Cameron (Porsche 963 #5): “After a difficult qualifying, we fought our way back in the race and did a great job as a team all in all. We encountered minor problems during the six-hour race, but we overcame them well. The balance of our car was markedly better today and our pace was noticeably faster. A podium result was within reach but unfortunately, we missed out at the very last moment. Next up is Le Mans. We’ll do our absolute best to get even more performance out of our Porsche 963 there.” Source: Porsche

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Earl Bamber, Alex Lynn and Richard Westbrook drove their #2 Cadillac V-Series.R to fifth place after a race that never saw them beyond P4.

Earl Bamber: “We decided as a team what to do and we split the cars and we took wets. If it stayed green, it definitely was the right call but the safety car, so we got put back more than a minute. We recovered well, had great pace and the car was really good for me and my teammates.” Source: Cadillac Racing

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. The Hertz Team Jota squad brought the first customer-run Porsche 963 over the finish line in sixth place.

António Félix da Costa, William Stevens and Yifei Ye shared the cockpit of Hertz team Jota Porsche #38 ending sixth after a steady race.

António Félix da Costa: “We took possession of the car just a few days before this race weekend and basically jumped in the deep end. The fact that we could complete the six-hour race under these circumstances without any technical setbacks deserves huge credit. The team did an incredible job. We didn’t even push the car to the limit – our priority was to turn as many laps as possible and collect as much data as we could. Now we’ll take a close look at everything, go testing and then head to Le Mans even stronger.” Source: Porsche

WEC- 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps: Hypercars race

The key moments of the Hypercar race.

Hypercars top 6

6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps: LMGTE race

WEC- 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps: Hypercars qualifying