With nearly one hundred multi-classed cars competing within two ACO rules series next weekend gives the destination of Silverstone as a mighty fine choice if you’re looking for something worthwhile to watch at not so bad a price.

The European Le Mans Series and Michelin Le Mans Cup Series are just part of next weekend’s racing line up as the two European series battle out their penultimate rounds of the season with forty-seven LMP2, LMP3 and LMGT3’s featuring within the ELMS event and further LMP3 and GT3 based cars within the LMC event.

 

Last time out within both series at Spa Francorchamps just three weeks ago we saw driver changes enforced up several of the four Aston Martin Racing powered team entries as both diary clashes and changes in personal circumstances too effect – as well as the effects of current motor racing pressures.

Within the ELMS, the #59 Racing Spirit of Lemans AMR Vantage LMGT3 had seen both Clement Mateu step away from the remainder of his envisaged 2026 racing programme with co-driver, Valentin Hasse-Clot also suffering from a diary clash with his ever-increasing IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar Championship commitments leaving just Marius Fossard holding the fort.

 

In stepped both Anthony McIntosh and Parker Thompson to co drive the #59 car with Fossard in Belgian but having claimed class pole position, an unseen error/incident towards the end of McIntosh’s stint that saw the car nose-dived into the tire wall. Whilst the car was recovered to the circuit (relatively undamaged) the time and laps lost during that recover meant that their race was all but done as they eventually finished last in class and a lap down.

This time around for Silverstone, both Hasse-Clot and Fossard are back in the saddle and will be partnered by fellow Frenchman Francois Herieu – another bronze graded driver already well versed with the pressures of ACO rules racing within the FIA World Endurance Championship.

 

Then, within the Le Mans Cup Series we welcome back the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman AMR Vantage GT3 of Philipp Sager and Valentin Hasse-Clot alongside the #11 Code Racing Development AMR of Pascal Huteau and Viny Beltramelli as well as the #91 Ecurie Ecosse by Blackthorn AMR of Claude Bovet and Tom Canning.

Again, Hasse-Clot was absent from this race in Spa as his place was taken by Fossard who, alongside Sager protected their championship lead by coming home fourth in class whilst the two debuting drivers within the #11 Code Racing developments entry claimed a much-deserved P3 podium finish at the first time of asking. The #91 crews run of bad luck within the series sadly continued as an apparent brake issue/fire forced Canning to stop on track whilst then running in a podium contending position for yet another DNF upon the timing and scoring screen.

 

Hopefully, all that incident and accident is now firmly behind then as the ELMS entry look forward to another four-hour race on Sunday with the LMC grid starting their penultimate two-hour race on Saturday.

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

 

 

 

This weekend’s main racing event as far as Aston Martin Racing powered crews are concerned will be the penultimate round of the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup Series from the Nurburgring, Germany.

Amongst the fifty-five entries listed will be just the five AMR Vantage GT3 runners from either the Comtoyou Racing or Walkenhorst Motorsport teams after the Ecurie Ecosse Blackthorn team confirmed their absence from the event a few weeks ago.

 

With endurance rounds now signed off for Paul Ricard, Monza and the Spa 24- it just leaves both this weekend’s visit to Germany and the seasonal finale from Portimao to see out yet another season.

Championship wise, the #7 Comtoyou Racing Pro class entry for Nicki Thiim, Marco Sorensen and Mattia Drudi still stand as AMR’s best contenders as they sit second within the overall championship table, but they would need something of a minor miracle to overcome the forty-one points deficit to the leading Mercedes-AMG powered crew. With just two normal format races remaining, there will be just a maximum of fifty points available to them to achieve that feat.

 

 

The other Pro classed Aston Martin from the Walkenhorst team for drivers Christian Krognes, Jamie Day and Henrique Chaves have endured something of a nightmare season so far which has even seen them miss the opening round due to a practice session accident. Since then, the #34 crew have accrued just seven points.

Within the silver class, both the #21 Comtoyou Racing entry for drivers Kobe Pauwels, Oliver Soderstrom and Sebastian Baud find themselves just outside of the top ten in eleventh on a tally so far of twenty-eight points whilst the #35 Walkenhorst car of Mateo Villagomez, Ethan Ischer and Gaspard Simon find themselves further back in P23 with just five points.

 

The #11 bronze class entry from the Comtoyou Racing team for drivers AJ Muss and Marcelo Tomasoni sees the crew approach the end of what has become already a very turbulent debut within the series with bad luck usually outweighing driver mistakes. For this round Kyle Marcelli will also be replaced by Brazilian racer Sergio Sette Camara.

Track action will begin on Friday with both private testing and the bronze driver test sessions before Free Practice 1 and 2 on Saturday before individual qualifying and the start of this three hour race on Sunday at 15:00hrs local.

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

 

The fourth round of the Michelin Le Mans Cup Series has just concluded around the Spa Francorchamps circuit in Belgium where the capacity LMP3 and GT3 based grid again provided another two hours of excitement – albeit of not all of it was entirely welcome and beneficial for those involved.

With torrential rain having blighted the circuit in the build-up to todays race, early rainfall again affected this morning’s qualifying process for the ten GT3 runners that again included the three from the Aston Martin Racing stable.

 

The #91 Ecurie Ecosse Blackthorn AMR of Claude Bovet and Tom Canning was the only one of the three not to have driver changes imposed upon them due to necessity as the GT3 Championship leading #10 Racing Spirit of Leman car had seen Pro driver Valentin Hasse-Clot otherwise detained this weekend in IMSA (with his place taken by ELMS team-mate Marius Fossard) alongside full season racer Philipp Sager. The Code Racing Development AMR had also seen a new crew of Pascal Huteau and Viny Beltramelli take charge within their #11 car for what is the third (?) driver change this season so far.

Qualifying was extremely wet for the GT3 field as they went out on track for the first time and their tentative nature to the situation went without surprise as it was again the gentleman drivers behind the wheel. A last lap lunge from Sager saw him lift himself up to P5 at the end with Huteau just being outdone by Bovet at the end as they picked up a P7 and P8 start for this afternoons race respectively.

 

With at least the track having dried out in time for the start of the race, the actual tone of the race was to be quickly set after the #51 Ferrari spun off heavily along the barrier at Les Combes, bring out the Safety Car for its first of too many interventions within the next two hours. Indeed, both the #11 and #91 Aston Martins were fortunate not to pick up damage from that spinning Ferrari as it came back across the track – forcing the #91 onto the grass and broadside relative to the direction of the circuit.

A 10–12-minute clean operation quietened the race before finally a wrath of LMP3 incidents for (usually) cars off track brought the Porsche Safety Car out again or a Full Course Yellow for a further three occasions before the end of the first hour with the #11 car running highest of the three Aston’s in 3rd, the #10 in 5th and the #91 in 8th in class.

 

With driver changes down across the classes at or about the hour mark, further race time was lost to further LMP3 related issues on track leaving little over half an hour left to go but the excitement was not over yet. A very over ambitious move by an LMP3 car (driven by a former F1 driver) with the #10 RSLM Aston Martin saw the #10 extremely fortunate to survive in a raceable state as the LMP3 first passed for track position being immediately over braking into a spin in front of it. Only pre-emptive anticipation from Fossard kept his car in the race and in the fourth place in class it was then running in behind the #11 Code Racing Development entry.

Further heartache would, however, come back to haunt the #91 Ecurie Ecosse Blackthorn entry with Canning at the wheel as (only a few minutes later) the #91 was seen to have stopped at the top of the circuit with black smoke pouring from the front quarter of the car with a suspected brake fire. Another Safety Car required for both that and the LMP3 car involved with the #10 RSLM incident.

 

A final fifteen-minute dash to the flag saw the Code Racing Development secure (on track at least) only their second race finish to the season so far as they completed the class podium in third and with the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman car just hanging on to their fourth place finish at the end for what should still be (albeit now) a reduced Championship lead as the series moves onto Silverstone in just three weeks’ time.

To put this race into perspective – it was two hours long but only thirty-six laps were completed by the GT3 leaders with all results still subject to ratification by the series and Race Control.

 

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

 

 

 

All being well next weekend, it should be back to a full three Aston Martin Racing powered contingent for the fourth round of the Michelin Le Mans Cup Series from the Spa Francorchamps circuit in Belgium.

As surmised with our previous European Le Mans Series preview also at the circuit next weekend, the only change affecting these three AMR Vantage GT3 entries will be within the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman team as Valentin Hasse-Clot will be stateside and racing within the IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship.

 

That means that his fellow ELMS co-driver, Marius Fossard will indeed be taking his countryman’s place within the #10 car which he will now share alongside GT3 Championship leading Am driver Philipp Sager. After winning the class this years extended Road to Le Mans race back in June, the Sager/Hasse-Clot combination now lead the ten strong by twenty-seven points going into this round, but any points scored in Belgium by the #10 car will obviously now be at the detriment of Hasse-Clot.

 

They in turn will again be joined by the #11 Code Racing Development AMR of Sebastian Moreno but with a co-driver yet to be confirmed after two have already completed racing duties with the French outfit so far – an outfit that has shown real pace in qualifying but have so far been unable to secure the points finish at the end. Their P5 finish at Le Mans in June has been their best result to date despite taking two pole positions at both Barcelona and Paul Ricard earlier in the year.

We also welcome back the #91 Ecurie Ecosse Blackthorn AMR Vantage GT3 of Claude Bovet and Tom Canning after Bovet found himself unable through apparent injury to participate at Le Mans which in turn saw both Giacomo Petrobelli and Romain Leroux take their places in the event. History shows that this year’s Road to Le Mans race was not a happy event for the team with both cars retiring after just a handful of laps for the opening driver.

 

The team and usual crew have, however, been testing at Spa Francorchamps over recent days in preparation to this race next weekend but it appears we may also be enjoying yet another livery design for that car too!!

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

 

 

 

 

 

As far as any Aston Martin Racing powered runner maybe concerned, this weekend’ 79th edition of the Crowdstrike 24 Hours of Spa Francorchamps must go down as one of the most brutal of events experienced as far as their multi-car entry was concerned.

Already running around the Belgian circuit within some of the hottest and prolonged weather conditions that northern Europe had experienced in many years, a starting grid size of nearly seventy cars and over one hundred and thirty thousand fans still packed into the circuit to see this latest SRO Blue Ribband event that still forms part of both the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup Series and the Intercontinental GT Challenge Series.

 

There were seven AMR Vantage GT3 powered crews entered this time around – four from the Belgian based Comtoyou Racing team, two from the German Walkenhorst Motorsport team and one from the British Ecurie Ecosse by Blackthorn teams and all fielding crews which has a distinct chance at either overall or class wins at the end.

 

Starting this year’s event in the mid-afternoon but with ambient temperatures well into the forties, it nearly went absolutely disastrously for the Walkenhorst team as both of their Pro and Silver class entries were involved in a lap one incident with multiple other cars. Whilst the #34 car of Jamie Day was seen spinning through the air on one-maybe two wheels only to land the correct way around and seemly able to continue, the same couldn’t be said for their #35 car of Maxime Robin. Already suffering from front end damage from an immediately earlier contact, the car was then seen to make further and heavier contact with the car that caused the incident and for them – that was the day done already.

 

Over the next few hours and throughout the early onset of multiple Safety Car periods, the Walkenhorst and Christian Krognes were able to elevate the #34’s race position to within the top ten overall despite whatever damage had to be dealt with over multiple stops.

After the early incidents, all continued at a pace for the AMR powered runners until the early hours of the night-time running when the #21 Comtoyou Racing AMR of Sebastian Baud was caught dropping a wheel off the kerb and into the gravel. That was unfortunately enough to put the silver class entry into a tank slapping spin that finally saw the car impacting (thankfully) backwards into the tyre wall and into immediate retirement. Baud’s condition was also quickly confirmed as being bruised and deflated but otherwise but that incident would end up being the beginning of the end for the green liveried cars within the race.

 

The #11 bronze entered car was next to be eliminated from the race before the then Pro-Am class leading #700 car guesting driver Sarah Bovey was witnessed to leave the track and impact heavily into the tyre wall on the outside of Blanchemont – again another car destroying impact that thankfully still allowed Bovey to exit the vehicle under her own power.

If that couldn’t get any worse for the team – it did, as in the early hours of Sunday morning a rare mistake from Nicki Thiim saw the Dane lose control of his #7 car coming up from Eau Rouge and into Raidillon – for the car to spin and nose sufficiently heavy enough into the barrier to end their race. Up until that time, the #7 car had been present within the top ten overall for much of the race and on the lead lap too but for this year there would be no return to the winners podium.

 

The #56 Ecurie Ecosse by Blackthorn AMR was also not out of the wars as their four-man driver line up battled their was up from their lowly starting position overall and within their bronze cup entry. Already carrying many battle scars, the car was also seen pulling into their garage bay with only three wheels attached at the time and with a small carbon fire on the splitter in their urgency to get back to racing. They would eventually finish P32 overall and P6 in class.

 

The true heroes were however, the #34 crew of Jamie Day, Christian Krognes and Henrique Chaves as well as the Walkenhorst team who helped elevate the car from plumb last on lap one to finish comfortably within the top 10 to claim an overall P7 result for their efforts. Who knows, one or two penalties less for track limits and they could have been higher!!

What a great event (considering)!!

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

 

 

If those woods are the trees that surround the 7km Spa Francorchamps circuit in Belgium, you certainly will be in for a very big surprise as over seventy top-flight GT3 cars and crews now settle themselves down at the circuit for this weekend’s Crowdstrike 24 Hours of Spa.

Not only functioning as the third round of the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup or even the third round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge Series, but this race also contains a few wild card or guest entries amongst them that will certainly spice things up come the green flag on Saturday.

 

We of course feature six full season Aston Martin Racing powered entries into the GTWCE Endurance Cup Series from the likes of the locally based Comtoyou Racing team, the German based Walkenhorst Motorsport team as well as a solo effort from the British based Ecurie Ecosse with Blackthorn as automatic entries into this event but we will also see a further (fourth) entry from the Comtoyou Racing team full of national importance.

The bronze ranked drivers enjoyed their first track action of the week earlier today (after a collective private test for all) with the #11 Comtoyou squad of Marcelo Tomasoni/Aaron Muss/Kyle Marcelli and Felice Jelmini had a few of their drivers eligible for that session as did the #56 Ecurie Ecosse by Blackthorn AMR of Giacomo Petrobelli/Jonny Adam/Lorcan Hanafin and Romain Leroux. We are, however, saddened to see the likes of Tom Wood miss out on his previously indicated drive within the #56 car despite previous confirmation by the team and series.

 

Next up the order are the two silver classed entries from both the Belgian and German teams in the form of Oliver Soderstrom/Kobe Pauwels/Sebastian Baud and Arthur Dorison aboard the #21 Comtoyou Racing entry with Mateo Villagomez/Than Ischer/Gaspard Simon and Maxime Robin aboard the #35 Walkenhorst AMR Vantage GT3.

Each team then field a Pro class entry apiece with former race winners Nicki Thiim/Marco Sorensen and Mattia Drudi looking to make for being taken out of the last race event at Monza very late on and without fault after some very poor driving standards had been on display whilst the Walkenhorst will field Henrique Chaves/ Christian Krognes and Jamie Day aboard their #34 entry.

 

That leaves the all-Belgian effort from the Belgian bases team as Nicolas Baert Xavier Knauf, Sarah Bovey and Gregory Servais join forces for this one-off event within their #700 Pro-Am entry.

Tomorrows significant event will be the annual car, and drivers parade and autograph session within the two centre of Spa with all the cars making their own way to and from the circuit along the public roads. After that, things become much more serious with two Free Practice sessions on Thursday ahead of Qualifying and night practice later on before Superpole for the front runners later on Friday.

 

The race itself will be waved off at 16:30hrs local on Saturday. What isn’t there to like about any of that?

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

 

 

 

 

 

 

Another crazy edition of the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup now ‘safely’ in the books after yesterday’ s three hour near demolition derby left many cars in literal tatters but (more importantly) nobody injured around the Autodromo Nazionale Monza,

It was always going to be another fast and furious second round the season having started the year out at an equally fast Paul Ricard circuit in France just a few weeks back, but the ultra-fast and more traditional circuit layout of the Italian circuit would also have the probability of certainly a turn one, lap one incident for the fifty-seven-car entry.

 

The #7 Comtoyou Racing Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 of last time out race winners Nicki Thiim, Marco Sorensen and Mattia Drudi were always one crew to keep an eye out for last weekend but their performance around the circuit in previous sessions and into Qualifying left them a down on the fourth row ahead of yesterday afternoons start.

Their participation within the race however was strictly limited to the distance between the start line and the entry into the first chicane as multi-car contact saw the #007 sent onto the grass before collecting an already spun out and damaged car, destroying the front end before the race has truly started.

 

That first corner incident alone accounted for the loss of half a dozen cars including the first three cars on the grid but that sadly did not tone down the driving characteristics within some driver crews as a similar incident at the same location towards the end of the race took out some other cars competing for race or class wins at the time.

The #11 Comtoyou Racing bronze classed entry for Kyle Marcelli, AJ Muss and Marcelo Tomasoni were also seen to be in the wars after rear end contact into the Variante Ascari that saw them run through the gravel to impact rearward into the tyre wall sustaining them significant damage in the process too. Albeit able to limp back to the pits under the Full Course Yellow, the damage had already been done to their race in more ways than one.

 

There was hope seeing the two Walkenhorst AMR Vantage GT3 crews as their names peaked towards the head of the timing screens with little over an hour of the race to go but sadly, their pit stop strategy still owed them a minimum timed stop apiece that obviously dropped them back down the order again. The #34 Pro entry of Christian Krognes, Jamie Day and Henrique Chaves could do no better than P8 in class despite the best efforts of the Portuguese racer during his stint within the chaotic final hour whilst the #35 silver entry of Mateo Villagomez, Ethan Ischer and Gaspard Simon also finished P8 in class.

The reward of racing success at least went to the #56 Ecurie Ecosse by Blackthorn AMR bronze classed entry of Giacomo Petrobelli, Jonny Adam and Lorcan Hanafin who managed to stay out of trouble on track – thanks in part to their low qualifying position second last on the grid at the start to finally come through eventually P9 overall and second in class. That was however thanks in part to one class rival being taken out of the race at the second big incident at turn one.

 

Many teams now face a fierce battle to repair or replace their GT3 rolling stock in time for the Spa 24 – the next round of the Endurance Cup stakes at the Belgian circuit at the end of the month.

Photo credits _ Teams / Series / social media

 

 

Destination the Temple of Speed (Monza) this weekend for the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup with its expected fifty-seven car entry, with the six full season Aston Martin Racing powered contingent amongst them.

This is just the second round of the 2026 season having kicked off their five-round series at the six-hour racing visit to Paul Ricard back in early April.

That round witnessed an impressive start and come-back during the race for the #007 Comtoyou Racing AMR Vantage GT3 of Mattia Drudi, Nicki Thiim and Marco Sorensen who started from the front row of the grid but had to come back from behind to secure an overall race win at the death.

 

There was also a celebratory performance from the #21 Comtoyou Racing AMR of Kobe Pauwels, Oliver Soderstrom and Sebastian Baud who had to make do with a third-place finish in their silver class having secured the class pole position earlier in qualifying.

They were the AMR powered highs of the opening round – sadly countered by the early demise of the #34 Walkenhorst Motorsport Pro entry after Jamie Day suffered a heavy off during an earlier session that prevented him and his co-drivers Christian Krognes and Henrique Chaves from taking any further part.

 

Each of these teams will field another crew each in the form of the #11 Comtoyou Racing entry for Kyle Marcelli/AJ Muss/Marcelo Tomasoni within their bronze class entry alongside that of the #35 Walkenhorst Motorsport entry for Mateo Vilagomez/Ethan Ischer/Gaspard Simon and their silver classed entry.

The six will of course be completed with the presence of the #56 Ecurie Ecosse by Blackthorn AMR of Jonny Adam, Giacomo Petrobelli and Lorcan Hanafin who replaces the unfortunate Tom Wood who impressed so well in France.

Track activity will begin on Thursday with the Bronze Driver Test before moving onto another private test on Friday before Free Practice one and two on Saturday. An early start to Sunday will see the three individual qualifying runs before the green flag to this three-hour race being waved off at 15:30hrs local.

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

 

 

 

Today saw the concluding two sessions take place of the Spa 24 Prologue Test with the sixty runners of today experiencing some typical Spa Francorchamps weather by the looks.

Yesterday saw six of the seven scheduled Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 crews take part within yesterday’s two sessions but today did see the arrival of the #34 Walkenhorst Motorsport Pro class entered car of Henrique Chaves, Jamie Day and Christian Krognes.

 

The morning sessions was rather damp to say the least after numerous shower fronts passed the circuit by making for some spectacular photos. Track conditions did however improve over the course of the day to leave dry track conditions to see out the test.

Obviously with the four sessions over the two days just being for testing purposes, it wasn’t too surprising to see that none of the Aston Martin Racing powered runners threaten the top of the class live timing before time was called on the occasion with all runners and drivers not expected back to the circuit until the week of the 22nd June to prepare for the actual 24 hour race over the 27th and 28th.

 

For some, their next track activity is just this weekend.

Photo credits - Series

 

 

Today saw the first track action of a two-day Prologue Test at the Spa Francorchamps circuit ahead of next months 78thCrowdstrike 24 Hours of Spa with fifty-nine of the expected seventy car entry taking part within today’s opening two sessions.

Whilst we thought that the seven Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 powered entries and crews were fairly locked in before now, there have been a few more changes within a couple of these cars with six of the seven in attendance today.

For the German based Walkenhorst Motorsport team, it’s a busy week for them having just cleared up from their podium winning achievements at last weekend’s ADAC Ravenol N24 from the Nurburgring Nordschleife.

 

The #35 silver classed Vantage GT3 of Mateo Vilagomez, Ethan Ischer, Gaspard Simon and Maxime Robin was in attendance today at Spa but their #34 Pro class entry of Henrique Chaves, Christian Krognes and Jamie Day was not – or at least did not get any measurable laps in.

The Ecurie Ecosse by Blackthorn AMR Vantage GT3 crew was in attendance but their driver line up within their #56 car for both the Prologue and the Spa 24 has changed again slightly as Tom Wood loses his seat to Romain Leroux for both events alongside Jonny Adam, Giacomo Petrobelli and Lorcan Hanafin.

The remaining Aston Martins in attendance were from the locally based Comtoyou Racing team as they fielded the other four cars across the Pro, Silver and Bronze classes.

 

Podium winners at Nordschleife Nicki Thiim and Mattia Drudi (then in a Walkenhorst prepared AMR of course) swap over to the Comtoyou prepared #7 Pro entry alongside that of Marco Sorenson. The #11 bronze entry of Marcelo Tomasoni, AJ Muss and Kyle Marcelli has been boosted with fourth man Felice Jelmini whilst their #21 silver entry of Oliver Soderstrom, Kobe Pauwels and Sebastian Baud also has fourth man Arthur Dorison confirmed.

That leaves the all-Belgian car and crew of Nicolas Baert, Xavier Knauf, Sarah Bovey and Gergory Servais within the recently announced #700 Pro-Am Cup entry.

Photo credits – Series

 

 

 

 

The second round to the Michelin Le Mans Cup Series has just come to an end from the south of France with one of the three Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 crews getting favour through another chaotic two-hour race to secure a podium finish for their efforts.

With the #11 Code Racing Development of Sebastian Moreno taking his second pole start within the GT3 class of the season, the race was quickly back under the control of the Safety Car after an LMP3 car spin off on the opening lap at the Mistral Straight chicane to claim another competitor in the carnage.

Losing close to twenty minutes with the clean-up operation, it was back to green with all three bronze classed drivers within the #11, the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman (Philipp Sager) and #91 Ecurie Ecosse Blackthorn (Claude Bovet) Aston Martins.

 

 

With the #11 car holding the class lead on the restart, there were early gains for Sager as he moved up to sixth from his P8 starting position whilst Bovet was being held in ninth but Sager would suffer defuser damage after contact from the #88 Ferrari just a few laps later.

A late charge in his hour’s stint saw Bovet elevate his #91 up to seventh before the mandatory pit stops loomed with his fastest lap of his race so far as Moreno became the first of the GT3 class to pit from the lead of the class at the halfway point of the race with a near faultless display.

 

That left his co-driver Ethan Ischer to put in his first racing laps within the series as temperatures slowly started to cool outside, but he would maintain the teams class lead with the #10 RSL of now Hasse-Clot still in fifth but with Tom Canning getting his first racing laps in this season within the #91 car in eighth.

Just after his pit change, however, Ischer would suffer a rear wheel suspension issue half-way around the lap and that would effectively destroy their race. Making it back to pit lane, the rear right tyre was still very much inflated making a quick fix impossible and that was them done for the day again.

 

 

As for the other two Astons, it was still a chase to the final podium places as Hasse-Clot was still P4, but Canning was now not too far behind in P6 with just over thirty minutes still to go. That incentive took the Frenchman just half that time to pick up third in class but anymore was simply too much to ask – even for the AMR factory driver.

 

As the light finally began to fade, the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman car of both Sager and Hasse-Clot claimed third in class whilst the #91 Ecurie Ecosse Blackthorn crew of Bovet and Canning sealed their first finish of the season so far with their P6 finish.

Next stop for the series will be during the 24 Hours of Le Mans in June with their new single race format.

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media