PK Carsport Corvette catches fire - First Motorsport scores points after 12 hours

The 24 Hours of Zolder is given a shake up with the Corvette Z06 of PK Carsport catching fire. Kurt Mollekens was at the wheel of the green 'Vette when the car caught fire. Mollekens opted for safety bringing the car into the sand trap at the Villeneuve, parking the car in such a way that the marshals could extinguish it. The breakdown tuck in the meanwhile brought the Z06 back to the pits. Mollekens has been taken to the medical centre for a check-up.

In the background of the fire breaking out at PK Carsport, the 12 hour point of the 29th edition of the 24 Hours of Zolder also broke out. It is François Verbist who is running off with the maximum number of points. The First Motorsport Porsche 997 GT3 Cup #50 is leading, with a one lap lead over the old faithful Porsche 996 Biturbo of AD Sport. Presently Marc Goossens is third at the wheel of the GPR Porsche 997 GT3 Cup. The other Porsche from the Pino Sperlinga stable is performing to expectations. The #55 is in fourth spot. As expected they continue to clock up constant lap times at GPR, and remain in contention for the overall victory.

It's quite obvious that no one up front can afford to make a mistake. At ProSpeed Competition it was obvious that endurance racing remains a sport where equipment has to be handled with care. The #52 Porsche of amongst others WRC-star Duval lost a load of time in the pits after the clutch had given up the ghost. Penders and co, who handled their material with care during the initial few hours have now climbed up into an excellent fifth place.

In the wake of the Penders-Porsche we come across NGT Racing, which continues to race at its own rhythm. Marc Marton and the team are running well. Problem free and with fast pit stops they continue to make up time on the front runners. The AD Sport Viper bearing number 28 is presently seventh. The high fuel consumption is quite clearly a handicap for the Viper and the high wear and tear of the brakes is no present either. Markus Palttala continues to do well in the G-Force Racing Porsche. Edo de Vries with the #150 Porsche of First Motorsport has joined the top ten ranking. After 12 hours of racing PK Carsport is still in tenth place, but the car is at a standstill in the pit box..

It goes without saying that the leader in Division II is the NGT Porsche, ahead of the v #150 model of First Motorsport. Third in Division II is the #155 – also of First. AD Sport is quite clearly too strong for the competition in Division III. They are in the lead and inaccessible with an enormous lead over the Porsche of the Accent Racing Team. Third and last in Division III is the McDonald's Porsche, with at this moment no less than 14 pitstops...

The top 10 overall:
1. #50 First Motorsport - Porsche 997 GT3 Cup
2. #228 AD Sport - Porsche 996 Biturbo
3. #56 GPR - Porsche 997 GT3 Cup
4. #55 GPR - Porsche 997 GT3 Cup
5. #51 ProSpeed Competition - Porsche 997 GT3 Cup
6. #111 NGT Racing - Porsche 996 GT3 Cup
7. #28 AD Sport - Dodge Viper Competition Coupé
8. #99 G-Force Racing - Porsche 996 GT3 Cup
9. #150 First Motorsport - Porsche 996 GT3 Cup
10. #1 PK Carsport - Corvette Z06

VZW 24u.be - Gordon McKay on Sunday 9 September 2007 at 05:02.