+ 2 Seas and Optimum defending championship leads in Belgium
+ Endurance Cup contenders return to GT4 fold
+ Entry list: Spa-Francorchamps
The Ardennes Forest, and specifically Spa-Francorchamps, reverberates to the sound of British GT this weekend when the championship embarks on its annual excursion to mainland Europe.
‘Spa Speedweek’ is a decidedly French affair, comprising as it does two more SRO series – Championnat de France FFSA GT and TC – as well as national Porsche Carrera Cup, F4 and Mitjet categories.
But their sprint formats are in stark contrast to British GT’s second three-hour race of the season, which brings a degree of strategy to proceedings. Just like Silverstone, teams have to make three driver changes, a stint cannot exceed 65 minutes, and any compensation time earned at Oulton must be served at the final stop.
Spa also represents the penultimate Endurance Cup event for GT4 cars. But with the two leading crews – Ed McDermott and Seb Morris, and Jamie Orton and Will Burns – currently tied on points, the championship within a championship cannot be decided until Donington.
Pre-qualifying and Qualifying are both live on SRO’s GT World YouTube channel this Saturday before Sunday’s race is also shown on Sky Sports F1.
GT3: TSE AND GÖTZ CLOSE IN
The first four races have been, by and large, all about 2 Seas’ Mercedes-AMGs, which sit one-two in the drivers’ standings and collectively lead Barwell in the teams’ championship by 42 points.
However, Oulton also demonstrated that fortunes can change very quickly in British GT. Maximum points at Donington and Silverstone left Charles Dawson and Kiern Jewiss 30 clear of their nearest rivals, but that advantage now stands at just 10 after they scored only two across rounds three and four.
Team-mates Kevin Tse and Maximilian Götz, meanwhile, enjoyed a red letter bank holiday Monday in Cheshire where second and first place finishes ignited their title challenge. 20 seconds of Compensation Time is now heading their way on Sunday at a circuit where the same team, driver and car combination triumphed 12 months ago.
15 and 10 seconds must be served by two entries that scored their best results of the year last time out. Orange/JMH’s McLaren shared by Simon Orange and Marcus Clutton withstood incredible pressure from Bridger’s slick-shod Honda driven by Johnny Ip who carved his way through the field in Race 2’s second stint.
Orange and Clutton now lie seventh in the drivers’ championship. Their McLaren was originally disqualified from Donington’s race due to a parc ferme infringement but has been reinstated following Orange/JMH’s appeal and the National Court’s decision. Donington’s final result and British GT’s standings now reflect the team’s seventh place finish.
Ahead of them, 10 points separate four crews eager to challenge 2 Seas’ early dominance.
Morgan Tillbrook and Marvin Kirchhöfer have steadily accumulated points this year but now need a big performance to thrust their Optimum McLaren into serious contention. Their best result of the year – third – came in Silverstone’s three-hour race, and the lack of Compensation Time means they effectively start 20 seconds ahead of the crew directly in front of them in the standings. Bridging the 18-point deficit to Dawson and Jewiss will be far more challenging, though.
And what about Barwell? It’s been a curious start to the season for British GT’s reigning teams’ and drivers’ champions whose victory at Oulton leaves Hugo Cook fourth overall. His team-mate Alex Martin headed to the same venue in second, but he’s since slipped to sixth after non-scoring in Race 2. Patrick Kujala joins him this weekend.
Giacomo Petrobelli and Jonny Adam have also been there or thereabouts this year. Indeed, without Donington’s non score they would likely be higher than fifth. Blackthorn’s duo were also on course for victory at Spa last year until a mechanical issue sidelined their Aston Martin, so speed shouldn’t be an issue this weekend. They just need a big result to take into the second half of 2025.
Further back, seven points separates Silver-Am leaders Andrew Howard and Tom Wood (Beechdean AMR) from Bridger’s Honda. Team owner Jay Bridger joins Ip this weekend.
There’s also a change in Optimum’s second McLaren where Matt Topham replaces Mike Price.
GT4: IS OPTIMUM UNSTOPPABLE?
Three wins from four and 50 points clear with five races remaining. It’s difficult to recall a more dominant start to a season than the one enjoyed by Marc Warren and Jack Brown who also finished second at Silverstone.
Optimum’s #90 McLaren has been metronomically consistent and incredibly quick so far. But its advantage at the top of the standings was entirely established at Oulton where Ravi Ramyead and Charlie Robertson arrived as joint championship leaders. Two races and no points later, Century’s crew now have a mountain to climb if they’re to overhaul Warren and Brown.
Compensation Time does at least count in their favour at Spa where Optimum’s crew must serve the full 20 seconds at their final pitstop. What’s more, a Century BMW won there 12 months ago. Ramyead and Robertson will need something similar if they’re to stem Warren and Brown’s momentum.
Their cause is also aided to some degree by a fast Silver entry serving 15 seconds. Harry George and Luca Hopkinson moved up to fourth in the overall standings with second at Oulton where they came within a whisker of beating their team-mates. But they still trail Branden Templeton and Chris Salkeld in the class and overall standings after Century’s second BMW maintained its 100% scoring streak.
In terms of qualifying performance, Mahiki should be a firm championship contender. But several factors have contributed towards a highly frustrating start to the season. Wholesale changes have therefore been made, starting with a switch to Ginetta. The team’s reserve driver, Blake Angliss, now partners Steven Lake, while Jack Mitchell – who won at Spa en route to 2018’s GT4 title – moves across to join Josh Miller in the Silver entry. Ian Duggan and Joe Wheeler continue to share a third car.
Elsewhere, Team Parker’s Mercedes-AMG featuring Jon Currie and Phil Keen returns after missing Oulton.
SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS TIMETABLE (BST +1)
Friday 20 June
14:15 – 15:15: Test 1
17:35 – 18:35: Test 2
Saturday 21 June
09:00 – 10:00: Free Practice
13:05 – 14:05: Pre-Qualifying
18:35 – 18:45: Qualifying 1 (GT3)
18:52 – 19:02: Qualifying 2 (GT3)
19:09 – 19:19: Qualifying 3 (GT4)
19:26 – 19:36: Qualifying 4 (GT4)
Sunday 22 June
12:30 – 15:30: Race
LAP RECORDS
GT3 – 2m16.190s – Raffaele Marciello – RAM Racing BMW M4 GT3 – 2024
GT4 – 2m29.481s – Gordie Mutch – Lotus Emira GT4 – 2024
PITSTOP SPECIFICS – THREE-HOUR RACES
Three driver changes must occur during the three hours. There are no pitstop windows but each driver cannot exceed 65 minutes of continuous drive time and 100 minutes cumulative drive time. Any compensation time accrued at the previous event must be served during the final mandatory pitstop.
Mandatory Pitstop Times (pit-in to pit-out)
GT3: 120s | GT4: 150s
Pitstop Compensation Time
20s – #18 2 Seas Mercedes-AMG (GT3) + #90 Optimum Motorsport McLaren (GT4)
15s – #67 Orange/JMH McLaren (GT3) + #17 Optimum Motorsport McLaren (GT4)
10s – #86 Bridger Motorsport Honda (GT3) + #69 + #84 Mahiki Racing Ginettas (GT4)
All GT4 Silver Cup entries must serve an additional 12s during their mandatory driver changes and carry 25kg of ballast.
