The final Qualifying and Hyperpole sessions of the 2026 FIA World Endurance Championship were concluded earlier today as both the LMGT3 and Hypercar fields decided the starting order ahead of tomorrow’s six hours of Monza.

As we know, the Championship’s visit to southern Europe came about by the ongoing tensions within the Middle East where they should have been in Bahrain this time around. Despite differing decisions from both the MotoGP and F1 who have both elected to travel to their usual destinations this around, the FIA WEC took an early assessment to the situation and have stuck to it although many would have preferred the weather conditions in Bahrain to that of Italy at the moment.

 

Running through the three prior Free Practice sessions through anything ranging from damp to torrential rain at the Temple of Speed, all four Heart of Racing Aston Martin or Aston Martin Racing powered entries already knew that their respective championship chances were already beyond their reach.

Qualifying followed the earlier Free Practice 3 session this afternoon with a distinctly damp but drying track met the LMGT3 field for their opening Qualifying session, but the damp and greasiness of the circuit caught out the lead Ferrari for that to spin and nose into the wall bringing out the red flag.

 

Getting going with less than ten minutes of the session remaining, Ian James and his #27 AMR Vantage LMGT3 was comfortably through to Hyperpole with his P5 finish but Gray Newell and his #23 AMR Vantage left it to the very last second before elevating himself up from P12 to P4 to claim another team double in Hyperpole.

Despite two rapid laps from Zacharie Robichon and Eduardo Barrichello within the #27 and #23 cars respectively, they would both fade away slightly during the remainder of the session before both cars swapped order just before eventually claiming a P4 starting position for tomorrows race for the #23 and P6 in class for the #27.

 

Next out were the Hypercars and the two Aston Martin Valkyries from the Heart of Racing team with a track surface now presenting itself in some of its driest form so far this weekend but that (unfortunately) was still not enough for the #007 and #009 cars.

Early laps from Marco Sorensen aboard his #009 car saw him settled comfortably within the top ten whilst Harry Tincknell was having to push his #007 to make it into the top half of the timing screen with the Brit having to avoid a Toyota straying into his path at the end of one faster push lap with still four minutes remaining.

 

Whilst the #007 would remain at the foot of the timing screen, the final minute of running would also see the #009 gradually pumped down the order but whilst Tincknell did haul himself back up to P14 at the end, the #009 car eventually finish P12 to round off another challenging 2026 season within the qualifying session.

Photo credits – DPPI

It will be something of out with the old before they are welcomed in with the new for the Heart of Racing team as they embark on another back-to-back race weekend starting at the Temple of Speed for the final round of the FIA World Endurance Champion this weekend before moving onto Paul Ricard and for their debut within the Asian Le Mans Series.

With both Series very much affected by the ongoing geo-political issues within the Gulf, this weekend’s FIA WEC to Monza should of course have been at their more traditional seasonal swan-song venue of Bahrain but instead the FIA elected for some ‘safer’ venues of both Barcelona (in lieu of Qatar) and Monza for the final two races of the season.

 

For the #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing Vantage LMGT3 crew of Ian James, Zacharie Robichon and Mattia Drudi, they were still very much in the LMGT3 Drivers Championship title hunt until their arrival at the Circuit de Catalunya where there success ballast versus tyre degradation was such as the crew were otherwise unable to keep their title hunt going.

Eventually being classified a lowly P16 in class at the end of that six hour race, the other results in class meant that the title hunt was otherwise lost to the #33 TF Sport Corvette crew meaning that this weekend’s six hour visit to Italy will be just for pride and continuation of the cross winter race programme that will take their AMR Vantage crews at least into the Asian Le Mans Series next weekend.

 

The sister #23 AMR Vantage LMGT3 crew of Gray Newell, Eduardo Barrichello and Jonny Adam were equally hard-pressed last time out in Spain but they did manage to close the points gap to their sister #27 crew with their P10 finish. They too will be entered within the AsLMS next weekend albeit not all within the same Aston Martin powered entry.

That leaves the return of the team’s two Aston Martin Valkyrie Hypercar entries for both Tom Gamble and Harry Tincknell aboard the #007 and Marco Sorenson and Alex Riberas within the #009 cars.

 

In Spain, the changing weather conditions around track eventually caught out the #007 car for that to spin out on rain that had collected within a raise kerb to make for a sorry DNF to blot their copybook – their first within another steadily improving season in just the cars second year on track.

The #009 suffered similarly for pace around the highly abrasive Catalunya circuit but this crew did hang on in to claim what is so far, just their third points finish of the season having promised so much earlier on in more recent rounds.

 

Both crews will go into this round with the knowledge of just what improvements are being to be made to the car over the winter months before returning to both the IMSA and WEC series next year for only its third full season of racing but a decent points finish for the #007 crew could see them leapfrog many more established crews at the end.

Thirty-five Hypercar and LMGT3 entries are again confirmed for this season finale with track action starting on Friday with Free Practice 1 before moving into class Qaulifying and Hyperpole on Saturday afternoon with the final race of the year being waved off at 11:00hrs local on Sunday.

Photo credits – DPPI / Team

Today’s FIA World Endurance Championship’s visit of necessity to the Circuit de Catalunya this weekend proved itself to be both an arduous and very costly one for the Heart of Racing team as their performances upon track today finally cost them their chance at the LMGT3 Drivers Championship.

Going into this seventh and penultimate round of the 2026 season, the #27 Aston Martin Racing Vantage LMGT3 of Ian James, Zacharie Robichon and an eventual (once he made it to the circuit from his other weekend of racing down in Portimao) Mattia Drudi saw the crew sitting effectively second in class to that of the #33 TF Sport Corvette trio of drivers but still needing a good result of their own in order to take the challenge to the season finale at Monza in three week’ time.

 

Their sister #23 AMR Vantage LMGT3 of Gray Newell, Eduardo Barrichello and Jonny Adam would be there in a supporting role having seen their own championship aspirations evaporate several rounds ago as were the two Aston Martin Valkyrie Hypercar crews of both Harry Tincknell/Tom Gamble and Ales Riberas/Marco Sorensen within their #007 and #009 cars respectively.

Qualifying had not gone well for the team with all four cars missing out on Hyperpole within each class for the first time for some races this year with the #27 car languishing way down at the tail end of their class whilst both Valkyries only just missed out on progressing into the next stage by qualifying P11 (#009) and P12.

 

When race day arrived, so had the rain and torrentially apparently overnight leaving the crews and teams time to mull over of the race possibilities as once the race was underway, the weather was expected to clear out along with the race clock.

Starting out in challenging conditions for a Pro and treacherous conditions for an Am saw the expected clashes and spins during the opening laps (sometimes directly in front of the four Heart of Racing cars) which brought out the first of a multitude of Full Course Yellow, Virtual Safety Car and Safety Car interventions – things that played havoc with the teams usual fuel and tyre strategy.

 

Whilst it was a five-car battle in class up front, both Vantage LMGT3 cars were struggling for pace with James hobbled by the 42kg of success ballast aboard his car and Newell with his lack of racing experience at this level, at this circuit and in the rain to boot – but both kept it upon the tarmac.

Disaster would however hit the #007 Valkyrie of Tincknell early as he would understeer off at turn five to narrowly avoid the outside tyre wall but would need marshal intervention of his own to face the right way again – something that would lose them a lap and all chances of a good result with the track final showing signs of drying out as the LMGT3 bronze drivers were completing their minimum driver time.

 

With the silvers now aboard the #23 and #27 cars, progress within their class could finally be seen as they both climbed into the top ten in class as most cars had moved onto slicks for the first time by this stage whilst the #009 Valkyrie of Riberas was also having the time of his life at his home circuit by nearly passing two Ferrari hypercars for position along just one pass of the start straight. Excellent stuff coming from the Spaniard despite the changing track conditions.

The #27 cars race would unfortunately start to unravel just after the halfway point of the race when the #27 swapped ends with Robichon on for two other cars to follow him into the gravel. Whilst the other two, including the #33 Corvette were able to get going again – the #27 had to wait for the circuit Manitou to assist but like their sister #007 crew, they would lose a whole fist of laps themselves so were now totally reliant upon the #33 car now not finishing to have any chance in Italy.

 

The third kick for the Heart of Racing team came shortly after the #27 car was returned to the track when the #007 car of Tincknell suddenly died in the VSC train for the Brit to later retire the car with electrical issues.

That left something of a two-hour race for Sorensen to chase down the hypercar pack from his then P10 position whilst Adam did likewise within his #23 Vantage but his car took a heavy side by side hit from a Ford Mustang as that car went wide only to recover directly into the side of the #23 car but was at least able to keep going.

 

For Drudi, his weekend of woe was to continue after firstly not getting to drive his Comtoyou Racing AMR Vantage GT3 at the final race of the GT World Challenge Endurance Cup from Portimao after earlier brake issues only to arrive at Barcelona to see out a race that he cannot influence at all.

Going into the final half hour, the #009 was now fifth in class but he would be forced to pit for fuel before the end of the race which would see them drop to nineth overall by the chequered flag to finish off a punishing race for the team. The #23 crew would claim at top ten position in class (in P10) but the five laps deficit for the #27 car and the #33 still finishing within the top ten would remove them from the LMGT3 Drivers Champiosnhip battle at Monza.

Photo credits – Team / DPPI

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

It’s a near totally blank canvas this weekend for the FIA World Endurance Championship with the cars, drivers and teams having arrived at the Circuit de Catalunya near Barcelona, Spain for this improvised penultimate round to their 2026 season.

Originally rescheduled to be in Qatar next weekend, this seventh and indeed final round to the season from Bahrain both had to hastily rescheduled again, thanks to the ongoing tensions within the Middle East to Barcelona and Monza respectively.

 

For the four Heart of Racing Aston Martin and Aston Martin Racing powered cars, there needed to be a quick trip over to Belgium last week in order to retrieve their cars from the airport having had them all flown back to Europe after the last round to the season at Fuji Speedway just over two weeks ago. From there, there was just enough time to give them all a quick strip down and rebuild before having to ship them out again in time for the long road haul down to Spain.

Whilst Japan did see a much deserved P2 finish in class for the #27 Heart of Racing AMR Vantage LMGT3 of Ian James, Zacharie Robichon and Mattia Drudi to bolster their championship chances going into these final two six hour races, it was an unfortunate early exit to the race for the #23 Vantage LMGT3 of Gray Newell, Eduardo Barrichello and Jonny Adam after the young American was the victim of inter-car contact along with the resulting spin out into the tyre wall from where the car would not move again.

 

For the two Aston Martin Valkyrie Hypercars, this were looking good for both of them before the simple error of crossing the pit exit blend line at their last stop cost the #007 car of Harry Tincknell and Tom Gamble a drive through penalty from their potential podium winning position whilst the #009 car of Alex Riberas and Marco Sorensen became victim to an untimely Safety Car intervention.

Championship wise – it’s still just the #27 Vantage LMGT3 crew with any chance of hauling in the TF Sport Corvette crew over these two remaining rounds being twenty-four points behind with time now running out after their own sluggish start to the season.

 

We still believe that Drudi will be on double race duty this weekend at both Catalunya with the FIA WEC and at Portimao for the final round of the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, an event that Sorensen has already been withdrawn/removed from within the same car as Drudi for the benefit of his Heart of Racing team WEC entry.

Free Practice begins on Friday before progressing in class Qualifying and Hyperpole on Saturday before the race itself is waved off at noon local time on Sunday and with the series never actually having raced at the circuit before – there is no form guide to be going by either!

Photo credits – Team / Aston Martin / DPPI

 

 

 

 

 

 

Two more Aston Martin Racing powered teams continued the racing trend this weekend by competing their race earlier today with a class podium finish apiece as the International GT Open Series ran their elongated 500km penultimate round to their season from the Temple of Speed.

Having skipped the last round to concentrate upon some domestic racing commitment within Poland saw the return of the #14 Good Speed Racing team and their AMR Vantage GT3 for their drivers Piotr Wira and new recruit Dennis Waszek as they continued their Am class campaign with their new for 2026 car.

 

Joining them and continuing their own championship challenge for the GT3 Pro-Am class was again the #97 Blackthorn AMR Vantage GT3 of Charles Bateman as he was again joined by AMR factory driver Henrique Chaves seeing that ‘his usual’ AMR factory (Jonny Adam) was otherwise engaged in Japan with the FIA World Endurance Championship.

Ahead of Sunday’s one-hundred-and-seventy-five-minute race had seen the #97 lay claim to a class pole setting qualifying performance, P8 overall within the total entry of thirty-four cars whilst the #14 car ended Saturday’s track activity with a total time worthy of P24 overall, P4 within the Am class.

 

Getting underway with a clean start throughout the ranks, the #97 of Bateman was able to maintain its class lead by some margin whilst Wira was still battling away fifth in class towards the rear of the pack as a Safety Car for a unsurprising multi-car incident in turn one slowed things back down again after just twenty minutes of racing.

Getting back to green again, another car spinning out just in front of the #14 Aston Martin brought out the Safety Car again as it was now stranded in the gravel and that forced the postponement of the pit stop window. With the stops soon over, Chaves was able to rejoin still in the lead of Pro-Am whilst Waszek was also now in the final podium position in Am with still half the race time still to go.

 

A third Safety Car for a car in the tyre wall again slowed matters down but obviously also closed the gaps back up again as the second drivers would soon have to hand the cars back over top those who started them before that process was repeated again later on, leaving just over forty-eight minutes to go.

 

For the #97 Blackthorn crew, that meant for a near lights to flag class win with Pro-Am, a result that now places Bateman at the head of the class with just the two sprint races from Barcelona to come in a few weeks’ time. For the #14 Good Speed Racing AMR crew, their visit to Monza proved itself to be very productive as they eventually finished third in class.

Photo credits – Team / Series

 

The #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing Vantage LMGT3 did their championship aspirations a power of good as they came through another chaotic round of the FIA World Endurance Championship to finish on the second step of the class podium at the six hours of Fuji Speedway earlier today.

Having been forced been to abandon their usual plans for both class Qualifying and Hyperpole due to the weather at the circuit at the time yesterday, grid places were determined by each cars fastest lap through the non-weather affected Free Practice sessions. That meant that the teams #007 Aston Martin Valkyrie of Harry Ticknell and Tom Gamble would be started towards the front in P4 with the sister #009 Valkyrie of Alex Riberas and Marco Sorensen in P6.

 

For the second time over recent rounds, the #23 AMR Vantage LMGT3 of Gray Newell, Eduardo Barrichello and Jonny Adam would out qualify the #27 car of Ian James, Zacharie Robichon and Matia Drudi but only by one place again with the #23 starting form P15 and the #27 P16 within another class set of eighteen cars.

Although still very wet in places, the race did get underway with at least no further rain falling (but still looked threatening around the track) did still see two other LMGT3 cars tangle at the first corner at the first time of asking whilst the two Valkyries held their ground before the first of many Safety Cars was called to recover the resulting debris. At the restart, James was quickly making moves into the top ten in class whilst Newell was still back at the tail of the non-delayed LMGT3 cars.

 

Settling into the first hour as the track still appeared to be unwilling to dry out any further, the two Valkyries were still running in P4 and P5 as they had from the first corner after Newell had caught onto the rear of the #27 car as that hour mark approached as a brief FCY was called for debris on track.

Ten minutes into the next hour, the slightest of contact onto the nose of the #23 car from a passing Hypercar saw Newell spin out to make minor front end contact with the outside tyre wall having just gone onto the saturated grass but Newell was unable to get the car going again forcing their early retirement after just thirty seven laps.

 

The caution thrown around the #23 incident took over twenty minutes off the race clock as the track went back to green with four hours twenty to go with the two Valkyries still running strongly at the head of the field and with the #27 still dabbling in and out of the top ten in their class all through the second hour as James eventually grabbed the attention of Race Control for speeding within the pit lane – a drive through penalty for that one was his reward.

Approaching the midway point, the gloom around the circuit appeared to be increasing along with the first speckles of rain with the trackside humidity still keeping the track surface at a persistent state of damp – nothing that would be beyond the scope of the new slick tyres per class as both Tincknell and Sorensen eventually handed their cars over to their respective partners to take to the flag still at the sharper end of the Hypercar class having their race of the season so far.

 

The first pain for the two Valkyrie crews came just before the top of the fourth hour as having just taken the overall race lead, Gamble was adjudged to have crossed the solid white line of pit exit and that would earn the Englishman another trip through pit lane – that would drop the #007 car to seventh as a consequence but that did elevate the sister #009 car up to third.

Another Safety Car for stranded vehicles again slowed the race down again at the final hour but that was just before another incident with the #27 car (this time with Drudi behind the wheel) and a passing McLaren that saw the McLaren spear off into the barrier along the start/finish straight bringing out another immediate Safety Car intervention. Whilst that was the end for the #58 car, the #27 car also suffered a puncture from the contact helping the #27’s slow limp back to pit lane.

 

That left what was then a twenty-minute dash to the flag under the failing light of Fuji but with the #009 still within contention of a podium winning position in fourth overall, the #007 P14 and the #27 still only P7 in class just ahead of the restart. After it went back to green, however, contact for the #009 car spun them around at the death of the race, dropping them right back in class whilst Drudi had fought his way back into the podium winning portion of his class.

At the end, the #009 was the best of the two Valkyrie finishers in P10 with the #007 a disappointing for them P14 whilst the #27 came away with a P2 in class finish at the end as the Championship now flies back to Europe for its two rescheduled rounds at both Monza and Barcelona in lieu of the previously postponed round at Qatar and the usual season finale at Bahrain.

Photo credits – Team / DPPI

 

 

 

 

This weekend’s entry list says that we are back to two Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 crews within this penultimate round of the season visit to the Temple of Speed for the International GT Open Series.

This around being an endurance round, there will be (as the title suggests) just one two-hour, fifty-five minute plus one lap round around the circuit of Monza for the thirty-four crews being listed.

 

We (appear to) welcome back the Polish Good Speed Racing team after the skipped a couple of events last time around to apparently concentrate upon their Polish national GT Series – which we understand that they won last weekend.

The #14 Am class racing entry does see a driver change as Piotr Wira is this time joined by Denis Waszek.

 

The #97 Blackthorn AMR entry also features another driver change as a regular member of the team (Jonny Adam) will be busy again with his FIA World Endurance Championship driver duties with the Heart of Racing team over at Fuji, Japan this weekend. His place will be taken (again) by fellow AMR factory driver Henrique Chaves alongside Pro-Am title contender Charles Bateman.

Last time out for Bateman (and Adam) at Hockenheim, a P4 class finish in race one was supported with an overall pole position and a P5 class finish in race two of that weekend to leave Bateman still just points in arrears to the Pro-Am Championship leader with this weekend’s 500 and the two final sprint races from Barcelona still to come.

Photo credits – Team / Series

 

 

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

 

 

It was to be a disappointing second round of the GT4 European Series for the Racing Spirit of Leman team at Monza after a late race one crash for one of their two Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4 powered crews saw them miss out upon another potential class podium as well as failing to take the start to Sundays second race.

This year, the Swiss based team are the sole AMR powered team competing within the European Series fielding both a silver and Pro-Am class entry. Whilst the team’s #74 silver class car remained driven by both Pedro Garcia and Clement Seyler, their #72 Pro-Am entry had changed since the opening round from Paul Ricard a few weeks ago where now Florent Grizaud was now being partnered by team returnee Kevin Kullmann.

 

All went well during the two Free Practice and Qualifying sessions where Garcia would claim a third row start ahead of race one on Saturday evening whilst Kullmann secured a P25 overall start (P9 in class) having not been in a race car much this year.

All was going well during that first one long opener right up until Seyler attempted to gain what would have been a podium contending position down the opening straight and into the first chicane, but his car unexpectedly snapped hard left before nose diving heavily into the armco barrier taking another car with it.

 

Causing immediate race ending damage to themselves, that would be compounded for them by the team being unable to repair the car in time for Sundays finale making the Monza event a double zero achievement for the crew.

That left just the racing efforts of the #72 Pro-Am pairing which in itself was still a massive struggle for the AMR Vantage compared to the platforms around them where the best that they could do was P12 in class for race one and P14 after an equally eventful race two.

 

The crews go again at the end of the month from the equally fast and furious Spa Francorchamps circuit.

Photo credits – Team / Series

 

As the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup make their way Monza for their second round of the season this weekend, so do the forty-four expected entries within the supporting GT4 European Series for another of their (usually) action packed double headers.

Up in numbers slightly from their opening races to the season from Paul Ricard, France six weeks or so ago – unfortunately we will still only have the two Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT4 powered entries from the Racing Spirit of Leman team and their silver and Pro-Am classed entries.

 

One familiar name and one new name were aboard each of those cars last time out and it is expected to be the same for this weekend as Florent Grizaud was about pair up with Louka Desgranges again aboard their #72 Pro-Am entry but his position has now been taken by Kevin Kullmann whilst Clement Seyler again pairs up with Pedro Garcia aboard their #74 silver entry.

The Paul Ricard circuit saw the Vantage GT4 Evo and their unfamiliar crews outpaced by most of the platforms that they was competing against with an unsurprising result in race one result saw the saw the two cars finish down their respective orders.

 

Race two was more encouraging after Grizaud qualified his car fourth in class whilst Seyler went some better to start from the front row of the grid in second. Whilst the pace of the #74 car allowed them to secure their first podium finish of the season in second, the #72 car did fall away at the end enough to give both drivers and team food for thought.

This weekend will see the usual two one-hour races across Saturday and Sunday with track action starting on Thursday with private testing before Free Practice 1 and 2 on Friday before two qualifying runs plus race one of Saturday.

Photo credits – Team / 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