26 FIA WEC drivers on double-duty
Plenty of drivers and teams have arrived at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps straight from competing at Circuit Paul Ricard, Laguna Seca or Brands Hatch last weekend.
AF Corse, Iron Lynx, Proton Competition and TF Sport have all made the journey from the second round of the European Le Mans Series, along with 14 FIA WEC drivers: Sebastian Priaulx, Paul-Loup Chatin, Esteban Masson, Malthe Jakobsen, Ferdinand Habsburg, Charles Milesi, Antonio Fuoco, Blake McDonald, Charlie Eastwood, Davide Rigon, Mathys Jaubert, Maxime Martin, Rui Andrade and Richard Lietz.
Kriton Lentoudis, Eric De Doncker, Michael Jensen and François Perrodo, meanwhile, have made the trip from Circuit Paul Ricard to compete in the Legends of Le Mans event.
Daniel Juncadella, Marvin Kirchhöfer, Tom Fleming, Louis Prette and Garage 59 were all at Brands Hatch for the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup season opener, whilst Jack Aitken, Earl Bamber, Sheldon van der Linde, Dries Vanthoor, Louis Delétraz, Nicky Catsburg, Eduardo Barrichello and Tom Gamble have made the flight over from IMSA’s throwback weekend at Laguna Seca.
#69 BMW wears Spa 24 Hours winning colours from 1986
Today’s set up day has offered the first chance to see the #69 BMW’s livery for this weekend in the flesh.
The car is based on the scheme in which WRT’s Hypercar sporting director Thierry Tassin won his second Spa 24 Hours in 1986.
The Belgian contested that event whilst still recovering from a broken arm he sustained during an accident in Formula 3000 at Silverstone in April that year. Thankfully, his 635CSi featured power steering, but driving at Spa caused further damage which required Tassin to undergo surgery the Tuesday following the race.
All four WRT BMWs are also carrying tributes to Alex Zanardi.
Goodyear predicting single-stint strategy
Goodyear is expecting LMGT3 teams to take advantage of their increased tyre allocation for 2026 this weekend, with a simpler tyre strategy due to the demands of the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps.
“We expect to see less variation in race strategies at Spa,” said Stephen Bickley, Goodyear endurance programme manager. “The nature of the circuit means degradation is higher, so teams will focus on extracting maximum performance and are likely to equip new tyres at each stop.
“There is no left-right bias at Spa, and the load profile doesn’t lend itself to changing only front or rear tyres, so teams may still look to extend stints under safety car or full course yellow conditions, but we expect to see the baseline strategy being more consistent.”
Increased grid for second Legends of Le Mans event
18 cars have been entered for this weekend’s Legends of Le Mans round, headlined by growth in the LMP2 class.
Six cars will compete in LMP1, with the return of Eric De Doncker’s OAK – Pescarolo 01 after it was a late withdrawal from Imola.
This somewhat counteracts the loss of Steve Brooks’ Peugeot 908 and Christian Albrecht’s double race-winning Lola Aston Martin DBR1/2.
In LMP2, the 10-car field features the arrival of two teams with strong LMP2 pedigree. IDEC Sport will run a Ligier JS P2 for Alexandre Leroy.
Greaves Motorsport, meanwhile, has entered a Gibson 015S for former Le Mans podium finisher David Cheng (pictured below during his seat fitting), who is back in ACO rules racing for the first time since Le Mans 2018.
The ex-Level 5 Lola – Judd is set to race this weekend in the hands of Michael Jensen.
Jacques Nicolet’s Rinaldi Racing-run Ligier is absent, whilst JMB Classic’s Pescarolo 01 will be piloted by Jean-Baptiste Lahaye, who replaces his brother Matthieu in the car.
And in LMGTE, the planned debut of an ex-HubAuto Ferrari 488 GTE Evo has been further postponed. The same Aston Martin-Lotus duo that competed at Imola will again represent the production class.
Driver Rankings explained!
The FIA has released a video explaining its driver categorisation system, which has been a key feature of the FIA WEC’s Pro/Am classes since the inaugural 2012 campaign.
27-car grid for Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux
This weekend’s support package is completed by the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux, with its 27-car field including a guest appearance from 2013 FIA WEC LMP2 champion Bertrand Baguette, a driver whose 2011 OAK Racing LMP1 car features in the Legends of Le Mans field in the hands of Eric De Doncker.
The inclusion in the Porsche Carrera Cup entry of Prospeed Competition brings to the total of ex-FIA WEC teams in the support paddock to three, with 2012 LMGTE Am entrant JWA and 2012 and 2013 LMP2 entrant Greaves Motorsport.
Work underway on new bridge
Construction is ongoing on the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps’ new Uhoda tower, which is replacing the now demolished race control tower midway along the ‘endurance’ pit lane.
When complete, the ground and first floors will house VIRTEX, a professional-grade simulation centre, with the upper floors of the tower housing business events and hospitality.
Uhoda is a Belgian, family-owned company active in the fields of mobility, local services, culture, events and real estate.
Richard Lietz image courtesy of Manthey
