+ Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport pair battle to Silver victory
+ Zero to hero for PB Racing as D’Aste and Naska take first Pro-Am win
+ Kronberg and Blickle close in with second Am win for W&S Motorsport
+ Result: Race two, Spa-Francorchamps
Gabriele Piana and Berkay Besler withstood heavy last pressure to claim their first win of the GT4 European Series powered by RAFA Racing Club season in a shortened second outing at Spa.
Having been denied victory on Friday by a penalty for contact, Besler and Piana made amends with a strong drive in race two, holding off the Elite Motorsport McLaren of McKenzy Cresswell and Josh Rattican throughout. The race distance was reduced following a long stoppage after a multi-car accident at Raidillon.
After a disappointing retirement last night, the PB Racing Lotus of Alberto Naska and Stefano D’Aste scored a popular Pro-Am win, while W&S Motorsport Porsche pair Max Kronberg and Daniel Blickle closed in on the class lead with a second victory in the Am class.
SILVER: BORUSAN BANKS A WIN
With Piana starting the #12 BMW on the front row alongside Race 1 rival Cresswell, we appeared set for a repeat of the battle that cost the BMW dearly on Friday night.
This time though the pair got away cleanly, with Cresswell leading into La Source and fending off Piana up Eau Rouge. The drama began when Paul Petit’s Race 1-winning Team Speedcar Audi was tipped around at Raidillon, spinning back across the pack. The resulting contact took six cars out of the running. All drivers involved were checked and cleared with Matteo Nomblot (#128 AV Racing Porsche) being transferred to the medical centre for checks before also being released.
The accident led to a lengthy clean-up, and 28 minutes remained when the race restarted. Cresswell led but could do nothing to stop Piana when the BMW got a draft up the Kemmel Straight and completed a switchback into Les Combes.
Cresswell kept the pressure on and the two leaders pitted together with the BMW, now in the hands of Besler, rejoining fractionally ahead of Rattican in the McLaren. Despite pushing hard across the closing minutes, Rattican could find no way past Besler.
Another strong pit call from Team Speedcar helped Robert Consani and Benjamin Lariche into the final podium spot. Consani made his way to seventh in the first stint and then ran long in the pit window, pumping in strong laps in clean air before handing to Lariche at the last moment. The work paid off with Lariche rejoining third and holding off Benjamin Lessennes/Ricardo van der Ende’s L’Espace Bienvenue BMW and the RAFA Racing by RACE LAB McLaren of Callum Davies/Charlie Hart.
PRO-AM: ZERO TO HERO FOR LOTUS
Having lost the chance to fight in Race 1 to an electrical issue at the start, PB Racing Lotus drivers Naska and D’Aste were rewarded with their first win of the season on Saturday.
Naska started the Lotus on pole and made it through the early chaos, holding a spot in the top eight overall before handing across to D’Aste for the run to the flag. The Italian rejoined just ahead of Emil Skärås and Hans Holmlund’s Toyota Gazoo Racing Sweden Supra, and managed to keep the Swede behind, the winning margin being just 0.3s at the flag. Joachim Bölting and Hendrik Still claimed the final podium spot to cement their points lead.
AM: KRONBERG AND BLICKLE DRAW LEVEL
W&S Motorsport Porsche drivers Kronberg and Blickle completed a perfect Spa weekend by claiming their second win from pole in Belgium, and in doing so drew almost level in the class points race.
Kronberg ended his first stint well clear of the class opposition, with Blickle continuing to keep a handful of cars between him and the chasing #317 Chazel Technologie Course BMW. With Jean-Mathieu Leandri and Antoni de Barn retiring from Race 1 and scoring for second here, it means the two cars are separated by a single point at the top of the points table. Father-and-son Mikael and Christoffer Brunnhagen scored a second podium of the day for Toyota Gazoo Racing Sweden after a strong display.
The GT4 European Series powered by RAFA Racing Club next heads to Misano in Italy across the weekend of July 18-20.