Qualifying, 24-hour race Spa-Francorchamps (BE): Porsche customer teams move into the Superpole in Spa with three 911 GT3 R.
30-06-2024 14:50 - MOTORSPORT
In the four-part qualifying for the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, three of the twelve Porsche 911 GT3 R made it into the Superpole session. They are therefore among the 20 racing cars that will be battling for the best starting positions in the Superpole session on Friday afternoon from 3:45 p.m. (CEST). Phantom Global Racing achieved the best placing with sixth place for the driver trio Joel Eriksson from Sweden, Jaxon Evans from New Zealand and the Austrian Thomas Preining. The Schumacher CLRT team followed closely behind in seventh position, SSR Herberth was ninth. The endurance classic on the Belgian Grand Prix race track begins on Saturday at 4:30 p.m. (CEST).
In midsummer weather with air temperatures of 25 degrees Celsius and asphalt temperatures of 35 degrees, the Porsche customer teams found ideal conditions. The fastest lap of a 911 GT3 R was 2:15.163 minutes, 1.7 seconds below the Porsche best time from the Super Pole session last year. This improvement is also due to a new asphalt surface for various sections of the track, which offers significantly more grip and traction.
The Chinese team Phantom Global Racing emerged from qualifying as the best-placed Porsche customer team. They are supported by Porsche brand ambassador Timo Bernhard's Team75. Joel Eriksson from Sweden and the two former Porsche juniors Jaxon Evans (New Zealand) and Thomas Preining (Austria) achieved an average lap time of 2:15.689 minutes. This was enough for sixth place. 0.062 seconds behind, the French team Schumacher CLRT came in seventh. Here, two other drivers from the junior program, Ayhancan Güven from Turkey and the German Laurin Heinrich, share the cockpit with the Frenchman Dorian Boccolacci. The SSR Herberth team from Germany also made it into the so-called Superpole on Friday. This 911 GT3 R, which has up to 416 kW (565 hp), is driven by the Australian Matt Campbell and the two Frenchmen Mathieu Jaminet and Frédéric Makowiecki. Barely two weeks ago, the trio were still racing for the Porsche Penske Motorsport factory team at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Jaminet – like Campbell, a former Porsche junior – finished third in the IMSA race in Watkins Glen (USA) with the Porsche 963 last Sunday.
The organizing SRO Motorsports Group has announced four classes for the GT World Challenge Europe, which are based on the official FIA driver classification: Pro, Gold Cup, Silver Cup and Bronze Cup. In the Gold Cup, for example, a combination of one "silver" and two "gold" drivers is allowed to start. The silver category requires four drivers with silver status. In the Bronze Cup, a maximum of one driver may have platinum status and two others may not have more than silver. Only at the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps is the Pro-Am league added: here two drivers must be classified as bronze drivers. There are no quality restrictions in the Pro class, which is why mostly purely professional constellations compete in this classification. However, only three drivers are allowed per racing car. This is why participants in this class must skip the first of four qualifying segments.
The final hunt for the 20 best starting positions begins on Friday at 3:45 p.m. (CEST) with the 30-minute Superpole session. With 66 racing cars entered, the 24-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps is the largest event for GT3 vehicles in the world and counts towards the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup and the Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC). Drivers and teams receive points for the GT World Challenge ranking after six, twelve and 24 hours. The race will be broadcast live in several languages on the website http://www.intercontinentalgtchallenge.com .
The Chinese team Phantom Global Racing emerged from qualifying as the best-placed Porsche customer team. They are supported by Porsche brand ambassador Timo Bernhard's Team75. Joel Eriksson from Sweden and the two former Porsche juniors Jaxon Evans (New Zealand) and Thomas Preining (Austria) achieved an average lap time of 2:15.689 minutes. This was enough for sixth place. 0.062 seconds behind, the French team Schumacher CLRT came in seventh. Here, two other drivers from the junior program, Ayhancan Güven from Turkey and the German Laurin Heinrich, share the cockpit with the Frenchman Dorian Boccolacci. The SSR Herberth team from Germany also made it into the so-called Superpole on Friday. This 911 GT3 R, which has up to 416 kW (565 hp), is driven by the Australian Matt Campbell and the two Frenchmen Mathieu Jaminet and Frédéric Makowiecki. Barely two weeks ago, the trio were still racing for the Porsche Penske Motorsport factory team at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Jaminet – like Campbell, a former Porsche junior – finished third in the IMSA race in Watkins Glen (USA) with the Porsche 963 last Sunday.
The organizing SRO Motorsports Group has announced four classes for the GT World Challenge Europe, which are based on the official FIA driver classification: Pro, Gold Cup, Silver Cup and Bronze Cup. In the Gold Cup, for example, a combination of one "silver" and two "gold" drivers is allowed to start. The silver category requires four drivers with silver status. In the Bronze Cup, a maximum of one driver may have platinum status and two others may not have more than silver. Only at the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps is the Pro-Am league added: here two drivers must be classified as bronze drivers. There are no quality restrictions in the Pro class, which is why mostly purely professional constellations compete in this classification. However, only three drivers are allowed per racing car. This is why participants in this class must skip the first of four qualifying segments.
The final hunt for the 20 best starting positions begins on Friday at 3:45 p.m. (CEST) with the 30-minute Superpole session. With 66 racing cars entered, the 24-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps is the largest event for GT3 vehicles in the world and counts towards the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup and the Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC). Drivers and teams receive points for the GT World Challenge ranking after six, twelve and 24 hours. The race will be broadcast live in several languages on the website http://www.intercontinentalgtchallenge.com .