6H Spa: LMGTE Teams news round up
AF Corse (Pro and Am)
Giancarlo Fisichella and Gianmaria Bruni in the No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia GT2 won the “6 Hours of Spa” (GTE Pro category); Kamui Kobayashi and Toni Vilander were third (GTE Pro) in their No.71 AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia GT2; Enzo Potolicchio, Rui Aguas and Matteo Malucelli took their No. 81 8Star Motorsports 458 Italia GT2 (managed by AF Corse) to the first step on the podium (GTE Am category). A stratospheric result to the second race of the FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC).
For more go to AF Corse
Photo: SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS CIRCUIT (SPA, BELGIUM), WEC 6 HOURS OF SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, RACE, SATURDAY 4TH MAY 2013.
Aston Martin (Pro and Am)
Aston Martin Racing has finished second in both GTE classes at round two of the 2013 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC), the Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium.
The Gulf-liveried #98 Vantage GTE Pro car, driven by Bruno Senna (BR), Fred Makowiecki (FR) and Rob Bell (GB), took second place in the six-hour race following a competitive performance by all three drivers. Their prospects of challenging for the race win were dashed when an untimely safety car interruption caused them to fall behind their competitors in the early stages of the race.
For more go to Aston Martin
Photo: SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS CIRCUIT (SPA, BELGIUM), WEC 6 HOURS OF SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, RACE, SATURDAY 4TH MAY 2013.
Porsche AG
On the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Porsche works drivers Marc Lieb (Germany), Richard Lietz (Austria) and Romain Dumas (France) finished fifth with the Porsche 911 RSR in the GTE-Pro class at race two of the Sports Car World Championship WEC. The six hour race on the storied circuit in Belgium’s Ardennes, which is considered the final rehearsal for the Le Mans 24 Hours, was the second race outing for the Porsche 911 RSR. A safety car phase prevented a better result. The #92 nine-eleven was unable to make its scheduled pit stop and lost almost an entire lap to the leader who had pitted shortly before.
In the second Porsche 911 RSR, their works driver colleagues Joerg Bergmeister (Germany), Patrick Pilet (France) and Timo Bernhard (Germany) had been running in third place for quite some time but were forced to retire after becoming the faultless victims of a collision in the final hour of racing. The 470 hp GT racers from Weissach based on the seventh generation of the iconic 911 sports car, are fielded this season by Porsche AG Team Manthey.
Wolfgang Hatz, Board Member Research and Development at Porsche AG: “The positive aspect is that our pit stops worked really well this time. In this regard we have made a huge step forward and were at the level of the top teams. Now we need to concentrate on fully utilising the potential of our car.”
Hartmut Kristen, Head of Porsche Motorsport: “We’ve made progress in terms of performance, but this unfortunately didn’t translate into a better result. We still have a lot to do, but we’re on the right track.”
Marc Lieb (#92): “We experienced a lot of bad luck with the safety car phase and that put us a lap down. I think it’s a shame, we could have scored a podium result.”
Richard Lietz (#92): “After Silverstone we have improved in all the areas we had hoped to. Our pit stops were considerably quicker. And our race speed was better.”
Romain Dumas (#92): “Our car’s performance was good. Perhaps we weren’t in a position to win, but without the safety car phase we may have secured a podium spot.”
Joerg Bergmeister (#91): “The car ran very well at the start. At one point we were running third. But then a collision with a Ferrari cost us the race.”
Patrick Pilet (#91): “Our performance today was much better than in Silverstone. We had great duels but unfortunately we were unable to finish the race. Still, we’ve learned a great deal for Le Mans.”
Timo Bernhard (#91): “We were looking strong early in the race. If it weren’t for our problems we could have scored third. I’m very sorry for the team. The boys deserved a better result.”
Photo: SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS CIRCUIT (SPA, BELGIUM), WEC 6 HOURS OF SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, RACE, SATURDAY 4TH MAY 2013.
8Star Motorsports
For many new teams, it could often take years before achieving success in the highest form of sportscar racing. But in only its second start in the FIA World Endurance Championship, 8Star Motorsports broke through to claim a historic maiden victory in Saturday’s 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps.
Team principal Enzo Potolicchio joined co-drivers Rui Aguas and Matteo Malucelli on the top step of the LM GTE-Am podium following a dominant performance in the second round of the FIA WEC. The Florida-based organization’s Ferrari F458 Italia led from the third lap and never relinquished control of the race, despite facing strong opposition from the likes of Aston Martin and Corvette.
For more go to 8Star Motorsports
Photo: SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS CIRCUIT (SPA, BELGIUM), WEC 6 HOURS OF SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, RACE, SATURDAY 4TH MAY 2013.
Larbre Competition
An untimely Safety Car period put paid to Larbre Competition’s victory chances at the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps on Saturday, although a second consecutive podium finish maintained their strong start to the FIA World Endurance Championship campaign.
Spirited performances from Patrick Bornhauser, Julien Canal and Fernando Rees ultimately helped the #50 Corvette C6.R come home third in the GTE Am class after a late-race battle with the #96 AMR Aston Martin. The result, along with second position at the Silverstone season opener, sees the French squad occupy third in the standings.
Jack Leconte, Team Manager: “The accident that triggered the Safety Car ultimately killed our victory chances at the end of the first hour. There’s always a chance that will happen during the season though, especially as European organisers do not use Safety Car intervention as a means of spicing up the racing. On this occasion events did not play out in our favour, but the wheel keeps on turning.
“Spa’s FIA WEC round was run over two days instead of the usual three, which was very interesting. The reduced format included a pair of two-hour free practice sessions, which is great as they allow us to conduct better work with the drivers. The intensity is higher which calls for greater concentration while costs are also reduced, so I’d like to see this adopted in future.”
Photo: SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS CIRCUIT (SPA, BELGIUM), WEC 6 HOURS OF SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, RACE, SATURDAY 4TH MAY 2013.
Krohn Racing
Krohn Racing arrived at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps seeking valuable points in their quest for the GTE-Am championship in the 2013 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC). Although they were able to finish the race and achieve collecting points, it was not as many as they had hoped with only a seventh-place finish.
For more go to Krohn Racing
Photo: SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS CIRCUIT (SPA, BELGIUM), WEC 6 HOURS OF SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, RACE, SATURDAY 4TH MAY 2013.