New Ginetta GT2 makes paddock appearance
Ginetta’s new G56 GT2 is prominently displayed in the paddock outside the SRO hospitality complex, with several members of Ginetta staff on-site to present the car to potential customers. Look out for a full feature on the new contender, with an update from CEO Mike Simpson, on DSC very soon.
A new batch of Hall of Fame inductees honoured at Driver’s Briefing
Wednesday evening’s drivers’ briefing in the grand surroundings of the Petit Theatre in Spa town centre began with four new inductees to the Crowdstrike Spa 24 Hours Hall of Fame. They are four-time event winner Thierry Tassin (currently WRT’s sporting director), fellow four-time winner Marc Duez (driving the safety car this weekend), official tyre supplier Pirelli and multiple event winner Audi Sport, and join the inaugural inductees from last year: Eric van de Poele, BMW, the RACB and the Martin family.
SRO marks 25 years overseeing the Spa 24
While 2024 saw the centenary edition of the Spa 24 Hours, this year’s running marks the 25th time the race has been held under the auspices of SRO. Addressing the assembled drivers, Stephane Ratel recalled the initial reluctance of FIA GT teams in 2001 to go from running their typical three-hour races to the full 24 hours, as well as the modest public attendance at the first Spa city centre parade (an initial estimate from SRO suggested 10,000 turned out for this year’s edition, in sweltering conditions).
Ratel also remarked on the record-breaking 75-car entry for this year’s event, explaining that it came about in the wake of several late ‘no-shows’ in 2024, after which the decision was taken to ‘overbook’ the 2025 race. In the event, only the second Steller Corvette entry from the initial list failed to materialise.
Revised race procedures outlined
Race director Niels Wittich briefed the entrants on a new ‘Short Full Course Yellow’ procedure, which will be used to deal with incidents that can be cleared in under four minutes. This will see the pitlane closed for the duration and the usual 10-second countdown to green. A ‘Long Full Course Yellow’ will be used for incidents requiring more time, with the pitlane being open and always followed by a Safety Car.
Wittich also requested drivers do all they can to stick to the far left or right of the pit entry lane if trying to bring a damaged or disabled car back to their pit, clearly with last year’s result-altering Lamborghini incident in mind.
Wittich also confirmed that Saturday’s race start will come after two formation laps, with the first being run at higher speed to allow drivers to get tyres and brakes up to temperature after the extended grid ceremonies unique to the Spa 24.
Mattia Drudi, a glutton for punishment!
While there has been plenty of focus on the seven drivers taking on the Le Mans, Nurburgring and Spa 24 Hours on three consecutive weekends, Comtoyou Aston Martin’s Mattia Drudi (above) is extending the streak to four in a row by entering the Fun Cup 25 Hours next weekend, also at Spa. Two of the VW Beetle-shaped racers travelled in convoy with the Comtoyou Astons to Spa town and back in Wednesday’s parade.
Bonanomi-designed ‘Art Car’ in Bronze Cup
The #8 Kessel Ferrari (above), a full-season Bronze Cup entry crewed by Niccolo Schiro, Nicolo Rosi and David Fumanelli (joined at Spa by Daniele di Amato) sports a livery designed by onetime factory Audi LMP1 driver Marco Bonanomi. The psychedelic scheme incorporates the driver’s nicknames: ‘Nick the Quick’ for Schiro, ‘Speedy Carrot’ for Rosi and ‘Fuma’ for Fumanelli.
23 drivers ‘Racing for Belgium’ in front of royalty
With members of the Belgian royal family present this weekend, SRO decided to honour the 23 Belgian drivers, the most since 2013, in the field this year.
They were each awarded a special red jacket at the Drivers’ Briefing, and their cars will run with an additional ‘Racing for Belgium’ sticker (pictured above) this weekend.
No team features an all-Belgian crew; local outfit Haas RT comes closest with Xavier Knauf, Gregory Servais and Simon Balcaen all featuring in its #28 Audi.
