On the weekend of May 13-15, the glorious engines of the historic racing cars roared once again on the legendary Spa-Francorchamps racetrack. On the heels of the fifth Spa Classic, the event was able to keep all its promises and broke all records with 17,000 spectators and around 1,500 vehicles. For once, even the weather mostly played along and allowed spectators, drivers, exhibitors and collectors to enjoy the event all three days in sunshine and mostly warm temperatures. Even the windy and cool temperatures on Saturday morning could not change the good mood.
Vehicles from four decades
Rarely do you get the opportunity to experience historic racing cars from a total of four decades from 1952 (Aston Martin DB2) to 1993 (Peugeot 905) so close up in racing action. 216 vehicles, including iconic models such as the Ferrari 250 LM, Ford GT40 and Porsche 962, competed against each other in six different racing groups: Classic Endurance Racing 1 & 2, Group C Racing, Heritage Touring Cup, Trofeo Nastro Rosso, Sixties' Endurance and U2TC.
Ford P68 - the jewel among the Classic Endurance Racing cars
The races in the Classic Endurance Racing series were once again the most popular with spectators this year, as there really are a lot of vehicles at the start and the winner is never clear from the outset. Well-known vehicles in this series are prototypes such as the Chevron B19 and Lola T70, but this year there was a red rarity at the start, a vehicle that is really rarely seen anywhere in the world. We are talking about the Ford F3L P68, driven by Claude Nahum and Bernard Thuner.
The competition for the P68 was strong, with ten Chevron and Lola battling it out for victory, and Bernhard Thuner was even able to move up to third place in the meantime, but was unable to maintain this top position until the end and crossed the finish line in fourth place. This year's winners were O'Connell/Watson on Chevron B19 with number 6.
Group C with Peugeot 905 and Argo
Although the popular Sauber-Mercedes and the Mazda 787B were missing from Group C this year, a Peugeot 905 was at the start this time. Once again, Peter Auto managed to put on an action-packed show that thrilled the spectators.
Also rare and therefore interesting was an Argo JM19 in the original Lucky Strike livery, a Group C2 vehicle that was designed by Swiss constructor Jo Marquart in 1986 and raced at Le Mans.
Sixties' Endurance - renewed Shelby Cobra dominance
Nothing has changed compared to last year's Spa Classic. Once again, the Shelby Cobra were at the front of the field, and this year there would almost have been a six-way Cobra victory had Beaumont/Bussel in a Jaguar E-Type not been pushed into sixth place.
Heritage Touring Cup for Capri fans
Ford Capri fans really got their money's worth at the two races of the Heritage Touring Cup. Eight Capri cars, including the 3.0 MK3, 2600 and 3100 RS, were at the start and vied for the fans' favor with their famous liveries.
While the first race was won by Mestdagh/Thibaut in a BMW 3.0 CSL, the first five places in the second race went to Fords, four of which were Ford Capris! The winner was Yves Scemama in Ford Capri 2600RS number #52 in the rarely seen Ripolin livery.
The rarely seen Pinepac Ford Mustang GT, driven by David Huxley, also caught the eye.
Clear favorite at the Trofeo Nastro Rosso
Like last year, Vincent Gaye in a Ferrari 275 GTB/C was once again the winner, and by a clear margin. While the race was not really exciting, the Italian racing cars still impressed.
In addition to many other Ferraris, Maserati, Bizzarrini and Alfa Romeo were also at the start. But Peter Vögele, who was at the start in a Porsche 356, albeit with an Italian Abarth engine, showed that you can also compete with a non-Italian brand.
Varied supporting program
Spectators who managed to tear themselves away from the non-stop action on the Belgian racetrack for a few minutes could look forward to countless exhibitor stands outside, where they could find almost everything from miniatures to clothing and books. In addition, a wide variety of clubs displayed their most spectacular collector cars, ranging from BMW, Corvette, Ferrari, Mazda, Porsche and Triumph to 35 Vipers from all over Europe! The TVR Car Club even chose the Spa-Classic to celebrate its 50th birthday.
A youngtimer rally was also held on Saturday, with over 180 teams competing, and those who still didn't have enough thrills could witness the spectacular "Invisible Wall of Death" motorcycle show, the only one of its kind in the world. Meanwhile, the children were able to gain their first racing experience on the go-kart track.
All winners and results of the Spa Classic 2016
Classic Endurance Racing 1 & 2
CER1
- Martin O'CONNELL/Sandy WATSON (CHEVRON B19)
- Philipp BRUEHWILER (CHEVRON B19)
- Grant TROMANS/Richard MEADEN (LOLA T70 Mk III B)
CER2
- Dominique GUENAT (LOLA T286 )
- Tony SINCLAIR (LOLA T292 BDG)
- Richard PIPER/Greg CATON (MARCH 75 S)
Group C Racing
Race 1 + 2
- Mark SUMPTER (PORSCHE 962 1989)
- Robin WARD (SPICE SE90C 1990)
- Pierre-Alain FRANCE/Erwin FRANCE (PORSCHE 962C 1990)
Heritage Touring Cup
Race 1
- Eric MESTDAGH/Pierre-Alain THIBAUT (BMW 3.0 CSL 1973)
- Yves SCEMAMA (FORD Capri 2600 RS 1971)
- Claude BOISSY/Patrick BOURGUIGNON (FORD Escort 1600 RS 1974)
Race 2
- Yves SCEMAMA (FORD Capri 2600 RS 1971)
- Christophe VAN RIET/Raphaël DE BORMAN (FORD Escort 1600 RS 1972)
- Claude BOISSY/Patrick BOURGUIGNON (FORD Escort 1600 RS 1974)
Sixties Endurance
- Christian DUMOLIN/Christophe VAN RIET (SHELBY Cobra 289 1965)
- Ludovic CARON (SHELBY Cobra 1963)
- Andrew BEVERLEY (SHELBY Cobra 289 1963)
Trofeo Nastro Rosso
Race 1 + 2
- Vincent GAYE (FERRARI 275 GTB/C 1966)
- Lukas HALUSA (FERRARI 250 GT Breadvan 1962)
- Georg NOLTE (BIZZARRINI A3/C Grifo Competizione 1965)
