The Schumacher CLRT team and their drivers Frédéric Makowiecki, Matt Campbell and Ayhancan Güven, finished in the top 4 in the Crowdstrike 24 Hours of Spa less than a second off the podium after having been on the same lap as the leaders throughout the race. It’s a super result for the team managed by Côme Ledogar, who mastered the challenge, even though it was up against top-level opposition, on its only outing in endurance this season.
The creation of the 24 Hours of Spa dates back to 1924 and since 2001, the Belgian classic has been reserved for grand touring cars. Today the GT3 category holds pride of place for the whole field with 10 manufacturers represented by 70 cars including 15 Porsche 911 GT3 Rs. The Schumacher CLRT Racing Team wanted to erase the memory of their first two attempts which ended in retirement due to race incidents that occurred before nightfall. However, there was no doubt that the crew in #22 wanted to achieve much more than just simply crossing the finishing line. Did Ayhancan Güven not top the time sheets on the second day of the prologue in May?
The 24 Hours of Spa week is pretty hectic, as much for the competitors, as for the 132.000 spectators who have the choice of a large number of festivities. Practice kicked off on Tuesday before the parade of the GT3s in the Spa town centre in which they arrive by road on Wednesday evening. The roars of the normally aspirated Flat 6s, V8s and V10s as well as the turbo-charged straight 6s, V6s and V8s grew in volume on Thursday with free practice, qualifying for the Super Pole and night practice. The only Porsche 911 GT3 R flying the French flag got into the superpole and clinched 17th place on the starting grid.
Now, let’s leave it up to the drivers to give you a better understanding of how the no 22 Porsche fought its way up to fourth place overall.
Matt Campbell (Australia, 31, 24 Hours of Le Mans LM GTE Am winner, 24 Hours of Daytona winner, 12 Hours of Bathurst winner…): « It was an intense race as we had to stay on the same lap as the leaders and keep the car in a good state, which was difficult. But I think we drove a great race without any major errors and we fought for a place on the podium right to the very end. But unfortunately, we lacked that little bit of raceability and probably a little bit of luck on strategy too. We suffered in the traffic, for example. In the middle of Sunday morning a McLaren slammed into the back of the car when I was passing a Mercedes at the end of the Kemmel straight. That didn’t do the performance of the engine a lot of good. Taking everything into account P4 is a pretty good result in such a difficult race. »
Ayhancan Güven (Turkey, 28, DTM champion, FIA Motorsport Games GT Sprint Gold medalist, 12 Hours of Bathurst winner…): « Right from the start of the race I could feel that we had a really strong car. The team made a few small adjustments and it was even better. The idea was to stay among the leaders until the end, which we managed to do despite a few penalties and contacts. But because of the damage caused by the collision with the McLaren we were never able to pass the Ferrari and the Mercedes on the track. We were stuck behind them and this prevented us from fighting for victory. Our team tried other strategies but our rivals were able to react. Frankly, I gave my all and I don’t see what else we could have done. »
Frédéric Makowiecki (France, 45, 24 Hours of Le Mans LM GTE Pro winner, FIA GT1 World Championship runner-up, Nürburgring 24 Hours winner…): «There’s no sense in feeling disappointed. It’s already a huge challenge just to finish a 24-hour race, and I think that everybody can be proud of what they’ve accomplished. The car was marvellously well prepared. It’s by forging your mettle in races like this one you become stronger and stronger and that’s going to pay off at one moment or another. The team has enormous potential and I’m sure it is just the start of something big. »
The conclusion comes from Côme Ledogar who won the 24 Hours of Spa as a driver in 2021 and fought at the front this year as a team-manager: «In the closing hours of the race the track conditions favoured performance, but unlike the others, we were not able to take advantage of them because of the mid-morning impact which partially blocked the exhaust outlet. In any case it’s a good result for us, as we’re not doing the whole season. And also because we’re the smallest team in the field with only 12 people. Bravo to the whole squad! It’s the greatest race in the world, I loved doing it as a driver and I love doing it as a team-manager »
The season then continues on two fronts: the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland, on 4-5 July at the Norisring, then the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, back at Spa Francorchamps on 18-19 July!
