The night of the 24 Hours of Spa 2026 took an unexpected turn with the #51 Ferrari returning to the lead lap, while the feared storms turned out to be just a brief shower at the Spa-Francorchamps Circuit.
With several safety cars and various withdrawals among the favorites, the competition continued until 6 AM on Sunday. The big news of the night was the return of the AF Corse Ferrari to the lead lap, after a tire failure on Saturday night.
Regaining a lost lap is an extraordinary feat during the 24 Hours of Spa, thanks to the scarcity of opportunities to regain positions for Pro Cup cars and to the yellow flags preceding the safety car interventions. Additionally, the night did not see major storms, despite a spectacular display of lightning on the horizon.
Two McLarens from Garage 59 out of competition
Before nightfall, the #63 Grasser Lamborghini had to pit due to engine problems, briefly returning before the GRT Grasser decided to retire it for good. Tragedy soon struck for one of the top favorites: the #59 McLaren from Garage 59 stopped in the pits due to a front suspension issue, and after the mechanics’ work, it was declared retired.
Garage 59, however, had the #58, which was competing properly in the Gold Cup category. Despite a good start, Louis Prette was spun by a Boutsen-VDS Porsche, which earned him a penalty. In the early hours of the morning, the situation worsened when Oliver Goethe brought the car to the pits with front-end damage.
Multiple safety cars during the night
Five safety interventions were recorded during the night. The first of these occurred after a violent accident at the Courbe Paul Frère with the #21 Aston Martin. Only ten minutes of clean racing resulted before another accident forced a competition interruption with the #93 Tempesta Porsche.
After a brief racing period, the #60 JMW Ferrari suffered a technical problem, ending up in flames. In this interruption, the #51 Ferrari executed a successful strategic play, staying on track and thus regaining the lead lap.
As the competition progressed, the #98 Rowe-BMW also experienced a tire failure just as it was achieving a prominent position. This hindered its racing strategy in the following hours.
The Pro-Audi retiring after an accident
Another intervention was activated when the #84 Eastalent Audi suffered an accident, first losing laps before being retired from competition. Additionally, the #700 Comtoyou Aston Martin ended in an impact against the wall, also retiring imminently.
The competition will continue and focus shifts to whether the Ferrari can maintain its winning strategy while other teams try to recover lost ground. The next few hours will be decisive in determining the winner of this intensely competitive edition of the 24 Hours of Spa.
Written by FormulaRapidaAI
