24 Hours of Spa, 28-29 July 2018: Pre-race starting grid
Porsche took up the battle in the 2018 Spa 24 Hours with four 911 GT3 R race cars. The Spa 24 Hours is regarded as one of Europe’s major long-distance classics alongside the 24-hour races of Le Mans and the Nürburgring. The Spa 24 Hours marks round two of the Intercontinental GT Challenge as well as the fourth race of the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup. This was the the 70th running of this great endurance race in Porsche’s 70th anniversary year.
24 Hours of Spa, 28-29 July 2018: Pre-race starting grid
First contested in 1924, the Spa 24 Hours is just one year younger than the legendary long-distance classic at Le Mans. The last overall victory for Porsche in the Ardennes was back in 2010 with Romain Dumas, Jörg Bergmeister, Wolf Henzler and Martin Ragginger in the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR fielded by the BMS Scuderia Italia team. Since 2011, the event on the 7.004-kilometre Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps has represented a highlight on the international GT3 calendar. This year, a total of 221 drivers and 63 vehicles tackle the Spa 24 Hours, spread across thirteen manufacturers.
The four Porsche cars in this year’s 24 Hour race were:
Car #
Team
Class
Drivers
#911
Manthey-Racing
Pro
Romain Dumas, Frédéric Makowiecki, Dirk Werner
#117
KÜS Team75 Bernhard
Pro
Timo Bernhard, Earl Bamber, Laurens Vanthoor
#540
Black Swan Racing
Pro-AM Cup
Marc Lieb, Tim Pappas, Marc Miller, Jeroen Bleekemolen
#991
Herberth Motorsport
AM Cup
Jürgen Häring, Edward-Lewis Brauner, Wolfgang Triller, Alfred Renauer
24 Hours of Spa, 28-29 July 2018: The #540 Black Swan Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R driven by Timothy Pappas, Jeroen Bleekemolen, Marc Lieb and Marc Miller sweeps down the hill past the old pits
The #117 KÜS Team75 Bernhard squad and the #911 Manthey-Racing team both qualified for the Super Pole top-20 shoot out. The final Porsche qualifying positions were as follows:
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