After looking set to vie for LMGT3 class victory at Spa-Francorchamps, Proton Competition ultimately flattered to deceive in round two of the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship campaign earlier this month, but the team showed sufficient pace and potential to leave it bullish about its prospects going forward.
The Ford Mustang outfit arrived in the Ardennes bidding to build upon a double points-scoring finish from the curtain-raising contest at Imola, and got off to a promising start. After Stefano Gattuso and Eric Powell advanced comfortably through the first part of qualifying in Belgium, Ben Tuck and Giammarco Levorato proceeded to secure third and fifth positions on the grid for the #77 and #88 entries in the top ten Hyperpole shootout.
On the opening lap of the following day’s six-hour bout, Powell wasted no time at all in relieving Ian James of second place, prior to latching onto the tail of Tom Van Rompuy as the top two began to edge away.
The American’s pressure soon paid off, as he took full advantage of a great exit from the Bus-Stop Chicane to boldly sneak by into the lead on the blast through Eau Rouge, but an error at Stavelot not long after left the #77 car beached in the gravel trap. After rejoining the fray, further delays in the pits compounded the setback, with Powell, Tuck and Sebastian Priaulx treating the remainder of the race as a test session on their way to a frustrated 16th at the chequered flag.
“Obviously, it was heartbreaking to finish in the position that we did, but there were still a lot of positives to take away from Spa,” Powell reflected. “I made a small mistake that had big consequences, but I finally feel I’ve figured out how to drive this Mustang to the best of its potential, especially on these tyres. The pace was really strong and the car felt so good.
“The whole team worked very hard and I wanted to repay everybody with a good result, so to make the mistake made me feel bad for them all, but I learned a lot for sure, it’s still only my second race and I will come back stronger.”
In the sister Proton Competition entry, Gattuso similarly went on the offensive early on, demoting François Hériau and Ian James over the course of the first hour – earning the fan-voted Goodyear Wingfoot Award in recognition of his eye-catching raw speed and incisive overtakes – before sharp work in the pits enabled the Italian to leapfrog the #78 Lexus into the lead.
In front of a record-breaking Spa crowd of 101,606 trackside spectators, Levorato maintained the momentum during the middle phase of the race as the #88 Mustang reached the halfway mark in second place, but a brace of drive-through penalties for track limits transgressions subsequently dropped the car down the order, with Logan Sargeant eventually crossing the finish line outside of the points-paying positions in 12th.
“We were unlucky with what happened, but we have a lot of positives to take into the rest of the year,” Gattuso remarked. “The new ‘Evo’ package is so good – I really felt it during the race – and to win the Goodyear Wingfoot Award meant a lot. I want to take a moment to thank all the fans who voted for me.
“It was the second event in a row where I was nominated for the award, so it really felt special to stand on the podium at the end and be presented with it. Hopefully, the whole team can soon be standing on the podium with me as race-winners!”
The season continues with its annual showpiece outing – the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans in northern France – on 10-14 June.
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