WEC: Porsche and Alpine preview Spa in Belgium’s Ardennes
Porsche heads to round two of the season leading the FIA World Endurance Championship WEC. After clinching a class win at the season opener in Sebring (USA), the factory squad now aims to follow up with another victory at the six-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps.
For the first time since its debut in the premier class, Alpine Elf Endurance Team leads the FIA Hypercar World Endurance Championship thanks to its masterful triumph at Sebring.
After controlling the field and racking up points in Florida, the team is now preparing to defend its leadership status on a track it has experienced with its Hypercar. In April 2021, the Alpine A480 made its racing debut at Spa-Francorchamps, where Nicolas Lapierre, André Negrão and Matthieu Vaxiviere scored the first of their seven consecutive podiums, a streak that continues today.
The Circuit
The Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps lies in the far east of Belgium, not far from the German border. The racetrack, which opened in 1921, measures 7.004 kilometers – the longest permanent circuit on the FIA WEC calendar.
Featuring 21 corners and several long straights, the storied racetrack rolls uphill and down dale through dense forest – hence its nickname the “Ardennes rollercoaster”.
The fast passages like Raidillon/Eau Rouge and Blanchimont are as notorious as the famous La Source hairpin.
For the 2022 season, the venue has undergone extensive renovations and expansions. While new gravel beds and grandstands have been installed at several corners, nothing has changed in terms of the length and layout of the circuit.
Alpine’s Objective
Six podiums and one victory later, Philippe Sinault’s troops return to the Ardenne with a much different objective: to remain at the top of the FIA WEC, increase their twelve-point lead over their closest pursuers and fine-tune their preparations for the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The Belgian track is one of the most demanding and favorite in the world with its undulating layout and technical corners that emphasize setup and driving. Unpredictable weather conditions often spice the race, but the team can draw on its extensive experience at Spa-Francorchamps to overcome the circuit’s pitfalls.
In 2015, the A-arrowed brand scored its first world championship points with the Alpine A450b at this endurance racing landmark. Twelve months later, the Alpine A460 won for the first time on Belgian soil in its title-winning campaign. The Alpine A470, which made its debut in 2017, was also successful at Spa, with a pole position and two crucial runner-up results in the LMP2 title reconquest.
This experience should be a valuable asset for Les Blues as they return to action and take in a race that is often considered as the final dress rehearsal before the 24 Hours of Le Mans week.
After a full year of experience with the A480 and a strong sense of unity, Nicolas Lapierre, André Negrão and Matthieu Vaxiviere will hit the track on Thursday for the opening free practice session. The TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps will start on Saturday at 1 pm. A field of thirty-seven cars, including the Toyotas and Glickenhaus in the Hypercar category, is anticipated.
Philippe Sinault, Alpine Elf Endurance Team Principal
A lot has changed since our first laps with the A480 a year ago at Spa. We have had six races in between to learn about our prototype, make it improve and develop the way we operate it. This week, the cards have been reshuffled a bit with the adjustments to the balance of performance. The extremely-compressed schedule of the meeting means that we can’t afford to make any mistakes, and we need to get off to a good start so that we can make the most of the practice sessions to adjust the car to these new parameters. The track is also very different from Sebring, so we will have to reset while trying to carry our momentum forward. The weather will also be a factor as the forecast is for rain on Friday and Saturday. If this is confirmed, we will have to adjust our Hypercar as we didn’t drive a lot with it in the wet. We must not forget that Spa remains a race in its own right, despite its status as the last rehearsal before the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In any case, the whole team is committed and highly motivated to keep our momentum.
The Porsche GT Team drivers
Richard Lietz from Austria and Italy’s Gianmaria Bruni join forces in the No. 91 Porsche 911 RSR, with Kevin Estre and Michael Christensen sharing the sister car. In March, the race drivers from France and Denmark won the season-opening round in Sebring at the wheel of the No. 92 car and currently lead the championship. Porsche heads to round two of the season at the top of the manufacturers’ classification.
The Porsche customer teams
The accomplished German customer teams Project 1 and Dempsey-Proton Racing each field two Porsche 911 RSR racers at the second WEC round of the season. Matteo Cairoli from Italy competes for Project 1. At Dempsey-Proton, team owner Christian Ried joins forces in the No. 77 car with the two British racing drivers Harry Tincknell and Sebastian Priaulx. The No. 88 sister car is shared by Americans Fred Poordad and Patrick Lindsey with Belgium’s Jan Heylen. The British GR Racing outfit relies on the British drivers Michael Wainwright and Ben Barker as well as Riccardo Pera from Italy.
An overview of Porsche teams and drivers
GTE-Pro class
Porsche GT Team #91 – Richard Lietz (A) / Gianmaria Bruni (I)
Porsche GT Team #92 – Kevin Estre (F) / Michael Christensen (DK)
GTE-Am class
Team Project 1 #46 – Matteo Cairoli (I) / Mikkel Pedersen (DK) / Nicolas Leutwiler (CH)
Team Project 1 #56 – Brendan Iribe (USA) / Oliver Millroy (GB) / Ben Barnicoat (GB)
Dempsey-Proton Racing #77 – Christian Ried (D) / Harry Tincknell (GB) / Sebastian Priaulx (GB)
GR Racing #86 – Michael Wainwright (GB) / Riccardo Pera (I) / Ben Barker (GB)
Dempsey-Proton Racing #88 – Fred Poordad (USA) / Patrick Lindsey (USA) / Jan Heylen (B)
The schedule (all times CEST)
Thursday, 5 May
3:30 pm – 5:00 pm: Free practice 1
Friday, 6 May
9:05 am – 10:35 am: Free practice 2
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm: Free practice 3
6:20 pm – 6:30 pm: Qualifying GTE
Saturday, 7 May
1:00 pm – 7:00 pm: Race
Porsche Drivers’ comments before the race
Richard Lietz (Porsche 911 RSR #91): “After Spa-Francorchamps underwent modifications, there are more gravel traps there again. That makes me curious to see how this will affect the driving style. It looks good on the videos, but we’ll only get a real idea in free practice on Thursday. I hope that the characteristics of this legendary track haven’t changed. I expect fierce competition from all of the cars in our GTE-Pro class at our first European race of the season.”
Gianmaria Bruni (Porsche 911 RSR #91): “Spa has been a regular fixture on the calendar since the FIA WEC was founded – for me, it’s an absolute highlight of the season. The track is a lot of fun, especially in the Porsche 911 RSR. We want to harvest maximum points. A lot of the course has been redesigned. I’m excited to see what impressions we’ll get during the shakedown on Thursday. Let’s see if the newly paved sections make a big difference. In recent years we’ve had it all at Spa: sunshine, rain and even snow. The weather in the Ardennes always has a few surprises in store.”
Kévin Estre (Porsche 911 RSR #92): “In many places where there used to be asphalt run-off zones, there are now new gravel beds. Let’s see if we have to take a different line through the famous Eau Rouge. All in all, I’m really looking forward to the upcoming race weekend. The track is unique and challenging, and the grandstands are finally open for the many fans. That creates a great atmosphere. Last year we enjoyed a perfect weekend at Spa: pole position and class win. The Porsche 911 RSR drove beautifully in both qualifying and the race. There’s no reason this year should be any different. But we have to keep our wits about us: the competition will be tough.”
Michael Christensen (Porsche 911 RSR #92): “We’ve always done well at Spa-Francorchamps. I hope that’ll be the case next weekend, too. Another victory is the clear goal. If we can do that, we’ll not only be in a great position in the championship but it also gives us additional motivation ahead of the Le Mans highlight. With this in mind, the upcoming race in Belgium is critical for us. I can hardly wait to get back on the track there.”