With the double at Spa-Francorchamps, Ferrari widens the gap with the competition in the two championships while BMW loses an opportunity, Toyota remains in the race, Alpine and Cadillac return to the fight for the title. BMW misses an opportunity.

First Ferrari AF Corse double

It is the third victory in a row for Ferrari but the first factory 499P double as the #83 Ferrari 499P entered by the privateer AF Corse was second at Qatar 1812 km. Despite fierce competition, particularly between the mid-point and final stages of the race, the team’s flawless strategy allowed the crews of Pier Guidi–Calado–Giovinazzi (#51 Ferrari 499P) and Fuoco–Molina–Nielsen (#50 Ferrari 499P) to maximise tyre performance.

Historical precedents.

This achievement recalls Ferrari's 1972 season in the World Sportscar Championship when the 312 PB secured three consecutive one-two finishes in the opening rounds: at the 1,000 Kilometres of Buenos Aires – where Peterson and Schenken finished ahead of Regazzoni and Redman – followed by the 6 Hours of Daytona and the 12 Hours of Sebring, both won by Andretti and Ickx ahead of Schenken and Peterson. That same year, Ferrari claimed ten victories out of eleven races on the calendar, including a one-two finish at the 1000 Kilometres of Spa, where Redman and Merzario took the win ahead of Ickx and Regazzoni.

📷© Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Last pit stop for Ferrari #51.

Championships best outcome

With Fuoco in the #50 Ferrari 499P securing pole position (third in a row for the 499P) and the double, Ferrari maximises the total point added for the Spa-Francorchamps round to the manufacturers championship. Ferrari increases the lead the FIA WEC Constructors' Championship with 136 points. In the Drivers’ standings, the Pier Guidi–Calado–Giovinazzi trio consolidated their lead at the top with 75 points, followed by Fuoco–Molina–Nielsen, who hold 57 points.

📷© Courtesy of Pierpaolo Lonardo at Spa-Francorchamps for www.italian-endurance.com. From left to right: Ferrari #51 cross checkered flag, Pier Guidi so relieved to end first, Calado-Pier Guidi and Giovinazzi savouring their second win this season (right)

Alessandro Pier Guidi (Ferrari 499P #51): “To win again after standing on the top step of the podium at Imola is incredible. This year, we’re showing the true strength of our team and the progress we’ve made since our debut in 2023. Here at Spa, we did an excellent job managing tyre wear and executing the team’s strategy perfectly. That allowed us to build the result hour by hour, a result that ultimately saw two Ferraris finish in the top places.”

📷© Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Ferrari 499P #50 takes the lead (left); Last pit stop for Ferrari #51 (right)

Miguel Molina (Ferrari 499P #50): “We led the race from the beginning and did a fantastic job, even though we were hoping to win at the 6 Hours. Overall, second place is definitely a strong result, and we bring home a significant haul of championship points, especially for the Constructors’ title, which is Ferrari’s main target this year. This was a good day for Ferrari.” Source: Ferrari

Alpine claimed its second podium of the season

Frédéric Makowiecki (#36) started sixth on the grid and was in fifth at the end of the opening lap. Catching up quickly with the LMGT3 field, the Frenchman rose to the challenge in the traffic and moved up to third place before a superb overtake on the #51 Ferrari at the feet of the Raidillon. Jules Gounon took over two and a half hours into the race. The team successfully undercut the #50 Ferrari, which put Jules Gounon into the lead. After a pit-stop during a safety car, Gounon quickly regained the lead when the green flag came back out. The team took advantage of another virtual safety car to put Mick Schumacher behind the wheel.

📷© Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Last Safety Car, Schumacher still in the lead with #36 Alpine A424.

The German driver continued his teammates' efforts with a thrilling battle against the #51 Ferrari and the #20 BMW. Despite a slow puncture on the rear right tyre, he remained in contention thanks to the team's quick thinking, who adjusted their strategy. Mick Schumacher made his final pit-stop with 30 minutes to go. Fifth when he rejoined the track, he overtook the #7 Toyota before regaining a podium position when the #12 Cadillac eventually made its last pit stop. Chasing down the #50 Ferrari, the #36 Alpine A424 secured its second podium finish of the season, less than a second behind its rival.

📷© Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. Mick Schumacher with #36 Alpine A424.

Mick Schumacher (Alpine #36): "It was a good race overall. We were fighting for the win until a slow puncture compromised our chances. We had to settle for the podium, but we can be happy with that. The trend is really moving forwards and upwards, and the team is getting better and better every weekend. Fred did an amazing stint to start the race, Jules took over and got into the lead, and it was a proper battle just until the finish. We're on the right track and there is a lot to take away from this weekend. Now we're excited to see what the next race will bring, and it’s obviously the big one. As a team, we are very much looking forward to it." Source: Alpine

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing fights back for double points finish

Sébastien Buemi, Brendon Hartley and Ryo Hirakawa finished in a hard-fought fourth place in their #8 GR010 HYBRID after choosing an aggressive fuel strategy.

📷© Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. #8 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota GR010-Hybrid.

Brendon Hartley (Driver, car #8): “It was an action-packed race. We started more or less from the back of the grid with both cars, and we didn’t have the pace of our competitors, but we had amazing teamwork. With a good strategy, we kept our belief and at some point, we thought maybe a podium was possible. But honestly, fourth was absolutely the best we could realistically achieve. We never dreamt of that after qualifying. We just put the perfect race together between mechanics, engineers and drivers. Although we are impatient to spray podium champagne soon, it was great to collect these points.” Source: Toyota Gazoo Racing

Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R finish fifth and sixth

The #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R, which qualified fifth at the hands of Alex Lynn, finished a season-high fifth. The sister #38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R advanced four positions from its starting spot to also finish a season-best sixth.

Moving from 10th on the grid at the green flag, a series of overtaking cars and competitors on various tire and fuel strategies propelled the #12 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R to sixth with 42 minutes remaining. Lynn overtook the #50 Ferrari AF Corse for fifth on the next lap and vaulted to second in the running order with 28 minutes left. Lynn, a two-time class winner at Spa, maintained the position until having to duck onto pit lane for 11.5 seconds of fuel with 14 minutes remaining. He exited in seventh before grabbing fifth with just over 2 minutes left over the 150 laps in the third race of the season.

Alex Lynn: “I think in the end it was a positive day. Both cars with decent points and we finished where we started, but that doesn’t tell the story of the race at all. Proud of the team today. I feel like it was our first proper race that we executed well as Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA and I’m proud that we started our season properly today.” Source: Cadillac Racing

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. #38 Cadillac Hertz Team JOTA V-Series.R

Toyota #7 crossed the line in seventh.

Mike Conway took the start in 16th but was hindered by a front-right puncture after 23 minutes. Kamui Kobayashi took over the car in eighth thanks to pitting under safety car. When the field pitted together, a faster stop – thanks to changing only two tyres – allowed Kamui to leapfrog several rivals and sit third at the restart. A locked brake into the Bus Stop chicane saw the #7 run wide and, with all cars running so close together, dropped down to seventh. Yet another safety car late in the fourth hour prompted Kobayashi to pit for a driver change. Nyck De Vries took over the #7 in fourth eventually crossing the line in seventh.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at Spa-Francorchamps. #7 Toyota Gazoo Racing Toyota GR010-Hybrid

Nyck de Vries (Driver, car #7): “A tough race event for us a team, nevertheless I think we did well to bring the cars home in fourth and seventh. I am very sure this was the maximum we could achieve considering the performance we had this week. It was a big challenge, but we fought very hard, did our best and took our opportunities. As a team, we maximised the package we had this weekend.” Source: Toyota Gazoo Racing

Alpine #35 eight

Ferdinand Habsburg (#35 Alpine A424) took the start in ninth and entered the top five, but a penalty for an infringement during a virtual safety car slowed his progress. Charles Milesi took over and was moving up through the field. Paul-Loup Chatin was up to fourth before a quick splash at the end of the race and finished eighth.

Nicolas Lapierre, Sporting Director Alpine Endurance Team: "It was a strong race for the team, and it was really satisfying to finish on the podium again. It is the first time we've been able to fight at the front from start to finish genuinely, and I'm delighted with the progress we've made and the pace we were able to display throughout the race. Unfortunately, the #36 car was hampered by a slow puncture that impacted our strategy. On the other side of the garage, a penalty for the #35 car put them in a tricky situation. Despite everything, we finished with both crews in the top eight, which is a solid result given the level of competition. It confirms our collective progress and bodes well as we are getting closer to our biggest challenge this year." Source: Alpine

Porsche #6 ninth

The #6 Porsche 963 shared by Kévin Estre, Laurens Vanthoor and Pascal Wehrlein got off the line well and initially charging from twelfth to seventh. After the first pit stop, the 494 kW (672 PS) hybrid prototype had slipped to eleventh. In the final hour, it reclaimed a position in the top six, only to lose ground after a late refuelling stop shortly before the end, and ultimately, taking the flag in ninth place.

Pascal Wehrlein (Porsche 963 #6): “It was great to get more race laps with the Porsche 963 and to work with Porsche Penske Motorsport for the first time. I’ve gained a lot of valuable experience. However, the result certainly didn’t meet our expectations. We were significantly off the pace and struggled with tyre wear. Now, we’ll shift our focus to identify areas for improvement over the coming weeks.” Source: Porsche