The race featured three red flags and numerous Safety Car phases due to the vast amounts of water on the
track and the many accidents and run-offs, fortunately harmless. After the second hour, the Ferraris took
the lead with the 488 GTE driven by Miguel Molina ahead of the twin car, then driven by Alessandro Pier
Guidi, with the Italian overtaking the number 92 Porsche on wet asphalt. Earlier, the two Maranello cars
struggled to keep pace with the leaders in the dry. At the end, with a dry track, James Calado – who had
inherited top spot from Fuoco while the latter made a quick pit stop during a Full Course Yellow – used all
his experience, speed and talent to defend the lead from the attacks of the number 92 Porsche. The world
champion successfully countered his rival’s every attempt and crossed the finish line victorious.
Miguel Molina and Antonio Fuoco took third place after a superb performance. The Spaniard was
outstanding when conditions were toughest, while the Italian was damaged by a lapping that robbed him of
the chance to take a well-deserved second place.
The Ferraris had a tricky race in the LMGTE Am class, but AF Corse’s number 54 488 GTE performed well,
with Thomas Flohr, Francesco Castellacci and Nick Cassidy fourth after a fantastic comeback.
Drivers’ comments on the race
Antonello Coletta
“In a very tough race, there was a great balance between our two crews who never fought each other but
constantly tried to help each other from the start to the chequered flag. We undoubtedly benefited from our
competitiveness in the wet, which allowed us to close the gap we experienced in the dry, which was largely
the same as Sebring. We are delighted with Alessandro and James’s victory in the second championship
race, complemented by Miguel and Antonio’s third place, because it is a great team result”.
Alessandro Pier Guidi
“To be honest, the first part of the race in the wet was challenging. But this is Spa, so the weather is by
definition unpredictable. These were the conditions we needed to try and fight for victory because we knew
we didn’t have a chance in the dry. However, in the wet, anything can happen. I was in the car for a long
time, but in the end we were fast in the rain, and I tried to push as hard as possible. We lost a lot of time
with the first red flag because there was no pass-around, and then with the second one, luckily, we gained
it. At the restart, I found myself behind the Am’s. Basically, I couldn’t see anything in front of me because
of the water thrown up by their cars. So much so that I sometimes had to lift my foot on the straight. It was
difficult to keep control of the car, especially coming out of the pits on cold tyres, so it was a constant
gamble. We needed a race like this to have any chance of winning, and we did well to take it, also thanks
to James’ fantastic work in final stages. The Porsches were a lot quicker than us in the dry, and he did well
to defend himself and win. We didn’t expect this, so we are all the happier for this victory”.
James Calado
“It wasn’t easy to climb into the car with cold slicks and a wet track during the Full Course Yellow. I tried to
adapt my driving to the conditions as quickly as possible without having the right references as I hadn’t had
a chance to drive earlier in the race. At the finish, I knew I would have to deal with the Porsche. Especially
in the first and second sectors, they were extremely quick, but I didn’t give up and gave it my all, nearly
losing control of the car at least twice over the last two laps, but I had to drive to the limit. It’s wonderful to
have won again and have two Ferraris on the podium”.
Miguel Molina
“I think we were very competitive today, especially in the dry, vis-à-vis our teammates, but for one reason or
another we still lack something to win. However, we should be happy because, with everything that
happened in the race, we made the most of a good strategy. We can fight for victory in these conditions
because it is an excellent car. I think we deserved more than that today, but we accept the result and look
ahead to the next race”.
Antonio Fuoco
“We are a team, and we always try to do our best. Today we were a bit unlucky with the lapped drivers, and
the Porsche took advantage of that. Otherwise, I think we would have achieved a one-two. We did a good
job, improving over the weekend, and I personally pushed hard on every lap. It would have been difficult to
achieve this result in the dry, but anything can happen at Spa, and although it was a tough race, we should
be proud of what we did. So I am happy with the result and also for the team because they always work
hard. We have to continue like this because the next race is Le Mans and we want to do well”.
Michael Christensen (Porsche 911 RSR #92)
“It was an extremely difficult race with all conceivable conditions. The state of the track changed constantly.
For long periods it was all about keeping the car on the track. Ultimately, I worked my way up the field quite
well but it wasn’t enough to win. I don’t particularly like the word luck, but today we didn’t have much of it...”
Kévin Estre (Porsche 911 RSR #92)
“Gimmi and I got away well off the line. Unfortunately, I made a mistake while braking on cold tyres. I slid
straight ahead and slightly nudged the No. 91 car. At the exit of the corner, three cars were side by side
and there was hardly any room. Our two cars touched again. It was definitely not handled well on my part. I
want to apologise to my teammates in the sister car. It was my mistake. Unfortunately, we weren’t able to
earn maximum points for Porsche today.”
Gianmaria Bruni (Porsche 911 RSR #91)
“Kévin missed the braking point while approaching the first corner, veered too wide and collided with me
while merging. Our rear left tyre blew out – game over. It’s a shame because we missed out on a lot of
points for Porsche today. As the race progressed, the conditions turned crazy at times. We battled with
serious aquaplaning because we’d set the tyre pressure lower expecting a dry patch. The rear of my car got
twitchy maybe 20 times – on the straight in third gear. That was insane!”
Richard Lietz (Porsche 911 RSR #91)
“Our qualifying was good and we started from pole position but then the incident happened. Such things
happen in motor racing. We lost a lap as a result. We tried to fight our way back during the safety car
phases, which looked promising at times, but ultimately didn’t work out. All in all, it was a race to forget.”
Christian Ried (Porsche 911 RSR #77)
“What a wild race with interruptions and many incidents. At the start I first had to avoid a Ferrari, then
Gimmi’s works-911. Once everything had finally sorted itself out, I found a decent rhythm. Sebastian then
did a great job in the rain and Harry brought it all safely home. As a team, our strategy worked perfectly. It
was anything but easy. I’m delighted with our class win.”
Race result >>>
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