Toyota Gazoo Continue Dominance at the 6 Hours of Spa

Here we provide a recap for the 6 hours of Spa-Francorchamps. Toyota Gazoo takes another win in the World Endurance Championship season.

2 Hour Mark

Hypercar

After an early lead the No. 50 and No. 51 Ferrari 499Ps started to fall back opting to run wet tires. The No. 07 Toyota Gazoo GR010 which started on slicks found the more beneficial strategy and was able to pass the Ferraris claiming the lead at the 2 hour mark. Cadillac Racing had an impressive start as the No.3 Cadillac V-Series.R runs second with Renger van der Zande starting on slicks and capitalized on improved track conditions. However the day ended early for the No. 03 when Van der Zande crashes heavily at Eau Rouge. He was unscathed from wreckage after a suspected steering issue. The crash triggered a very long safety car period under which some cars pitted.

As the race approached 3 hours the Ferraris had dropped to sixth after No.51 499P driven by Antonio Giovinazzi fought back through as wet tires overheated in drying track conditions and then they struggled to get slicks up to temperature after a tire change. No.50 Ferrari was in seventh. The Penske Porsche 963s held second and fourth place at the 2 hour mark.

LMP2

The No. 27 United Autosport Oreca 07 lead the 31 Team WRT by 2.5s at the 2 hour mark. Tom Blomqvist drove the No. 27 with little to no challenge. Blomqvist sees Team WRT Robin Frijns make a push nearing the 3 hour mark but Blomqvist holds. The No. 10 Vector Sport Oreca 07 retired from the race after losing a rear wheel on course.

LMGTE-Am

Wet tires were seemingly a better option for the LMGTE-AM cars to start on. However, race leader Ben Keating in No.33 Corvette C8.R lost the lead after switching to slicks and losing pace. Tomonobu Fuji in the No.777 D’Station Aston Martin inherited the lead but the Japanese racer receivesd a drive-through penalty for making contact with Sarah Bovy in Iron Dames Porsche.

4 Hour Mark

Hypercar

The Toyota Gazoo Racing GR010s found a groove at the 4 hour mark. The No.07 Car retains the lead as the No. 8 car fought up through the field to run 1-2 for the team. Disappointment struck for Porsche Penske as the No. 6 963 driven by Laurens Vanthoor retired due to a mechanical failure. The No. 4 Floyd Vanwall driven by Jacques Villeneuve collides with the LMGT3-Am No.54 AF Corse Ferrari at Blanchimont and the cars both retire, bringing out the third safety car in the process. Both drivers were unhurt.

LMP2

Team WRT takes the lead at the 4 hour mark. The Team WRT Sister car fought through the field to finish the 4 hour mark in second place. The No. 28 Jota driven by Oliver Rasmussen made a late challenge. He ultimately was able to make the pass at Eau Rouge after a hard fought battle. The battle resulted in side by side action until the next braking zone. The No.23 United Autosports car that led early in the race loses out in safety car period and fell to sixth. JOTA lose several positions in fourth hour losing momentum as their strategy call proves to be incorrect.

LMGTE-Am

Lilou Wadoux in the No.83 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari took the lead from No.88 Dempsey Proton Porsche. However, the No. 88 fought back to retake the lead at the 4 hour mark. The Iron Dames Porsche stays in third and had the pace to stay in contention for the podium. Driver Rahel Frey completed an amazing stint cutting into the front runners’ lead.

Race Results

Hypercar

Toyota Gazoo Racing complete the 1-2 for the win at the 6 hours of Spa. The Toyotas dominated from the 2 hour mark on. No. 51 Ferrari was able to salvage early weekend success and secured P3 to round out the hypercar podium. The No. 05 Penske Porsche and No. 3 Cadillac completed the top 5. The No. 50 Ferrari retired from the race.

LMP2

The No. 41 Team WRT with Louis Deletraz, Rui Andrade and Robert Kubica claim their first race win of the season on WRT’s home track. The team retains their success from 2022. The sister car was not able to hang on for the 1-2 finish after both cars led at the 4 hour mark. United Autosports continued their successful 2023 campaign with a P2 finish with the No. 23 car.

LMGT3-Am

The No. 83 Richard Mille AF Corse Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo wins the class with their first win of the 2023 season. Lilou Wadoux becomes the first women to win in a WEC Class. Corvette Racing whom have had a strong presence on track all year finish in second with another podium for 2023. The ORT by TF Aston martin Vantage AMR took third in the class to complete the podium. The top 3 cars were the only cars on the lead lap of the in class race.

Full Results can be found below.

For more information on the race result visit World Endurance Championship.