WEC PREVIEW
The second round of the World Endurance Championship at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium this Saturday could give an indication of form prior to the showpiece Le Mans 24 hours next month.
The opening race at Silverstone witnessed a number of problems for the leading teams. Audi were stripped of first place thanks to a worn plank on the front underside of the #7 R18, a decision that the squad decided not to appeal against. The second R18 disappearing from the race with a hybrid system failure.
Porsche inherited the win with the #2 car, after Brendon Hartley crashed the pace setting #1 car. Toyota, still off the pace as they were last year, took home trophies for the second and third places on the podium.
The Belgian round has in effect become a proving ground for Le Mans spec cars over the last few seasons. This year appears no different. Both Toyota and Porsche arrive in the Ardennes having completed endurance tests at the Aragon circuit near Alacanz in Spain. Audi arrive with a radical aerodynamic package to test.
The Spa race in 2015 saw a convincing win for Audi as the teams rolled out their low downforce kits, it also saw the tide change insofar as Porsche took control of the championship from Le Mans onwards for the rest of the season. The roles appear to be reversed this time around with the Stuttgart marque hitting the track with a faster machine and Audi now playing catchup.
Toyota may be leading the constructors title thanks to their double podium at Silverstone, but they are under no illusions as to the challenge that lays ahead for them. The team are sticking with their high downforce package for Spa and team president Toshio Sato commented: “Even if the result at Silverstone was pretty good, we know we need to show more performance if we are to achieve our targets this season. The team has been working flat-out to improve, including our test session in Spain. I would like to thank them for the big effort and I hope we can see the reward this weekend in Spa”
The implementation of regulations for 2016 that restrict teams to using only three versions of bodywork through the year pose an interesting quandary at Spa. Now that teams are no longer allowed to “back to back” different aero packages, LMP1 teams are not going to be able to compare iterations of their bodywork in traffic. It could potentially lead to a handicap across the whole season if one of those packages under perform.
On the face of it Belgium looks likely to once again be exclusively a party to which only Porsche and Audi are invited.
In LMP2 G-Drive bring back their second car, the open top Gibson-Nissan that has had so much success in the ELMS and WEC over recent seasons. Do not count them out for a third class win in five years despite running older equipment than most of the field. The Simon Dolan led driver line up could easily upset the regulars around the 7km long circuit.
Silverstone winners RGR, with Bruno Senna, Ricardo Gonzalez, and Filipe Albuquerque will hope to build upon their points lead while bedding in the trio for the classic at La Sarthe next month. The rest of the field also have pace with a full 12 car entry seemingly well paced to challenge for podium positions. Last time out the category had an almost touring car type of afternoon with door to door action covering a tight knit pack.
Once again eyes will be on Manor Racing after their high profile entry into LMP2. The team struggled with reliability at Silverstone with both Oreca-Nissan machines spending time on the wrong side of the pitwall. The F1 cast-off pairing of Will Stevens and Roberto Mehri headlining the two cars is being followed with interest throughout the F1 world. The pair will need to learn to integrate and compromise quickly if the engineering and driving talent is to make an impact into such a competitive class.
In the GT-Pro class the much anticipated return of the 60s Ferrari/Ford battles seem to be a way away yet. The AF Corse Ferrari 488 pair easily took the top two places in Silverstone. The advantage that the team carry put them up as favourites at Spa to repeat that dominance.
Aston Martin and Porsche are inevitably hanging around hoping to benefit from any AF Corse mistakes while Ford, with the beautiful GT continue development with both eyes firmly on Le Mans.
In the GT-Am class AF Corse hope to take two in a row with the #83 car. The closeness of the field however leaves the class probably the hardest to predict. Patrick Long returning to the Abu Dhabi-Proton Porsche being the wildcard to watch.
All in all once again there will be many story arcs throughout the four classes to keep any fan entertained on Saturday. It is certainly a race to whet the appetite in the run up to Le Mans.
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