NEWS - CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa - Prologue
Comtoyou Racing remained on top in this afternoon's second test session at Spa-Francorchamps, continuing the Belgian outfit's impressive form at the official Prologue.
The Audi team is set to make its CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa debut this year, though it has assembled a vastly experienced crew to tackle the twice-around-the-clock race. Among them is 2017 winner Christopher Haase, who delivered the best time in both the morning and afternoon sessions.
After topping a rain-affected morning run with a 2m18.525s, the German driver went almost two seconds faster in the afternoon, aided by dry conditions that prevailed after the lunch break to set a 2m16.741s. The sister #12 Comtoyou Racing Audi and the #92 Manthey EMA Porsche also spent time at the top of the order, though Haase had an answer for both.
The class leaders for the afternoon session were the #62 Team Parker Racing Porsche in the Bronze Cup (P3 overall); the #12 Comtoyou Racing Audi in the Silver Cup (P7 overall); the #57 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG in the Gold Cup (P10 overall); and the #70 Leipert Motorsport Lamborghini in Pro-Am (P12 overall).
While the morning session was largely quiet, the longer afternoon run was interrupted by several red flags. The first was for #89 Akkodis ASP Mercedes-AMG, which hit the outer barrier at Raidillon, damaging the front and rear of the car. Soon after, the #58 Grasser Racing Lamborghini found itself beached in the gravel at Les Combes; there was no damage, though the incident still required another red.
Bullitt Racing was the next – and suffered the most damage – as its #33 Aston Martin had a big off at the top of the Raidillon. The #23 Grove Racing Porsche was hit with a puncture, while the #38 ST Racing with Rinaldi Ferrari came to a halt at the final chicane. The last stoppage was caused by the #9 Boutsen VDS Audi going off at Pouhon, though the car was undamaged. In all instances, the drivers were able to walk away.
Cars will be back on-track tomorrow morning for the second and final day of testing. The schedule is the same as that used today, running from 09:00–12:00 and 13:00-18:00. Once again, the circuit will be open to the public at no cost.
© CROWDSTRIKE24HOURSOFSPA
