This weekend's WEC race at Spa

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The iconic racetrack located in the Ardennes forest of Stavelot, Wallonia, is famous for its ever-changing weather conditions and also serves as the ultimate test for teams ahead of the all-important 24 Hours of Le Mans (15-16 June). During each tour of the 7-kilomtere circuit, Hypercar drivers shift gears 44 times, reaching top speeds in the range of 315kph and travelling with fully-opened throttle for 58% of the lap.

Fourteen manufacturers (Alpine, Aston Martin, BMW, Cadillac, Corvette, Ferrari, Ford, Isotta Fraschini, Lamborghini, Lexus, McLaren, Peugeot, Porsche and Toyota), 37 cars (19 Hypercars ; 18 LMGT3 entries) and 106 highly-esteemed drivers from 28 different countries will race at Spa-Francorchamps as the WEC continues to grow from strength to strength for its 12th season.

The entry list also features five Belgian drivers for the home fans to support, including sibling duo Laurens and Dries Vanthoor, representing Porsche Penske and BMW M Team WRT respectively. In LMGT3, Belgian-based Team WRT will be a firm favorite amongst the home fans, with the local squad seeing home hero Maxime Martin drive alongside Valentino Rossi and Ahmad Al Hathy in the No. 31 BMW M4 LMGT3. TF Sport sees Belgium’s Tom Van Rompuy within their line-up, while Iron Dames has local star Sarah Bovy who was born in Liege, just 50km from Spa-Francorchamps. Despite being born in Germany, Porsche Penske’s Andre Lotterer also has close ties with Belgium having grown up in the country alongside his Belgian mother.

Since the last WEC race in Imola just over two weeks ago, there are a few notable changes to the entry list. A total of five teams in Hypercar will operate two-man teams due to race clashes the same weekend including Hertz team JOTA (Will Stevens and Callum Ilott); No. 93 Peugeot TotalEnergies (Mikkel Jensen and Nico Mueller); No. 94 Peugeot TotalEnergies (Paul Di Resta and Loic Duval); Cadillac Racing (Earl Bamber and Alex Lynn) and Proton Competition (Neel Jani and Julien Andlauer). Lamborghini Iron Lynx’s line-up will see a driver swap for this race as Edoardo Mortara is replaced by Italy’s Andrea Caldarelli.

In LMGT3, Doriane Pin will be subbed by experienced driver Rahel Frey due to Pin’s race commitments with FRECA while Japan’s Ritomo Miyata – official reserve driver for Toyota – will step in for Kelvin van der Linde in the Akkodis ASP Team’s Lexus RC F LMGT3 entry.

In the overall Hypercar championship standings, it’s round one victors Porsche that top the leaderboard with 57 points just nine points ahead of Toyota who took the win last time out at Imola. Ferrari sit third with 31 points, 14 points ahead of BMW and 16 ahead of Alpine who are currently fifth. However, with Toyota Gazoo Racing having won the last seven WEC races at Spa the pressure will be on the Japanese manufacturer to maintain its winning streak in Belgium to topple Porsche at the top of the standings.

In LMGT3 and after a strong solid start to the season so far including a round one victory in Qatar, it’s Manthey PureRXcing that lead the standings with 54 points. Thanks to their recent win at Imola, Team WRT are in joint second alongside Heart of Racing with 37 points.

The FIA World Cup for Hypercar Teams is even closer, with just one point currently separating Hertz Team JOTA (53 points) and AF Corse (52 points).
A total of 26 points is available in Belgium (25 for the race and one extra point for pole position).

WHERE TO WATCH

Several broadcasters across the world will broadcast the FIA WEC this weekend, including a mix of pan-regional deals and various FTA, linear and online channels.

FIAWEC.TV will also broadcast Spa live on its online platform. This is available worldwide. Individual race packages are available to buy for 8.99 Euros or fans. Available on the app will be qualifying, race replays and full English commentary from experts Anthony Davidson, Martin Haven, Graham Goodwin as well as pitlane reporter, Bruce Jouanny.

Action from Free Practice 3 on Friday (10 May) will be live to watch on the FIA WEC YouTube channel.

TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps Race Timetable

Thursday 9 May

Free Practice 1: 11:30 – 13:00
Free Practice 2: 17:30 – 19:00

Friday 10 May

Free Practice 3: 11:00 – 12:00
Qualifying + Hyperpole: 14:45 – 16:05

Saturday 11 May
Race: 13:00 – 19:00

 

[teamzr1]

CORVETTE RACING AT SPA: Progress Toward Le Mans

TF Sport aims to continue strong Spa Six Hours history, now with Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs

TF Sport and Corvette Racing will look to continue its strong first year together as the FIA World Endurance Championship moves to legendary Spa-Francorchamps for Saturday’s Six Hours of Spa.

The pair of TF Sport Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.Rs will look to increase their points total through two races this year and also continue the team’s impressive history in the event. Also looming is the biggest race of the season the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June.

Both Corvettes tested at Spa in March and completed more than 2,700 kilometers (1,670 miles) in two days around the 4.35-mile, 20-turn circuit. That data will prove useful when it’s combined with TF Sport’s WEC history at Spa six consecutive podium finishes including third in GTE Am a year ago.

The trio of past Spa 24 Hours winner and Corvette factory driver Charlie Eastwood, past Spa LMP2 winner Rui Andrade and Belgian driver Tom Van Rompuy lead the TF Sport contingent in championship points and stand ninth in the highly competitive LMGT3 class. Van Rompuy’s point for pole position in the No. 81 Corvette Z06 GT3.R at the season-opening race in Qatar is the difference, and the group led the TF Sport attack in the most recent WEC round at Imola with a seventh-place class finish.

The No. 82 Corvette of factory driver Daniel Juncadella – another previous Spa 24 Hours winner, plus Sebastien Baud and Hiroshi Koizumi have recorded points-paying finishes in both WEC rounds to date and in their first two races with TF Sport.

The FIA WEC’s Six Hours of Spa is set for 1 p.m. Central European Time / 7 a.m. Eastern Time on Saturday, May 11. MotorTrend will air live television coverage from 6:30-8 a.m. and noon-1:30 p.m. ET. Streaming coverage of the race and plus Friday’s final practice and qualifying will be available through the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S. Radio Le Mans will stream audio coverage of the race plus final practice and qualifying.

TF SPORT PRE-EVENT DRIVER QUOTES

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I am very excited to drive the Corvette Z06 GT3.R at my home race this week in Spa.
Together with my teammates, we will give everything to fight for a good result.
The whole TF Sport crew will provide us again with all the ingredients to aim for a podium finish.
Thanks to all the fans for their support, and see you in Spa for a great battle in our Corvette Z06 GT3.R!”

DANI JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Spa is a super-cool place. I love racing there.
The track is super special because you have all sorts of combinations of high- and low-speed corners. It’s a long track, so it’s quite a challenge to set up a car properly. It can be very difficult and tricky. The middle sector is a high-speed sector where you need a lot of downforce, but then you have the first and third sectors where there are very long straights.

It’s always a compromise of how much aero do you want in the car versus how much top speed do you want to get out of it. It’s very unique in that sense.
It’s a special place. I won the 24 Hours of Spa three years ago, and those were great memories. I’ve never raced there in the WEC, but it’s always cool to go back there, no matter the race or championship.”

SEBASTIEN BAUD, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

"It's the third round of the championship at Spa after a rather positive race at Imola where I felt confident with the car by winning the Goodyear trophy.
Now at Spa I would like to win a collective trophy with my teammates!
We have great pace in the race. Now we have to get on the right track in the race to play at the front.
I can’t wait to get to Spa to see the team and this incredible car again!"

 

[teamzr1]

Action from Free Practice 3 on Friday (10 May) will be live to watch on the FIA WEC YouTube channel. For 8.99 Euros, all the WEC weekend action will be available via the official FIA WEC app (more info below).
EUROPE
Eurosport platforms will broadcast the WEC action across all Europe including Belgium, UK, France, Germany, Italy and Spain with full race on Saturday commence from 12:30 – 19:30 CEST on Eurosport 2. FP3, qualifying and the full race will be available on Eurosport digital platforms (Eurosport Player or Discovery+ depending on territories).
Belgian fans unable to attend the race in person can also tune in and watch it from free on TIPIK television and RTBF Auvio streaming service (from qualification available on Auvio; race on Tipik and Auvio).
Free-to-air La Chaine L’Equipe will televise most of the race live to fans who are residents in France. The full race will also be shown on L’Equipe.FR. Meanwhile, Germany will show the final 2.5 hours of the race live on Sport1 (live from 17:00 – 19:30) as well as the full race on Eurosport 2.
Fans of Robert Kubica can watch the race in Poland on Polsat Sport while Videoland by RTL will broadcast the race live in the Netherlands.
USA + CANADA
For American fans, digital platform MAX, will broadcast FP3, qualifying and the full race live (06:30 – 13:30 EST)
Through MAX’s B/R Sports Add-On, live and on-demand coverage of the WEC will benefit from extensive production 30 minutes before and after races including a dedicated pit reporter to bring viewers closer to the action.
Alongside MAX, MotorTrend TV channel will show the first and last 1h30 of the race including build up and podium.
SOUTH AMERICA
For South America, The Bandeirantes Group will broadcast most of the WEC live in Brazil on Bandsports. The agreement sees the WEC broadcast via the Bandsports pay-TV channel, digital platform Bandplay on YouTube (showing full race live) as well as on Grande Premio. The open TV channel Band and the Group's radio stations will provide journalistic coverage of the season.
DirecTV Sports will show the WEC across central and South America plus the Caribbean (excluding Mexico and Brazil) on its channel DSports Motor.
Fox Sports has the rights in Mexico and will broadcast the full race live on Fox Sports 3.
ASIA + AUSTRALASIA
A pan-Asian TV deal with Eurosport for the continent of Asia sees the race from Spa broadcast on Eurosport Asia which also includes India.
Japan, the home of Toyota, has the full race live on J Sports 3. Online channel StanSport will televise the WEC in Australia. Online platform Doujin will cover the race in China.
AFRICA
Long-term WEC broadcast partner SuperSport will televise the race to residents living in Sub-Saharan Africa with the full race live on Supersport Variety4 with multiple repeats on MSP/MSPA.
OFFICIAL FIA WEC APP
FIAWEC.TV will broadcast the WEC race from Belgium live on its online platform. This is available worldwide. Individual race packages are available to buy for 8.99 Euros. Available on the app will be qualifying, race replays and full English commentary from experts Anthony Davidson, Martin Haven, Graham Goodwin as well as pitlane reporter, Bruce Jouanny. For more information about the app, click HERE.
For a full breakdown of the broadcast coverage for the TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, please click HERE.

 

[teamzr1]

Come on, UK !

Second practice and almost in last place, :-( 22nd and 30th)
Put the pedal to the metal as TF Sport is too slow

 

[teamzr1]

In LMGT3, it was Manthey Pure Rxcing’s Porsche that topped the times, with Alex Malykhin’s 2m20.947s during a qualifying sim. Rahel Frey ended up improving on Sarah Bovy’s qualifying sim in the Iron Dames Lamborghini to go second with a 2m21.298s.

The third-fastest time was set by the No. 82 TF Sport Corvette.
The No. 54 AF Corse Ferrari ended up fourth, with the Manthey EMA Porsche completing the top five.

There were a few of issues to report in the session, the first being the Isotta Fraschini Tipo6-C stopping on pit lane at the start of the session, needing a refire.

The second was an off into the gravel for the No. 82 TF Sport Corvette. Hiroshi Koizumi was aboard the Z06 LMGT3.R and ended up facing the wrong way at Les Combes and beached, bringing out an eight-minute full-course yellow period.

The No, 38 JOTA Porsche had the biggest moment, though, and suffered significant rear-right and front-end damage from a high-speed off for Oliver Rasmussen at Blanchimont. The Dane went off the circuit through the gravel and ended up getting air over the grass before taking a nose-dive. The car will require significant work before qualifying, and the JOTA mechanics were working on it by the end of the session after Rasmussen brought it back.

Moments later, the Cadillac also had an off through the gravel.
And finally, in pit lane, the No. 83 privately-entered Ferrari required attention to its front end for much of the session and only managed

 

[teamzr1]

STAVELOT, Belgium (May 7, 2024) – Tom Van Rompuy and TF Sport’s No. 81 Chevy Corvette Z06 GT3.R will start on the fourth row of the LMGT3 grid for the Six Hours of Spa Saturday as the team looks to add more FIA World Endurance Championship points to its total.

On his home circuit of Spa-Francorchamps, Van Rompuy led the team’s effort in Friday’s time trials with the eighth-quickest lap in the GT3 Hyperpole session, 2:22.215 (110.169 mph).
It marked the second time in three races that the No. 81 Z06 GT3.R advanced to top-10 qualifying this season.
The Hyperpole segment was interrupted by a lengthy red flag, which took the momentum and life out of the Van Rompuy’s tires for the restart.

As is the case for the full season, Van Rompuy sixth in the first qualifying session to make Hyperpole will team with Rui Andrade and Corvette factory driver Charlie Eastwood. They were the highest-finishing TF trio in the previous WEC round at Imola.

Hiroshi Koizumi will start 16th Saturday at Spa in the No. 82 Corvette Z06 GT3.R that he drives with Corvette factory driver Daniel Juncadella and Rui Andrade.
The TF Corvettes are coming off seventh- and eighth-place finishes in the previous round at Imola, proof of the deep and competitive field of GT3 cars in the first year of the class in WEC.
Pre-event testing paid immediate dividends for the TF Sport team as Juncadella set the fastest time in class not just for the first session but of all three practices combined.

The hope is that the speed of the Corvettes plus TF Sport’s history in WEC at Spa six consecutive years on the podium in class will help put at least one of the Z06 GT3.Rs in the top-three by the end of Saturday’s race.

The FIA WEC’s Six Hours of Spa is set for 1 p.m. Central European Time / 7 a.m. Eastern Time on Saturday.
MotorTrend will air live television coverage from 6:30-8 a.m. and noon-1:30 p.m. ET. Streaming coverage of the race will be available through the FIA WEC app and the MAX app in the U.S. Radio Le Mans will stream audio coverage of the race plus final practice and qualifying.

TF SPORT DRIVER QUOTES

TOM VAN ROMPUY, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“I was a little bit disappointed and I think we could have done a little bit better. Qualifying itself was quite OK, but in Hyperpole I prepped my tires to go for a really good push lap right away. I used a small amount of the peak of tire, and then the red flag came. So one heat cycle was done and we cooled down.
After that, I was not able to get the tires in a good window to push for a good qualify lap. In that way it’s a bit disappointing.

The positive thing is that it is a six-hour race and we starting already in the points. The car is in a good place and the team did a good job on that. I’m looking forward to starting the race and moving up a few places.”

CHARLIE EASTWOOD, NO. 81 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R:

“Things have been pretty good. We are making massive steps from Qatar to Imola to here, just as a team, continuing to learn the Corvette. Throughout testing, we were trying a lot of stuff internally among ourselves. So the timing screen didn’t look amazing, but we knew it had the pace in qualifying.

Once we had the red flag, we didn’t seem to be able to switch on the tires again in Hyperpole. The gap is a little bigger than we would have liked so we need to look into that. Versus Imola, I think we are stronger than we were there. All going to plan, but we need to get to the front and try to keep with the front of the pack.”

DANIEL JUNCADELLA, NO. 82 CHEVROLET CORVETTE Z06 GT3.R

(after Free Practice 1): “It was a very good start to the weekend for our Corvette. We were testing here a month ago, so that obviously paid its dividends in getting a kick-start ahead of our competition, I believe. The track is still developing.
I think there have been some rainy days in the past week, so it was a very dirty track.
But balance-wise, the car felt good. I’m very happy with how the first session and day went.

Obviously, it’s still early. I don’t think it means that much to be up front, but I’d rather be up front than at the back and questioning ourselves. So it was very positive. FP2 was pretty decent too. When we are there or thereabouts at the front, it’s always a good sign and gives us confidence.
We didn’t have any setbacks. The team worked very well around the car, and my teammates did a good job as well.
We’re looking good for the weekend.”

2024 FIA World Endurance Championship Points

LMGT3 Drivers Standings
1. Aliaksandr Malykhin/Joel Sturm/Klaus Bachler – 54
2. Augusto Farfus/Darren Leung/Sean Gelael – 37
3. Alex Riberas/Daniel Mancinelli/Ian James – 37
4. Ahmad Al Harthy/Maxime Martin/Valentino Rossi – 36
5. Clement Mateu/Erwan Bastard/Marco Sorensen – 24
9. Charlie Eastwood/Rui Andrade/Tom Van Rompuy – 7
10. Daniel Juncadella/Hiroshi Koizumi/Sebastien Baud – 6

LMGT3 Teams Standings
1. No. 92 Manthey PureRxcing – 54
2. No. 31 Team WRT – 37
3. No. 27 Heart of Racing Team – 37
4. No. 46 Team WRT – 36
5. No. 777 D’Station Racing – 24
9. No. 81 TF Sport – 7
10. No. 82 TF Sport – 6

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Home - Corvette Racing

 

[teamzr1]

Bad day for TF Sport's both Z06 GT3.Rs

Finished in 12th and 17th place