•Most extensive line-up of Audi customers in Belgium to date
•24-hour race features world’s largest GT3 field
•Audi teams rely on 36 professional drivers and amateurs
The 24 Hours of Spa is the major iconic event on the international GT3 racing calendar. This year, the race will be held from 30 to 31 July. Audi is now going to meet with fierce competition again and is represented by more customer racing teams than ever before. The brand with the four rings has won three of the past five editions and clinched the ‘Coupe du Roi’ manufacturers’ cup in 2014 and 2015.
The origins of the race date back to 1924, since 1964, it has been held regularly and today it is the endurance race with the largest number of GT3 race cars in the world. “65 race cars from eleven marques on a track which is an absolute dream. This is a first-class challenge,” says Chris Reinke, Head of Audi Sport customer racing. “For the many Audi fans in Belgium, the worldwide GT community as well as our customer teams and the drivers, the 24 Hours of Spa is again the season’s pinnacle event this year.” Four teams will be fielding a total of eleven Audi GT3 race cars and 36 drivers will be taking turns in the cockpits.
As well as the Spa winners René Rast (D), Frank Stippler (D), Markus Winkelhock (D) and Laurens Vanthoor (B) the DTM drivers Nico Müller (CH) and Edoardo Mortara (I) are among them. Other drivers with professional experience include the long-standing Audi campaigners Filipe Albuquerque (P) and Marco Bonanomi (I), the former champions from the Blancpain Endurance Series Christopher Mies (D) and Christopher Haase (D), Blancpain GT title defender Robin Frijns (NL) and former DTM driver Pierre Kaffer (D). The driver line-up is complemented by an international mix of customer drivers. This underscores the race’s character: the Audi R8 LMS is equally popular with pros and amateurs.
