First Motorsport in the lead after 2.30hrs - Kuismanen falls back after brake problem

A fast start without any mistakes. The drivers kept a cool head and didn't take any unnecessary risks. Pertti Kuismanen cashes in on his pole and easily takes the lead ahead of Kenneth Heyer, at the wheel of the AD Sport Chrysler Viper GTS-R. Frederic Bouvy in the Ferrari F430 GT3 of Delahaye Francorchamps Motors Racing Team charges through and even manages to take over Heyer's second place. Both Vipers clock up a couple of fast laps and manage to shake off the followers, but not for long. After thirty minutes Kuismanen dives into the pits to hand over the wheel to pole man Duncan Huisman. "A wheel bolt has loosened. Luckily the wheel stayed on. We're losing two laps, but don't count us the yet ", team manager Olli Joeiukanen commented.

When the AD Sport Viper becomes involved with the traffic, Bouvy at the wheel of his Ferrari is once again able to approach the leading car. The two play a quick leap-frog after which the Ferrari goes into the lead. The pitstop game influences the battle between the Ferrari and the Viper, both equally thirsty beasts. The ProSpeed Porsche 911 GT3 RS and the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup S of First Motorsport improve their positions no end. The German cars take full advantage of their better autonomy and hold places in the top-six. Another strong runner is the Mosler MT900R GT3 of Topcats Racing. After one hour of racing the British racing car is lying fourth overall, just behind the Delahaye Ferrari, the AD Viper and the First Porsche. The leaders in the Belgian GT Championship, KRK Racing, are experiencing a difficult start in the race. Only after the first hour does Koen Wauters manage to get into the top-ten.

In the second hour the competitors slow the pace down, apart from Duncan Huisman who is getting everything out of the Kuismanen Viper. The Dutchman even manages to re-enter the top-five, having lost two laps earlier in the pits. But another problem is about to hit them. "The brake pedal was getting deeper and deeper. I needed to come in to bleed the brakes. These brakes don't perform as well as those we used on Wednesday and Thursday, even though we've got new disks and pads ", Huisman remarked. The Finnish Viper loses at least half an hour in the pits and drops far back.

In the meantime First Motorsport has taken over the lead. The Porsche 911 GT3 Cup S is able to stay out roughly 20 minutes longer with a full tank than most of the other competitors. ProSpeed Competition is also doing well up front. The team around the Porsche concessionaire Rudi Penders has moved up into second spot. Both Porsches in the top-five have not as yet come in for their second pit stop. Kurt Mollekens in the Delahaye Racing Ferrari is able to consolidate third place whilst Wim Lumbeeck in the AD Viper has dropped back into fourth. Lumbeeck is having trouble keeping to the pace of the leaders and is systematically falling back. The top-five is rounded off by the Renault Mégane Trophy of Delahaye Racing Team, running an anonymous but constant race. Further don in the top-ten we find the Equipe Verschuur Mégane, the JD Lambo, the KRK Viper, the Speedlover Porsche and the KS BMW #22.

First unlucky team in this 31st edition of the 24 Hours of Zolder is Ostend Racing, which lost time with a broken accelerator cable. The Porsche 996 GT3 RS of McDonald's Racing Team rushed into the pits with a damaged radiator. A stuttering engine caused delays for AD Sport on their Porsche 996 Biturbo. However, the most notable fact must surely be the broken off attachment of the bucket seat in the VDS Racing Adventures GT3 Mustang. "An absolute nightmare. In certain bends I even managed to get my head stuck. I'm now suffering from a slight headache, but it's a great pity that we lose time due to such a weird incident. Luckily we still have a second car, and that we're able to use some of its parts ", Stéphane Lemeret told us. The Mustang FR500 GT3, up in the top-ten, is amazing friend and foe alike. Following the incident they are now back in 16th place.

The top ten overall:
1. #50 First Motorsport - Porsche 911 GT3 Cup S - 91 laps
2. #60 ProSpeed Competition - Porsche 996 GT3 RSR +21s
3. #3 Delahaye Francorchamps Motors Racing Team - Ferrari F430 GT3 +1 lap
4. #12 Kuismanen Competition - Chrysler Viper GTS-R +1 lap
5. #6 Delahaye Racing Team - Renault Mégane Trophy +1 lap
6. #11 Equipe Verschuur - Renault Mégane Trophy +2 laps
7. #10 JD Competition by KS - Lamborghini Gallardo GT3 +3 laps
8. #4 KRK Racing - Dodge Viper Competition Coupé +3 laps
9. #20 Speedlover - Porsche 997 GT3 Cup +3 laps
10. #22 KS Motorsport - BMW M3 Silhouette +3 laps

VZW 24u.be - Gordon McKay on Saturday 22 August 2009 at 18:00.