10.00
– 13.00 At 10.00: Class
standings at 10.00: After the night and early morning turnovers, we’ve had a rather quiet late morning. The Corvette is back in the lead, but with a heavier fuel consumption the Corvette might need one extra stop than the #4 PSI RSR. The car in 3rd position is still the leading GTB car of Penders / Dujardyn / Couwberghs / Lamot. Even for them the race for victory is not over yet. Outsiders could be the #61 BMW and why not the #2 Kuismanen Viper? With higher temperatures to be expected, and the race lasting till 17.00 this afternoon, everything is still possible. Meanwhile two cars have hit trouble, the #29 AD Porsche (gearbox) and the #22 Speedlover Porsche, both most probably retiring.
The #57 Speedlover 993 has had a wonderful race: the old car is well into the top 20! The PINO cars also seem to be suited to this kind of race, the #30 is 2nd in GTB and the #17 Supercup, driven by Father and both sons Dumarey is now well up overall, in 9th position (below).
At 11.00: The 19th hour brought trouble again for the #2 Viper. Once back in the top 5, a strong finish still was possible - but another engine problem dropped them back into 15th place. Within the top 10, there are two interesting battles, except the one for the overall lead of course. The #30 Pino Porsche and the #34 Belgium Racing Ultima have a nice fight for 5th overall and 2nd in GTB. “We’ve been so unlucky this year and this is a, even if we withdraw, a revelation for the team”, says a nervous Patric Derdale, team owner and driver of the pretty Ultima. The #42 AD Porsche and the #17 Pino Porsche are both going for first in the guest class. “Our Porsche is a 996 with an older air cooled engine,” explains Stéphane Lémeret, star driver of the #42. “But it has a low fuel consumption and it’s reliable, that’s why we’re so high in the rankings.” At 12.00: The battle at front is immense, and with probably one extra stop, the Corvette has had to put the pressure on the PSI Porsche.
This edition is not only a good one on a sporting level but it has been a steady one too. With only one SC intervention so far and no major accidents, except the GLPK-one, it has been a very enjoyable, free-flowing race. With 4 hours to go, 33 out of 50 starters are still running - another remarkable fact of this 22nd edition of the Zolder classic. Marc Goossens is back in the C5-R at lunchtime - and he’s on the attack! There are 3 laps between the first two. Meanwhile Mollekens and Palttala are trying to get the Biturbo back into the top 10 and on the GTA-podium. At 13.00:
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