Two Porsche 911 GT3 R finish in the top 5 at Spa-Francorchamps
The race
The new 992-generation 911 GT3 R narrowly missed out on claiming a podium spot at the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. Works drivers Kévin Estre from France, Laurens Vanthoor from Belgium and former Porsche Junior Julien Andlauer from France fought for third place until the last lap at the wheel of the Manthey EMA car. At the flag, they were just 0.879 seconds shy. Directly behind them, Rutronik Racing’s DTM driver trio Thomas Preining (Austria), Dennis Olsen (Norway) and Christian Engelhart (Germany) crossed the finish line in fifth. Twelve of the 14 ca. 416 kW (565 PS) Porsche racing cars that tackled the race reached the finish line. With a 70-strong field, the endurance classic in the Belgian Ardennes is considered the biggest event for GT3 cars worldwide. This classic race counts towards the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup and the Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC).
The three Porsche contesting the Pro class headed into the race with a handicap: Since they were crewed by three drivers instead of four as per the regulations, they had to skip the first segment of the four-heat qualifying on Thursday evening. However, in the first session, the drier track offered the best conditions. Since the average time of all drivers for each car was taken into account, only Manthey EMA’s 911 GT3 R made it into the top-20 Super Pole. While the so-called “Grello” tackled the race from P14, the 911 racers fielded by Rutronik Racing and Dinamic GT Huber Racing had to start the race from 30th and 37th place respectively.
Manthey EMA was the first to chase down the leading group. At around 9:17 pm, Andlauer swept into first place for the first time. However, a 30-second penalty for exceeding the track limits cost the lead a good 45 minutes later. At about 1:22 on Sunday morning, the No. 92 Porsche was back at the front but was subsequently caught off guard by a full course yellow period. Nevertheless, the car maintained contact with the frontrunners. Despite another track limit penalty and a damaged rear diffuser, the “Grello” still had its sights set on a podium finish.
Rutronik Racing’s 911 GT3 R crossed the finish line as the second-best Porsche. Preining, Olsen and Heinrich had largely stayed out of trouble over the 24-hour distance. From the early hours of the morning, the No. 96 car rejoined the leading pack and from then on remained within striking distance of the Manthey EMA car – and at times ahead of it.
For Dinamic GT Huber Racing’s No. 54 entry, the race proved difficult. Nevertheless, the vehicle shared by Christian Engelhart from Germany and the two former Porsche Juniors Sven Müller (Germany) and Ayhancan Güven (Turkey) advanced to first place twice. After a caution phase on Sunday morning, their 911 GT3 R had settled into an excellent position to remain in the fight for overall victory as the leader. However, when the safety car gave the green light at 7:00 am, Engelhart was shunted into a spin by a rival at the La Source hairpin and lost a lot of ground. The trio reached the finish line in twelfth place.
