The entry list for the upcoming European Le Mans Series 4 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps has been published, with 47 cars set to contest the race, and a handful of changes to note.
Julien Andlauer steps in to the #3 DKR Engineering Oreca LMP2 Pro-Am seat that was filled by Sebastian Alvarez for the first two ELMS rounds this year and by Maceo Capietto last time out at Imola.
In LMP3 there is one tweak for Round 4, with 18-year-old BBM Sport academy driver Alfie Briggs, joining Thoams Imbourg and former champion Nick Adcock in the #68 M Racing Ligier. This move sees the French team return to a three-driver crew, after Quentin Antonel departed following the race at Paul Ricard, leaving Adcock and Imbourg to share the car at Imola.
Meanwhile, there are three changes in LMGT3. FIA WEC Team WRT teammates Anthony McIntosh and Parker Thompson are replacing Clement Mateu and Valetin Haase Clot in the #59 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin. And double ELMS Champion Alessio Picariello will race the #77 Proton Competition Porsche, in seat previously filled by Harry King at Barcelona and Imola and Joel Sturm at Paul Ricard.
It has also been confirmed that Martin Berry will also complete the rest of the season in the #77 911 after making his debut in the car last time out in Italy.
Title battles will be in full focus as the second half of the season gets underway. In LMP2, the current championship leaders are Ben Hanley, Gregoire Saucy and Griffin Peebles from United Autosports.
They sit on on 58 points in the #22 ORECA after finishing second in Imola behind the #29 Forestier Racing by Panis of Esteban Masson, Louis Rousset and Oliver Gray, who head to Belgium on 52 points, just six behind the leaders after scoring two wins from the first three races.
LMP2 Pro/Am sees 4 Hours of Barcelona winners Michael Jensen, Enzo Trulli and Malthe Jakobsen head the 12-car field, with their #20 Algarve Pro Racing 07 Gibson tied on 43-points with 4 Hours of Imola class winners Jen Reno Møller, Cem Bölükbaşı and Lorenzo Fluxa in the #7 from Vector Sport.
Reigning champions CLX Motorsport returned to winning ways at the end of the 4 Hours of Imola with Paul Lanchere, Alexander Jacoby and Louis Iglesias taking maximum points to move up to third in the championship standings on 40 points.
4 Hours of Barcelona race winners Alvise Rodella, Jose Fernandes Cautela and Mikkel Gaarde Pedersen moved back into the lead of the LMP3 title race on 49 points after finishing second in Italy in the #5 Rinaldi Racing Ligier. The German team have an 8-point advantage over 4 Hours of Le Castellet winners Alex Bukhantsov, Henry Cubides Olarte and Chun Ting Chou in the #13 Inter Europol Competition Ligier.
The #33 TF Sport Corvette became the third different LMGT3 car to take a race win this season last time out, with Blake McDonald, Alec Udell and Charlie Eastwood scoring maximum points in Italy to take the championship lead on 44-points.
Barcelona winners Richard Lietz, Matt Kurzejewski and Thomas Sargent in the #75 Proton Competition Porsche are just one point behind on 43-points and the Le Castellet-winning #57 Kessel Racing Ferrari of Takeshi Kimura, Daniel Serra and Mathys Jaubert in third spot on 40-points.
The 4 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps is set to take place from August 21st to 23rd.
