6 Hours of Spa – Free Practice 3: Porsche dominant on two fronts

As soon as the session started, problems began for the Isotta Fraschini, which found itself immobilized right in the pit lane. For the other manufacturers, both in Hypercar and LMGT3, the first few laps were, as usual, used as an observation round.

Then, BMW, with the N°15, set the first significant time, followed like its shadow by the two official Ferraris, N°51 and N°50.

The Porsche 963s showed themselves comfortable in the art of wheel locking: the Proton No. 99 made the tire smoke at the end of Kemmel, while the Jota No. 12 went straight into the final chicane.

But the officials at Penske are definitely in great shape when it comes to qualifying: Kevin Estre took the lead after ten minutes, in 2:04.125.

Even if Peugeot has put on weight, car number 93 held onto the 3rd place during the FCY caused by Corvette number 82 from TF Sport. The 9X8 2024 is, this weekend, the heaviest machine of the Hypercar grid. This is nothing compared to Ferrari, which has gained no less than twelve kilos on the balance.

Among the other French, the Alpine No. 35 finished 8th, first under the control of Charles Milesi, while the No. 36 was in 11th place, with Nicolas Lapierre.

Ferrari started playing with fire, as car No. 51, which was briefly leading the session, crossed the pit exit line. The winning crew from the 2023 Le Mans race had to serve a five-minute stop and go penalty as a result!

The world champions from Toyota showed a relative withdrawal, in 7th and 8th places, in order No. 8 and No. 7.

At the very end of the session, Jota No. 38 had a big scare coming out of Blanchimont: Oliver Rasmussen went wide in the gravel trap and took off into the grass. More fear than harm, but the image was spectacular and the Franco-Danish driver was able to make it back to the pits.

In any case, the top of the Hypercar table is very tight and the qualification looks exciting!

LMGT3: Manthey PureX shows the Iron Dames who’s boss.

The Americans had taken the lead at the start of the session, with Ford in the front line. The Proton team’s Mustang No. 88 was leading the pack ahead of TF Sport and its Corvette No. 81. And the Lamborghinis, until then unnoticed since the start of the season, have emerged from the shadows.

The Iron Dames (No.85) led the way, setting a reference time of 2:21.219. The TF Sport Corvette, No.82, made an error in the Combes corner, causing a Full Course Yellow after fifteen minutes of racing.

Iron Dames, in the hands of Michelle Gatting, kept the lead, even as the Italian team was struggling since the beginning of the season. However, Porsche Manthey, with car N°93, did not see it the same way: Aliaksandr Malykhin held onto the fastest time, with 2:20.947, just before the Full Course Yellow protocol was launched, ten minutes before the end.

On the French side, the Akkodis team is still struggling: the Lexus No. 87 finished in last place, while No. 78 finished in a commendable 12th place.