Cookie Consent by Free Privacy Policy website Eight Audi R8 LMS cars fight for victory, points and titles at the Spa 24 Hours
ottobre 16, 2020 - Audi

Eight Audi R8 LMS cars fight for victory, points and titles at the Spa 24 Hours

Comunicato Stampa disponibile solo in lingua originale. 

The 71st edition of the #spa24hours will take place for the first time in autumn. From 22 to 25 October, the three Audi Sport customer #racing teams will compete in the world’s biggest GT3 race to clinch their fifth victory after 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2017, but the traditional Coupe du Roi brand title and valuable championship points in the GT World Challenge Europe as well as the #intercontinentalgtchallenge (IGTC) are also up for grabs in Belgium.

“Although the 2020 season started late for most of our customers, it has now turned into a first-class sporting competition,” says Chris Reinke, Head of Audi Sport customer #racing. “In the GT World Challenge Europe two of our teams won four titles shortly before the #spa24hours. Now they are aiming for further success in the endurance and overall standings. For this, #spa is the most important stage, because the long duration means that at three different times in the race a particularly large number of points are awarded here.” While Audi Sport customer #racing is sending four top-class #r8lms cars to the race, the customers will also participate with four private #racing cars in different classes.

This year, the world’s best GT3 drivers will once again meet in #spa to compete, including ten drivers from Audi Sport customer #racing: former winners Christopher Haase, Frank Stippler and Markus Winkelhock will be at the start as well as #mirkobortolotti, #mattiadrudi, #kelvinvanderlinde, #christophermies, #patricniederhauser, #driesvanthoor and Frédéric Vervisch. The line-up receives additional spice as the three top drivers from the DTM standings are part of it, too: With Nico Müller, Robin Frijns and two-time #spa winner and DTM champion René Rast, the 2020 DTM champion is definitely on board, even though the championship decision is still pending.

Two private Audi #r8lms will be entered by the Belgian Audi Club Team WRT. The outfit has won the team classification in the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup two weeks before the 24 Hours of #spa, as well as the driver classification with Dries Vanthoor/Charles Weerts. Currently, Vincent Vosse’s team also leads the team standings in the Endurance Cup and in the overall standings, as well as the drivers’ standings with Mirko Bortolotti/Kelvin van der Linde in the Endurance Cup. Saintéloc #racing will be fielding a private driver team in the Am class with start number 26, which includes Steven Palette. Together with the #racing team of Sébastien Chetail, he has won the Silver Cup in the sprint classification of the GT World Challenge Europe. As leader of the standings, the Frenchman and his team are now aiming for the Silver Cup in the overall sprint and endurance classification. A private driver line-up from Attempto #racing, which includes Nicolas Schöll, a race winner in the sprint finale, completes the line-up from Audi Sport.

The #spa24hours is also the third of four rounds of the #intercontinentalgtchallenge. For the first time, three instead of two race cars of a car manufacturer can collect points for the brand classification. A total of eleven brands will be competing in #spa, nine of which are registered to compete in the IGTC. Finally, the Coupe du Roi is a classification only for the #spa24hours. It rewards the best manufacturer across all classes. The traditional trophy has been awarded by the royal family for the first time back in 1913. Audi has won it in 2014, 2015 and 2016.

The Audi Sport teams in the #spa 24 Hour race

Audi #r8lms #25 (Audi Sport Team Saintéloc)

Christopher Haase/Nico Müller/Markus Winkelhock (D/CH/D)

Audi #r8lms #26 (Saintéloc Racing)

Michael Blanchemain/Christophe Cresp/Pierre-Yves Paque/Steven Palette (F/F/B/F)

Audi #r8lms #30 (Audi Sport Team WRT)

Robin Frijns/Christopher Mies/Dries Vanthoor (NL/D/B)

Audi #r8lms #31 (Audi Sport Team WRT)

Mirko Bortolotti/Kelvin van der Linde/René Rast (I/ZA/D)

Audi #r8lms #32 (Belgian Audi Club Team WRT)

Edoardo Mortara/Frank Stippler/Charles Weerts (CH/D/B)

Audi #r8lms #33 (Belgian Audi Club Team WRT)

Rik Breukers/Benjamin Goethe/Stuart Hall (NL/DK/GB)

Audi #r8lms #55 (Attempto Racing)

Alex Aka/Finlay Hutchison/Nicolas Schöll/Kim-Luis Schramm (D/GB/A/D)

Audi #r8lms #66 (Audi Sport Team Attempto) 

Mattia Drudi/Patric Niederhauser/Frédéric Vervisch (I/CH/B)