Giancarlo Fisichella leads the Spa 24 comfortably after the first hour, having pulled a 10 second lead over the second placed Porsche of Kevin Estre. The first hour has been run without major incident, despite the best efforts of Buhk in the HTP Mercedes who took to the grass on the run down to Eau Rouge.
On the move…
#55 Kaspersky Motorsport not only has the lead, but in the hands of Fisichella, also has the pace. The car is becoming a real contender for the win.
The #8 M-Sport Bentley has made up the most ground. Maxime Soulet has piloted the car up to 8th place, currently sitting behind Pro-Am leader, Johnny Adam.
A bad start for Buhk dropped the HTP Mercedes a few spots. The car has made them back and more, showing good speed in traffic.
Johnny Adam is not fussed about the class system and has taken the car up to 7th overall. The Aston Martin enjoys a 30 second lead over the 2nd placed #912 Porsche.
Bad times for…
After an overnight rebuild, the #22 stopped on track and required marshal assistance. The car eventually made it back to the pits, but is now 8 laps down.
The #00 was also rebuilt after a qualifying accident and given a 120 second penalty. This cost the car a lap, and it doesn’t appear to have the pace to get back on the lead lap.
#77 Barwell Lamborghini joined the race late after technical problems on the grid. They eventually entered the event 7 laps down.
#48 HTP Mercedes had a spin at La Source, dropping it to the back of the Pro field.
#12 Ombra Racing Lamborghini was given a stop and go penalty for contact with the #27 Lamborghini. Michele Beretta made contact with Luca Filippi at Les Combes.
Keep an eye out for…
Track limits are already an issue. The #84 Mercedes and #42 McLaren are already on a final warning.
There is a train of Audis slowly making their way through the field. Watch for them to improve further as the race goes on.
#50 Ferrari pitted half an hour into the race, putting it on an alternative strategy. There did not appear to be a problem for Pier Guidi, so it should be interesting to see how it pans out.
#63 Lamborghini was in a comfortable second place when it pitted 10 minutes early. The car looked healthy, so presumably this was to avoid the pit lane rabble.
Pit stops are due between 60 and 65 minutes into the race. Strategy should start becoming important.
