FIA GT Championship

FIA GT Zolder - Pre-Qualifying Session Report

At 13:00 local time the pre-qualifying session for the FIA GT championship at the Zolder circuit got underway on what was still a rather damp track. But as the session progressed the track conditions improved and teams kept improving the fastest lap times. A rather interesting session that was only decided when the chequered flag came out.

The session did not start well for the #60 ProSpeed Competition Porsche of Richard Westbrook. The left rear wheel of the 997 GT3 RSR fell off and the Briton had to crawl back to the pit.

Xavier Maassen was the fastest driver out on the track after thirty minutes, a track that was described as “quite wet and slippery” by team mate Thomas Biagi. But with 55 minutes left on the clock it was Paolo Rubert in the #77 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari who went just a tad quicker.

With track conditions improving the lap times improved as well and soon after Ruberti had posted his fastest lap it was Bernoldi in the Team Sangari Brazil car that went even faster.

A dry line started to show on the racetrack and lap times dropped even more quickly. 45 minutes remained when Alex Müller posted a 1:35.717, exactly 8 seconds quicker than his fastest time in the first session. The Corvettes took over again shortly after with Bernoldi and Maassen swapping first and second place lap after lap before Müller set a 1:32.745 and moved ahead again.

Alex Pier Guidi was the next man to set the fastest lap time of the session, a full second quicker than Müller. Down the field it was the #77 BMS Scuderia Italia Ferrari F430 fastest in GT2, followed by the #97 and #60 Porsches, with 30 minutes left on the clock.

Despite the Ford GT of Bas Leinders stopped on the side of the track facing the barrier it was Bert Longin posted the fastest lap just over 27 minutes before the end of the session. Longin then went straight at turn 1 (like many others) and returned after a trip through the gravel.

Bergmeister moved into first place in GT2 with 18 minutes left in the session. Behind him on the track Xavier Maassen in the Alphand Corvette was on a flyer and posted a 1:29.545, the first driver to go quicker than 1:30. Bertolini slipstreamed to a 1:29.854 and posted a 29.632 one lap later. Meanwhile Garcia improved the GT2 time, setting a 1:34.430.

While the skies got more and more grey the timing screens went purple and green with several drivers improving their best times. Maassen and Bernoldi both improved their times, the Dutchman posting a 1:29.501, Bertolini exactly one tenth behind with just 10 minutes remaining. Bertolini was the first to go below 1:29 when he posted a 1:28.957 one lap later, CRS Racing’s Rob Bell moved to the front in GT2.

The final couple of minutes saw more improvements. ProSpeed’s Westbrook and Lieb moved into first and second in GT2, with Bernoldi and Müller moving into first and second in GT1, before Xavier Maassen moved back in first place when the chequered flag came out.

1 - #19 – GT1 – Maassen/Biagi – Corvette C6.R – 1:28.272
2 - #33 – GT1 – Pier Guidi/Bobbi – Maserati MC12 – 1:28.330
3 - #8 – GT1 – Bernoldi/Streit – Corvette C6.R – 1:28.555
4 - #2 – GT1 – Ramos/Müller – Maserati MC12 – 1:28.780
5 - #1 – GT1 – Bartels/Bertolini – Maserati MC12 – 1:28.957
6 - #4 – GT1 – Hezemans/Kumpen – Corvette C6.R – 1:29.967
7 - #3 – GT1 – Longin/Ruffier – Corvette C6.R – 1:30.744
8 - #35 – GT1 – Krumm/Turner – Nissan GT-R – 1:30.977
10 - #40 – GT1 – Leinders/Kuppens – Ford GT – 1:31.888
10 - #60 – GT2 – Westbrook/Holzer – Porsche 997 GT3 RSR – 1:32.721
11 - #77 – GT2 – Malucelli/Ruberti – Ferrari F430 GT2 – 1:33.025
12 - #61 – GT2 – O’Young/Lieb – Porsche 997 GT3 RSR – 1:33.259
13 - #78 – GT2 – Lemeret/Lucchini – Ferrari F430 GT2 – 1:33.295
14 - #59 – GT2 – Bergmeister/Mamerow – Porsche 997 GT3 RSR – 1:33.330
15 - #51 – GT2 – Barba Lopez/Cadei – Ferrari F430 GT2 – 1:33.564
16 - #56 – GT2 – Kirkaldy/Bell – Ferrari F430 GT2 – 1:33.712
17 - #97 – GT2 – Collard/Ragginger – Porsche 997 GT3 RSR – 1:34.220
18 - #55 – GT2 – Garcia/Mullen – Ferrari F430 GT2 – 1:34.430
19 - #58 – GT2 – Maassen/Ashburn – Porsche 997 GT3 RSR – 1:34.491
20 - #95 – GT2 – Perez Companc/Russo – Ferrari F430 GT2 – 1:34.533
21 - #50 – GT2 – Vilander/Bruni – Ferrari F430 GT2 – 1:35.904