Excitement from start to finish

There would be a hell of a fight when Toyota Gazoo Racing had one car at the front of the field, and another one at the back, after #7 got a penalty post qualifying yesterday. Which meant that they would start the race from the pitlane one lap after everyone else.

We already lost three cars before the race even started. The two CEFC TRSM Racing cars weren’t there on the starting grid, since they apparently had some problems with a sponsor payment.

On another note, DragonSpeed #10 couldn’t manage to make it to the grid either after yesterday’s crash.

The three Danes, Nicki Thiim, Marco Sørensen, and Michael Christensen started the race from fourth and tenth place respectively in the GTE Pro class.

The race started in a dramatic way, when Gulf Racing UK Porsche #86 crashed into the tire wall already on the first lap. But they weren’t really the one to blame, since MR Racing Ferrari #70 spun under a duel with Spirit of Race Ferrari #54, and #86 had to avoid them.

It deployed the Safety Car right away, so that the car could pull away and give time to rebuild the tire wall. Fortunately, #86 could drive again without any aid, so they were quick to be back on the race, albeit a few laps behind.

The Safety Car period gave a huge advantage to Toyota Gazoo Racing #7, who could catch up with the rest of the field – with a lap difference, but nevertheless it was still better than if everyone was driving in full speed.

Signatech Alpine Matmut #36 was quick to attract the stewards’ attention, when Nicolas Lapierre drove off the track in Turn 1 and didn’t go back to the track again, unlike what the drivers had got told to do in the drivers’ briefing. It gave the team a drive through penalty, which sent them to the back.

Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK #66 and #67, as well as Porsche #91 and #92 delivered a fantastic fight throughout. The four cars were close to each other in the majority part of the race.

Harry Tincknell in Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK #67  had a huge exit on the way to Eau Rouge, where the car continued to go forward and hit the tire wall – like the one we saw yesterday with Pietro Fittipaldi. Luckily, Tincknell could get out of the car by himself, but the car was out of the race.

Team Project 1 Porsche #56 had a good start, but unfortunately they got problems with the fuel pressure, so they had to stop on the track for a short while before they could start again.

After that the race continued more calmly for the next hour, until Dempsey-Proton Racing #88 ended up on the gravel for their own mistake. It had to be pulled free, and that deployed another Safety Car period.

Kazuki Nakajima had a solo spin, shortly after he overtook the car from Fernando Alonso.

Just before the halfway point of the race, Toyota Gazoo Racing #7 overtook the two Rebellion Racing cars almost right after each other. And that gave Toyota 1-2 positions.

GTE Pro went from a two-way battle to a three-way, when both AF Corse Ferrari cars were now closing up right behind Porsche #92. It was the first time that Ferrari really woke up this weekend. #51 managed to drive past #92 after the third pitstop of the day, which the Ferrari mechanics must be happy with. Although it didn’t take long for Kevin Estre to reclaim the third place in the class.

Halfway through the race, Toyota Gazoo Racing #8 led LMP1, G-Drive Racing #26 led the LMP2 field, Porsche GT #91 in GTE Pro, and Aston Martin Racing #98 led the GTE Am class.

Porsche #92 got themselves into trouble, when the stewards meant that Kevin Estre had left the pits with a wheel spin, which wasn’t allowed. It gave the team a Stop & Go penalty, that sent the white Porsche right between the AF Corse cars, which Estre then had to battle once again.

With two hours left of the race, there was another twist in the LMP1 class. Rebellion Racing #1 had problems with the data that they sent to the race control, which then gave them a technical defect flag, and they had to pit to fix it. Luckily they managed to solve the problem during the pitstop, that they had to soon do anyway. It turned out to be something as simple as a loose cable to the antenna, and after they fixed it the car was ready to go. But it cost them the third place, since the repair took a minute and a half more than a what normal pitstop would last.

#1’s problem meant that #3 could overtake the third position.

Jackie Chan DC Racing #37 and #38 had their own battle on the track, where the two overtook each other a few times, back and forth.

Team Project 1 Porsche #56 had  spin in Turn 9, where it went to kiss the tire wall. The incident cost them a side mirror.

AF Corse #51 got into trouble in their pitstop. They had been in a contact with a competitor prior to that, and when the car hit the ground again and got sent out, they hit the side of Team Project 1 Porsche #56, which broke the steering, and Alessandro Pier Guido could no longer control the car. The mechanics had to get the car back to the pits on a dolly jack, since the car couldn’t be steered. That meant their little podium chance vanished into thin air. The repair of the car took nearly twenty minutes.

Rebellion Racing #1, on the other hand, still had a chance, since they were only 23 seconds after SMP Racing #17.

DragonSpeed #31 stalled for a moment on the way out of Turn 1, but they quickly went on again.

SMP Racing #17 was fast and closing in on Rebellion Racing #3 with several seconds per lap. But then #3 dove into the pits before they were close enough for a real battle on the track.

#17 ended up in front of #3 after their penultimate pitstop, and once again #3 was the faster car. Matevos Isaakyan in #17 appeared to be a little too bold when he dove really late on Racing Team Nederland #29,which almost sent #29 out of the track. A few laps later it was #17’s turn to be off the track in the Blanchimont corner, but Isaakyan could save it and was still being in front of #3.

It was only after Isaakyan got slightly blocked by Porsche #92 on the way to Eau Rouge, that Thomas Laurent in #3 could get past, with a big speed surplus on top of Raidillon and out on the Kemmel Straight.

With a bit over an hour to go, there were more dramas to come.

Spirit of Race Ferrari #54 drove slowly and stalled on the Kemmel Straight, and at the same time SMP Racing #17 went off at the top of Raidillon. Isaakyan had completely damaged BR1 Engineering AER #17, after hitting the tire wall hard.

It deployed a Safety Car period to get the two cars removed.

It took nearly fifteen minutes before the field could race again.

There was a renewed excitement in the race, when all the distances between the cars got reset, and still an hour to go.

With just a bit under an hour left, Toyota Gazoo Racing #8 was leading, in front of their sister car #7, and Rebellion Racing #3. In the LMP2 class, G-Drive Racing #26 was in front, ahead of Signatech Alpine Matmut #36, and Jackie Chan DC Racing #38. Porsche #91 was leading in the GTE Pro class, ahead of Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK #66, and Porsche #92. Last but not least, Aston Martin Racing #98 led the GTE Am class, ahead of TF Sport Aston Martin #90, and Clearwater Racing Ferrari #61.

All top 3 cars in GTE Pro went to the pits right after the Safety Car period was finished, which only made things more exciting. Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK #66 chose to overtake on the way to Eau Rouge, and #66 and #91 ended up driving side-by-side through the ultra fast corner. The latter had to give in, and after that Richard Lietz in #91 fell back in the field and could no longer keep the speed.

With half an hour to go, a duel started between the two Aston Martin cars in GTE Am. #98 was still in front, but #90 was pressing hard.

In front of the LMP1 field, Toyota Gazoo Racing #7 was only two seconds behind #8, but they chose to pit, just as they were about to catch up. One lap later, Alonso in #8 was in the pits, and the two cars went out right after each other.

Porsche #91 and AF Corse #71 delivered a fantastic close racing in the last ten minutes of the race, where they were side-by-side a few times. There was a little exchange between red and white paint between the two cars, before Rigon in #71 went past and thus claimed the last spot on the podium.

Toyota Gazoo Racing #8 with Fernando Alonso, Sebastien Buemi and Kazuki Nakajima won the race, in front of #7, and Rebellion Racing #1. The last mentioned was though later got disqualified, due to too much wear on the plank under the car. Which meant Rebellion Racing #3 overtook the third place.

G-Drive Racing #26 won in the LMP2 class, with Jean-Eric Vergne, Roman Rusinov, and Andrea Pizzitola behind the wheel, ahead of Jackie Chan DC Racing #38, and Signatech Alpine Matmut #36.

Ford Chip Ganassi Team UK #66 with Olivier Pla, Billy Johnson, and Stefan Mücke won GTE Pro, ahead of Porsche #92 with Michael Christensen and Kevin Estre, and AF Corse Ferrari #71 on the following positions. Aston Martin Racing #95 with Nicki Thiim, Marco Sørensen and Darren Turner had a quiet day in the office, and finished on a disappointing 7th place after a trouble free race, but generally they were lacking speed.

Aston Martin Racing #98 med Paul Dalla Lana, Pedro Lamy, and Mathias Lauda finished first in the GTE Am class, in front of TF Sport Aston Martin #90, and Clearwater Racing Ferrari #61.

It was the end of a fantastic yet dramatic opening race of the FIA World Endurance Championship. The next round will be the biggest race of the year, which is no other than the 24-hour race of Le Mans, in the middle of June.