FIA GT - Spa 24 Hours - Race Morning Warm-up

Beneath glowering clouds and the threat of further rain, the first 26 of the expected 38 cars due to start this afternoon’s race headed out onto the track for the beginning of the official 10:00am warm-up.

Leading the pack for the opening lap was Van Damm in the #11 Full Speed Racing Saleen, but it was the Corvettes who were first to get onto the pace. Oliver Gavin in the Selleslagh Racing Corvette was first to post a quick time, but that was eclipsed by an early flier from Mike Hazemans in the Peka Racing C6.R. Hazeman’s 2:18.368 remained top of the screens for the opening few minutes, until Xavier Maassen came through with a 2:17.719.

Fastest in GT2, right from the first flying laps, was Martin Ragginger in the #97 Brixia Porsche 911 GT3 RS, up and mixing it with the GT1 cars with eight minutes gone on 2:24.267, a second quicker than Pierre Kaffer in the AF Cores Ferrari 430.

Mid-way through the period, and the #111 Phoenix racing Audi R8 stood head and shoulders above everything else in G2; Marc Basseng posting 2:25.705 to stand more than ten seconds clear of the rest of his class. Guino Kenis subsequently popped in a 2:27.213 to move the GBA Racing Mosler nearer to the class-leading Audi, but that’s as close as it would get.

As the fifteen-minutes neared its conclusion Marc Hennerici popped in a 2:26.773 to head the G3 field, his time bringing the #121 Matech Racing Ford GT into the middle of the GT2 pack.

With the chequered flag unfurled, there was little change at the sharp end – if times actually mattered in this instance – with Maassen’s mid-session time still fastest overall from Hazemans. The best of the Maseratis was Alex Muller in the #2 MC12 on 2:18.593, half a second clear of Andrea Bartolini in the ‘#1 sister car, although the Italian’s final sector was significantly the fastest set by anyone throughout the period – hinting, perhaps, that setting quick times hadn’t been a priority for Vitaphone.

In GT2, Ragginger’s top time held to the flag, but Marc Basseng in the Audi R8 got the better of him in the final minutes with a 2:23.437 to claim 9th overall for the G2 leader, comfortably clear of second-quckest G2 runner, Kenis on 2:27.213.

By the time warm-up drew to an overcast conclusion, 34 of the expected 38 starters had completed at least one lap. News filtered through that the #115 and #117 PMB Motorsport Porsche 996 Bi-Turbos will be running in the race, and completed scrutineering just before the warm-up began. They will be permitted to start the race from the pitlane.

MP