Frank Hahn and Markus Palttala (G-Force Racing) look back on the 24 Hours of Zolder

Without a doubt one of the revelations of the 24 Hours of Zolder was G-Force Racing. The early stages were further enhanced with the rather assailing character of their Flying Finn Markus Palttala, called in at the last minute to replace Pierre Merch. The Alken based team with Frank Hahn, Leo van Sande, Markus Palttala and Val Hillebrand were aiming at a place on the podium, but a constant minor problem with the fuel cell kept on holding Hahn and his team back.

"We were the only team at the start with a bog standard Porsche 997 ", Frank Hahn explained."This meant that we still had a side mounted fuel filler neck; whereas all our competitors had theirs fitted in the bonnet. It was only during the race that we noticed that something was wrong. When Markus left the refuelling zone after his first stint we noticed that he'd only taken 27 litres on board. The nozzle had switched off at the pump, and the tanker from the organisation thought the fuel cell was full....this meant that we had to revise out strategy. "

This same problem hounded the team the whole way through the race: "Markus drove a brilliant first stint. We let him go flat out for five laps, but then we decided that he could choose his own pace. In fact we led the race for a couple of laps. Great for the team! It was a real joy to see him in action, attacking during the first hour without overtaxing the car. But the time that Markus won on the track was lost due to the problems with the fuel cell. During the night we lost some twelve laps because we ran out of fuel twice on the track. We never knew how much fuel was in the tank, and each time we had to work out how many laps we could get through based on the consumption."

In fact the result of these 24 Hours could have been completely different. "I reckon we also lost roughly six laps due to a brake problem. Air had got into one of the brake lines when replacing the brakes, which meant that we had to bleed all the lines. But looking back we are pretty satisfied: fourth in class and sixth overall. A podium place could have been possible, just work it out for yourself.... but above all we mustn't forget that we made the finish line, and this without the car creating any serious technical problems. All the drivers did what was expected of them, the entire team performed brilliantly. All I can add is that I'm very proud", Frank Hahn concluded.

Markus Palttala was able to continue with what he's good at. Since 2003 the Finn has led the 24 Hours of Zolder race for at least one lap: "I didn't compete in 2006, but in all the other times I have come through at least once in the lead. It's obviously great to have been able to achieve this, and especially for the G-Force team. Everyone worked really hard to put together a perfect car, and the team were successful. We can carry on a long time about the fuel saga....but it's no one's fault. You can't anticipate something like this. It's obviously rather bitter when you realise that a podium place could have been on the books, but at least we finished without ever once being held back through a technical defect. Proof that the team prepared the car perfectly. "

"Most teams either retire or lose time due to a technical problem or a driving error, but this wasn't the case for us ", Palttala continues."I'm really pleased that we made it to the finish. The 24 Hours of Zolder is probably the most gruelling endurance race in the world, both for drivers and cars alike. We actually were in the lead for a short while, but personally I would have preferred being in the lead for the last two laps. The team deserved a podium. That's beyond dispute! You can definitely count on me for the 2008 24 Hours of Zolder. If I'm offered a competitive drive I'll go for overall victory again ", the Flying Finn ended.

VZW 24u.be - Gordon McKay on Wednesday 12 September 2007 at 22:21.