Endurance racing event for cars held annually in Belgium
The 24 Hours of Spa is an endurance racing event for cars held annually since 1924 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps , Stavelot , Belgium . It is currently sponsored by CrowdStrike .
History [ edit ]
Alfa Romeos after triple win in 1930
The Spa 24 Hours was conceived by Jules de Their and Henri Langlois Van Ophem just one year after the inaugural 24 Hours of Le Mans was run. It debuted in 1924 over a 15 kilometres (9.3 mi) circuit on public roads between the towns of Francorchamps , Malmedy and Stavelot, under the auspices of the Royal Automobile Club of Belgium (RACB). The present 7.004 kilometres (4.352 mi) circuit was inaugurated in 1979 with only slight variations since then.
The Spa 24 Hours was part of the European Touring Car Championship from 1966 to 1973, again in 1976 and from 1982 to 1988 (with the exception of 1987 when it was part of the inaugural World Touring Car Championship ). The event also counted towards the World Sportscar Championship in 1953 and the World Endurance Championship in 1981 . As on the Nürburgring , both a 24h and a 1000 km race is held at Spa, as the 1000 km Spa for sports car racing were introduced in 1966.
Cars entered have spanned from the Russian Moskvitch and models with sub-1 liter engines such as the NSU Prinz TT to the luxurious V8-powered Mercedes-Benz 300 SEL 6.3 . Tuned by Mercedes-AMG , the 6834 cc and 420 hp (313 kW) so-called "Red pig" finished as high as second in 1971.
During the 1975 race, Dutch driver Wim Boshuis and a track marshal were killed in two separate incidents. Boshuis was killed when his vehicle collided with other cars on the track, while the track marshal was killed 30 minutes later when Belgian driver Alain Peltier collided with a railing.[1]
With the participation of Swiss Lilian Bryner on the victorious Ferrari 550 of the BMS Scuderia Italia team, the 2004 race marked the first time in history that a female driver was part of the winning team of a 24-hour endurance race in a Gran Turismo with more than 500 hp (370 kW).
The current version of the Spa 24 Hours is an event under the GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS and Intercontinental GT Challenge calendar, although it was previously run as part of the FIA GT Championship featuring GT1 and GT2 machinery, and by various touring car series. Currently, the cars run fall under the FIA GT3 and GT3 Cup classifications. It has also been a round of the SRO Group 's Intercontinental GT Challenge since its inaugural season in 2016.
2020 saw the race held behind closed doors for the first time.
The 2023 Belgian Grand Prix, which is part of the 2023 F1 calendar released by the FIA on 21 September 2022, was scheduled on the race weekend of 28 July to 30 July and clashed with the Spa 24 Hours. This forced the Spa 24 Hours in 2023 to reschedule from its traditional late July race weekend to the race weekend between 29 June to 2 July.
Coupe du Roi [ edit ]
The best manufacturer wins the Coupe du Roi (King's Cup), which is not necessarily the race winners. The cup is won by the manufacturer with the most points, accrued by cars that are made by the same manufacturer.[2] For example, Australian car manufacturer Holden won the Coupe du Roi in 1986 despite their cars finishing the race in 18th, 22nd and 23rd positions outright.[3]
List of winners [ edit ]
The original 15 km track layout (used from 1924 to 1949)
The quicker 14 km track layout (used from 1953 to 1978)
The slower 7km modern track (used from 1979 onwards)
ROWE Racing BMW after win in 2016
Year
Drivers
Team
Car
Layout
Distance (km)
Average (km/h)
Notes
1924
Henri Springuel Maurice Becquet
Bignan 2L
15 km
1925
André Lagache René Léonard
Chenard-Walcker
1926
André Boillot Louis Rigal
Peugeot 174S
1927
Robert Sénéchal Nicolas Caerels
Excelsior
1928
Boris Ivanowski [NB 1] Attilio Marinoni
Alfa Romeo 6C 1500 S
1929
Robert Benoist Attilio Marinoni
Alfa Romeo 6C 1750SS
1930
Attilio Marinoni Pietro Ghersi
Alfa Romeo 6C 1750GS
1931
Dimitri Jorjadze [NB 2] Goffredo Zehender
Mercedes-Benz SSK
1932
Antonio Brivio Eugenio Siena
Alfa Romeo 8C 2300LM
1933
Louis Chiron Luigi Chinetti
Alfa Romeo 8C 2300LM
1934
Jean Desvignes Norbert Mahé
Bugatti Type 44
Reduced to 10 hours[4]
1935
Not held
1936
Francesco Severi Raymond Sommer
Alfa Romeo 8C 2900A
15 km
1937
Not held
1938
Carlo Pintacuda Francesco Severi
Alfa Romeo 8C 2900B
15 km
1939 – 1947
Not held
1948
St. John Horsfall Leslie Johnson
Aston Martin 2-Litre Sports
15 km
1949
Luigi Chinetti Jean Lucas
Ferrari 166 MM
1950 – 1952
Not held
1953
Giuseppe Farina Mike Hawthorn
Ferrari 375 MM Pinin Farina
14 km
World Sportscar Championship . First use of 14km layout
1954 – 1963
Not held
1964
Robert Crevits Gustave Gosselin
Mercedes-Benz 300SE
14 km
3962.100
164.825
1965
Pascal Ickx Gérard Langlois van Ophem
BMW 1800 Ti/SA
3812.591
158.855
1966
Hubert Hahne Jacky Ickx
BMW 2000ti
4048.368
168.681
European Touring Car Championship
1967
Jean-Pierre Gaban Noël Van Assche
Porsche 911
4052.883
168.867
European Touring Car Championship
1968
Erwin Kremer Willi Kauhsen Helmut Kelleners
Porsche 911
4004.827
166.867
European Touring Car Championship
1969
Guy Chasseuil Claude Ballot-Léna
Porsche 911
4272.231
187.006
European Touring Car Championship
1970
Günther Huber Helmut Kelleners
BMW 2800CS
4252.407
177.183
European Touring Car Championship
1971
Dieter Glemser Alex Soler-Roig
Ford Capri RS
4385.100
182.690
European Touring Car Championship
1972
Jochen Mass Hans-Joachim Stuck
Ford Capri RS 2600
4498.436
187.431
European Touring Car Championship
1973
Toine Hezemans Dieter Quester
BMW 3.0 CSL
4422.980
184.290
European Touring Car Championship
1974
Jean Xhenceval Alain Peltier Pierre Dieudonné
BMW 3.0 CSi
4147.289
172.804
Trophée de l'Avenir
1975
Pierre Dieudonné Jean Xhenceval Hughes de Fierlandt
BMW 3.0 CSi
4249.270
177.053
Trophée de l'Avenir
1976
Jean-Marie Detrin Nico Demuth Charles Van Stalle
BMW 3.0 CSL
4087.904
170.329
European Touring Car Championship
1977
Eddy Joosen Jean-Claude Andruet
BMW 530i
4083.835
170.159
Trophée de l'Avenir
1978
Gordon Spice Teddy Pilette
Ford Capri III 3.0S
4315.594
179.816
Trophée de l'Avenir
1979
Jean-Michel Martin Philippe Martin
Ford Capri III 3.0S
7 km
3083.632
128.485
Trophée de l'Avenir . First use of 7km layout
1980
Jean-Michel Martin Philippe Martin
Ford Capri III 3.0S
2952.318
123.013
1981
Pierre Dieudonné Tom Walkinshaw
Mazda RX-7
3183.952
132.737
World Endurance Championship Trophée de l'Avenir
1982
Hans Heyer Armin Hahne Eddy Joosen
BMW 528i
3132.224
130.808
European Touring Car Championship
1983
Thierry Tassin Hans Heyer Armin Hahne
BMW 635 CSi
3333.726
130.808
European Touring Car Championship
1984
Hans Heyer Tom Walkinshaw Win Percy
Jaguar XJS
3055.485
131.091
European Touring Car Championship
1985
Roberto Ravaglia Marc Surer Gerhard Berger
BMW 635 CSi
3470.000
144.344
European Touring Car Championship
1986
Dieter Quester Altfrid Heger Thierry Tassin
BMW 635 CSi
3463.060
144.232
European Touring Car Championship
1987
Jean-Michel Martin Didier Theys Eric van de Poele
BMW M3
3338.140
139.908
World Touring Car Championship
1988
Altfrid Heger Dieter Quester Roberto Ravaglia
BMW M3
3532.460
146.929
European Touring Car Championship
1989
Gianfranco Brancatelli Win Percy Bernd Schneider
Ford Sierra RS500
3338.140
139.130
1990
Markus Oestreich Fabien Giroix Johnny Cecotto
BMW M3 Evolution
3247.920
135.330
1991
Anders Olofsson David Brabham Naoki Hattori
Nissan Skyline R32 GT-R
3587.980
149.456
1992
Steve Soper Jean-Michel Martin Christian Danner
BMW M3 Evolution
3560.220
148.947
1993
Uwe Alzen Christian Fittipaldi Jean-Pierre Jarier
Porsche 911 RSR
2154.904
144.667
Race stopped after 15 hours due to the death of King Baudouin [5]
1994
Roberto Ravaglia Thierry Tassin Alexander Burgstaller
BMW 318is
3625.960
151.047
1995
Joachim Winkelhock Steve Soper Peter Kox
BMW 320i
3612.532
150.531
1996
Jörg Müller Alexander Burgstaller Thierry Tassin
BMW 320i
3507.821
145.956
1997
Didier de Radiguès Marc Duez Éric Hélary
BMW 320i
3372.680
140.252
1998
Alain Cudini Marc Duez Eric van de Poele
BMW 318i
3344.807
139.344
1999
Frédéric Bouvy Emmanuel Collard Anthony Beltoise
Peugeot 306 GTI
3428.427
142.588
2000
Didier Defourny Frédéric Bouvy Kurt Mollekens
Peugeot 306 GTI
3330.870
138.686
Last race for touring cars
2001
Marc Duez Christophe Bouchut Jean-Philippe Belloc
Larbre Compétition
Chrysler Viper GTS-R
3679.104
152.999
FIA GT Championship
2002
Christophe Bouchut Sébastien Bourdais David Terrien Vincent Vosse
Larbre Compétition
Chrysler Viper GTS-R
3654.059
152.019
FIA GT Championship
2003
Romain Dumas Stéphane Ortelli Marc Lieb
Freisinger Motorsport
Porsche 911 GT3-RS
3327.613
138.557
FIA GT Championship
2004
Luca Cappellari Fabrizio Gollin Lilian Bryner Enzo Calderari
BMS Scuderia Italia
Ferrari 550 -GTS Maranello
3888.144
161.974
FIA GT Championship
2005
Michael Bartels Timo Scheider Eric van de Poele
Vitaphone Racing
Maserati MC12
4000.896
166.638
FIA GT Championship
2006
Eric van de Poele Michael Bartels Andrea Bertolini
Vitaphone Racing Team
Maserati MC12
4092.961
171.034
FIA GT Championship
2007
Fabrizio Gollin Mike Hezemans Jean-Denis Délétraz Marcel Fässler
Carsport Holland Phoenix Racing
Chevrolet Corvette C6.R
3726.660
155.241
FIA GT Championship
2008
Michael Bartels Andrea Bertolini Stéphane Sarrazin Eric van de Poele
Vitaphone Racing Team
Maserati MC12
4041.885
168.096
FIA GT Championship
2009
Anthony Kumpen Kurt Mollekens Mike Hezemans Jos Menten
PK Carsport
Chevrolet Corvette C6.R
3915.236
163.128
FIA GT Championship
2010
Romain Dumas Martin Ragginger Jörg Bergmeister Wolf Henzler
BMS Scuderia Italia
Porsche 997 GT3 -RSR
3789.164
157.832
2011
Timo Scheider Greg Franchi Mattias Ekström
Audi Sport Team WRT
Audi R8 LMS
3817.180
158.898
Blancpain Endurance Series
2012
Andrea Piccini René Rast Frank Stippler
Audi Sport Performance Team
Audi R8 LMS ultra
3565.036
148.543
Blancpain Endurance Series
2013
Bernd Schneider Maximilian Götz Maximilian Buhk
HTP Motorsport
Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3
3950.256
164.594
Blancpain Endurance Series
2014
René Rast Markus Winkelhock Laurens Vanthoor
Belgian Audi Club Team WRT
Audi R8 LMS ultra
3691.108
153.732
Blancpain Endurance Series Red flag (1 hour)[6]
2015
Nick Catsburg Lucas Luhr Markus Palttala
BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS
BMW Z4 GT3
3754.144
156.423
Blancpain Endurance Series
2016
Philipp Eng Maxime Martin Alexander Sims
ROWE Racing
BMW M6 GT3
3719.403
154.975
Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup , Intercontinental GT Challenge
2017
Jules Gounon Christopher Haase Markus Winkelhock
Audi Sport Team Saintéloc
Audi R8 LMS
3824.184
159.341
Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup , Intercontinental GT Challenge
2018
Tom Blomqvist Philipp Eng Christian Krognes
Walkenhorst Motorsport
BMW M6 GT3
3579.044
149.127
Intercontinental GT Challenge , Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup
2019
Kévin Estre Richard Lietz Michael Christensen
GPX Racing
Porsche 911 GT3 R
2542.45
105.78
Intercontinental GT Challenge , Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup 18 hour race. Racing suspended from 4:00 AM to 11:30 AM (rain), initially by safety car, but red flag at 5:40 AM.
2020
Earl Bamber Nick Tandy Laurens Vanthoor
Rowe Racing
Porsche 911 GT3 R
3691.10
153.7
Intercontinental GT Challenge , GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup
2021
Côme Ledogar Nicklas Nielsen Alessandro Pier Guidi
Iron Lynx
Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020
3894.22
162.0
Intercontinental GT Challenge , GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup
2022
Jules Gounon Daniel Juncadella Raffaele Marciello
AMG Team AKKodis ASP
Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo
3754.14
156.2
Intercontinental GT Challenge , GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup
2023
Philipp Eng Marco Wittmann Nick Yelloly
ROWE Racing
BMW M4 GT3
3761.14
156.7
Intercontinental GT Challenge , GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup
Multiple winners [ edit ]
By driver [ edit ]
Wins
Driver
Years
5
Eric van de Poele
1987, 1998, 2005, 2006, 2008
4
Jean-Michel Martin
1979, 1980, 1987, 1992
Thierry Tassin
1983, 1986, 1994, 1996
3
Attilio Marinoni
1928, 1929, 1930
Pierre Dieudonné
1974, 1975, 1981
Hans Heyer
1982, 1983, 1984
Dieter Quester
1973, 1986, 1988
Roberto Ravaglia
1985, 1988, 1994
Marc Duez
1997, 1998, 2001
Michael Bartels
2005, 2006, 2008
Philipp Eng
2016, 2018, 2023
2
Francesco Severi
1936, 1938
Luigi Chinetti
1933, 1949
Helmut Kelleners
1968, 1970
Jean Xhenceval
1974, 1975
Philippe Martin
1979, 1980
Eddy Joosen
1977, 1982
Armin Hahne
1982, 1983
Tom Walkinshaw
1981, 1984
Altfrid Heger
1986, 1988
Win Percy
1984, 1989
Steve Soper
1992, 1995
Alexander Burgstaller
1994, 1996
Frédéric Bouvy
1999, 2000
Christophe Bouchut
2001, 2002
Fabrizio Gollin
2004, 2007
Andrea Bertolini
2006, 2008
Kurt Mollekens
2000, 2009
Mike Hezemans
2007, 2009
Romain Dumas
2003, 2010
Timo Scheider
2005, 2011
Bernd Schneider
1989, 2013
René Rast
2012, 2014
Markus Winkelhock
2014, 2017
Laurens Vanthoor
2014, 2020
Jules Gounon
2017, 2022
By manufacturer [ edit ]
Wins
Manufacturer
Years
25
BMW
1965, 1966, 1970, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2023
8
Porsche
1967, 1968, 1969, 1993, 2003, 2010, 2019, 2020
7
Alfa Romeo
1928, 1929, 1930, 1932, 1933, 1936, 1938
6
Ford
1971, 1972, 1978, 1979, 1980, 1989
4
Audi
2011, 2012, 2014, 2017
Ferrari
1949, 1953, 2004, 2021
Mercedes-Benz
1931, 1964, 2013, 2022
3
Peugeot
1926, 1999, 2000
Maserati
2005, 2006, 2008
2
Chrysler
2001, 2002
Chevrolet
2007, 2009
1
Nissan
1991
Jaguar
1984
Mazda
1981
Aston Martin
1948
Bugatti
1934
Excelsior
1927
Chernard Walcker
1925
Bignan
1924
See also [ edit ]
References [ edit ]
External links [ edit ]
24 hours 12 hours 10 hours 9 hours 8 hours 6 hours 1000 miles 1000 km 4 Hours Other Defunct races are indicated in italics