FIA WEC 6 hours of Spa 2024
A few weeks after the 12 Hours of Spa, I was back at the track in the Ardennes. This time, however, the weather was glorious, so no rain gear or thermals this time. It was time for the FIA WEC 6 Hours of Spa. This is the final race weekend of the world championship before they move on to Le Mans for the big 24 Hours. A final test of strength to see how the teams stack up and how the race cars are progressing.
It's wonderful to see how the championship is more popular than ever. With no fewer than 19 hypercars from nine different manufacturers in the top class alone, the competition is fierce. And with big names like Jenson Button, Robert Kubica, and MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi now on the grid. On Thursday, a whole group of fans were already waiting for Rossi's autograph behind his pit box. And the pit walk was also incredibly busy at his table, as well as at the big teams.
Friday was time for the Hyperpole qualifying sessions. The LMGT3 class was up first. I was taking photos at Eau Rouge when the Manthey PureRXing Porsche slid past and slammed into its tires. The Porsche was a total write-off. Things also looked bleak for a moment with all the medical staff surrounding the car. Fortunately, the driver was fine after a check-up at the medical center. The car wasn't. However, at 7 p.m., a new replacement Porsche was delivered to the track, straight from Germany.
Sarah Bovy took pole position in LMGT3 in the Iron Dames Lamborghini. She was convincingly fastest in front of her home crowd, and her victory was met with applause.
Ferrari seems to have been dominant in the hypercar class lately. They took pole position in Imola, and Antonio Fuoco also took pole position in Spa with the #50. However, the car was later deemed underpowered, and so the #5 Penske Porsche 963 was ultimately awarded pole position.
Saturday was race day. The roads around the circuit were already busy early in the morning. Nearly 90,000 spectators would eventually come to watch the race that day. Once at the circuit, there was plenty of entertainment both on and off the track.
The event itself was on par with the Grand Prix held there, with a Ferris wheel, DJs, a bouncy castle, and stalls. But of course, it all revolved around the action on the track, which would kick off around 1:00 PM.
Just like at Le Mans, the national anthem was played on the starting grid, followed by a fly-past by The Victors, accompanied by a smoke trail of the Belgian tricolor. After the grid walk, I immediately lined up in the final corner to photograph the starting formation. Behind me, drivers made a final pit stop in the marshals' portable toilet. The driver of the yellow Iron Lynx Lamborghini was one of them. It wouldn't be the last time that day that someone in that car had to make a last-minute pit stop...
The field set off for the formation lap and was finally released by the safety car in the final corner, right in front of my camera. It was an absolute goosebumps moment. Amidst the tune of 2001 Space Odyssey, a field of these spaceships slowly approaches, and then the action explodes nearby: we're off!
The race was fiercely contested. In the first half, I mainly saw Porsches alternating in the lead, although other cars also took the lead. The #5 Porsche, which started on pole, went off the track in Blanchimont, causing the first neutralization.
To the disappointment of many Rossi fans, the #46 WRT BMW crashed alongside the #38 Jota Sport Porsche in Brussels. This resulted in a safety car. Disaster struck again for the WRT team's other BMW, however. It was hit by the #2 Cadillac when Earl Bamber attempted a wild overtaking maneuver at Kemmel, the fastest straight on the track towards Les Combes. The cars slammed into the barriers, leaving the entire track covered in debris. A red flag was immediately issued, resulting in lengthy barrier repairs.
The race was restarted only after the original 7:00 PM finish time for the remaining time. During the golden hour, the gold #12 Jota Sport Porsche 963 finally took the first-ever victory for a private team in the WEC hypercar class.
In GT3, it all came down to the final laps. Several cars ran low on fuel. The yellow Iron Lynx Lamborghini, for example, had to relinquish the lead for a short fuel stop. The replacement #92 Porsche of Manthey PureRxcing then took the lead but had to ease off. And so, in the end, the #91 of the sister team took the lead. This also meant a Dutch winner with 19-year-old Morris Schuring, who had recently joined the Manthey EMA team. A fantastic performance in a fantastic race. I can't wait for the 24 Hours of Le Mans!
