Nightmare for Delahaye - Broken engine on the Ferrari F430 with only 4 hours to go In motorsport heaven and hell are very close to each other. After several hours of racing the team led by Gilles Terlinden had the upper hand not only on the Renault Mégane Trophy but also the Ferrari F430 GT3. Initially the Mégane, together with the Prospeed Competition Porsche 996 GT3 RSR dominated the race, but a burst tyre cost the team some four laps. Somewhat later they experienced another blow. Marc Goossens was obliged to park the Mégane alongside the track with a broken crankshaft. Once back in the pits it was soon apparent that there was no sense in trying to repair the damage. With the Ferrari F430 GT3 the team still had another iron in the fire, but that wasn't to prove successful either....
Notwithstanding a perfect performance from Bouvy, Coens, Mollekens and Kelders the Ferrari didn't appear to be resistant to the heavy Zolder endurance race. After the starter motor refused its services, and with each pitstop the team being rewarded with a Stop & Go-penalty, the team had to throw in the towel as the result of a damaged engine. Just four hours before the end Delahaye saw a guaranteed podium place slip through their fingers. A painful moment, especially after the Mégane had also been forced to retire from the battle scene. Up front ProSpeed Competition carries on leading the pack, ahead of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup S of First Motorsport. Kuismanen Competition put in a brilliant catch-up race, thanks especially to some excellent stints from Duncan Huisman, and the team can slowly but surely prepare themselves for the lowest tread of the podium... as long as the Viper remains in one piece.
A great fourth place overall, second in Belgian GT, for the Hemroulle-Verbergt-van Hover-Raus quartet. With their standard Porsche 997 GT3 Cup Speedlover haven't experienced the slightest problem and André van Hoof's troops drove their own race. With the battle for the drivers' title at the back of their minds, Hemroulle and Verbergt did what was asked of them, by coming over the line after the 6th and 12th
hour ahead of the KRK Viper. The fifth place overall is in the hands of KRK Racing, which also has a lengthy catch-up race behind them.
KS Motorsport also produced a remarkable catch-up. The BMW M3 Silhouette #22 and 21 are following one another in brotherly fashion in sixth and seventh place, with behind them the surprising Porsche 997 GT4 Cup of First Motorsport - amongst whom Derdaele-junior. Best Touring car is the BMW M3 GTR of Moore International Motorsport. The British team clearly demonstrated that they still know how to handle Circuit Zolder. The top-ten is rounded off by... the McDonald's Racing Team Porsche 996 GT3 RS, which has also come back from the depths. Hopefully the ex-Le Mans-car can hold out until the end, which will be an unbelievable success for the team led by the likeable West-Fleming François Bouillon and his team-mates Jean-Claude Voets, Niels Cox and Stefaan Tavernier.
Forecast "Belgian GT Championship" - "Drivers' Challenge". Should nothing change up front, this would be the new intermediate rankings in the drivers' championship BGTC:
1. Koen Wauters - van Hooydonk: 133 + 12 pts (third place Div. 1) = 145 pts
2. Tim Verbergt - J-F Hemroulle: 127 + 16 pts (second place Div. 1) = 143 pts
3. Bert Longin - François Verbist: 109 + 20 pts (leader Div. 1) = 129 pts
4. Fred Bouvy - Damien Coens: 110 + 0 pts (DNF) = 110 pts
5. Pertti Kuismanen - Duncan Huisman: 97 + 0 pts (not in Div. 1) = 97 pts
Picture: Marnik Mouchaers
 VZW 24u.be - Gordon McKay on Sunday 23 August 2009 at 13:57. | 
