+ Result: Pre-Qualifying, Spa-Francorchamps
Elite Motorsport continued its strong form at Spa-Francorchamps, with Josh Rattican and McKenzie Cresswell setting the pace in Pre-Qualifying.
Having won both races here last season, Rattican was quick out of the blocks in the #78 McLaren Artura GT4, setting what would stand as the session’s benchmark on just his fourth lap before handing to Cresswell.
After skipping much of practice, Marco Signoretti led the initial times in the Academy Ford Mustang, before Clement Seyler took a turn in the #39 Racing Spirit of Léman Aston Martin. Berkay Besler then bettered that aboard his Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport BMW, before Rattican established himself on top.
Rattican’s time was never far enough clear for the McLaren to be comfortable though, and had Hendrik Still not fallen foul of track limits on his best lap in the W&S Motorsport Porsche, the German would have run clear by almost a second.
As it stood, Rattican held firm by just 0.069 from Ricardo van der Ende and Benjamin Lessennes’ L’Espace Bienvenue BMW, with practice pace-setters Callum Davies and Charlie Hart third in the #812 RAFA Racing by RACE LAB McLaren. Ethan Gialdini and Michael Simpson were fourth in their CMR Ginetta with Paul Petit and Gregory Guilvert fifth for Team Speedcar Audi. Besler and Gabriele Piana rounded out the top six.
Stanislav Safronov and Aleksandr Vaintrub led the way in Pro-Am, the Mirage Racing Aston Martin working past Emil Skaras and Hans Holmlund’s Toyota Gazoo Racing Sweden Supra late on. American duo Jason Hart and Matt Travis were third for the guesting NOLASPORT Porsche team.
W&S continued out front in Am, with Max Kronberg and Daniel Blickle finishing clear of the Seyffarth Motorsport Audi shared by Bernd Schaible/Tobias Erdmann, with points-leaders Jean-Mathieu Leandri/Antoni de Barn third for Chazel Technologie Course BMW.
The session was ended a few minutes early by a red flag following an accident for the #81 RAFA Racing by RACE LAB McLaren, with driver Julius Dinesen emerging unscathed.
Qualifying will take place on Friday at 11:15, ahead of the season’s only night race at 21:10.