For 105 laps of the Spa-Francorchamps circuit a battle raged between the Ford GT40s of Nico Verdonck/Andy Newall and Phil Keen/Olly Bryant, with Danes Nikolai Kjaergaard/Alexander Weiss more than a thorn in the 13-strong GT40 contingent’s side in Palle Birkelund Pedersen’s Ginetta G4 during last weekend’s Spa Six Hours. But, with five minutes remaining and Keen determinedly reeling-in Verdonck at an alarming 20 seconds a lap, driveshaft failure stopped the Belgian’s car on lap 106.
As modern GT3 ace Keen notched his first Spa Six Hours victory, bookending Kyle Tilley’s Era Motorsport challenge, Bryant repeated 2021’s win (when he triumphed with James Cottingham). For Tilley, “gutted to miss out” with back surgery imminent, it was a welcome tonic, but brother Kane managed the car’s third onslaught expertly.
“I knew something would go wrong, it was a matter of when – that’s why I was lapping so slowly,” rued Verdonck, 2018 victor with Count Marcus Graf von Oeynhausen. Newall had to walk away from the pits with initial leader Nico ahead 10 minutes from home. “I’ve been trying to win it for 15 years,” Newall said. “Today is my daughter Zoe’s 25th birthday – she was on pit boards and is distraught.” Fifth place was cruel.
For the third year running, the Ginetta led well – it topped 140mph on the Kemmel Straight, to the quickest GT40’s 142mph – until Kjaergaard stopped in the F1 pitlane’s entrance with its gear lever broken, fortuitously in neutral. Towed to its garage in the old pits, a spare was quickly fitted. He and Classic F3 racer Weiss eventually finished second, two minutes down.
The Maldon Salt Racing GT40 of Steve Osborne/Jorg Muller/Chris Ward recovered from an early stop for body repairs to take third, a lap behind. GTS10 class victors Ben Barker/Pim Remijn/Rory Butcher’s Lotus Elan 26R was on the same lap, despite a penalty for exceeding the maximum permitted driver stint.
The Elans of John Tordoff/Sam Tordoff/Andy Jordan and early pacemaker Connor Kay/Dominic Mooney were similarly docked, but classified seventh – behind Sam Hancock/Niko Ditting’s GT40 – and 10th. Finished by Frank Stippler, Alexander and Vincent Kolb’s Shelby Cobra won GTS12 in ninth, not far adrift of Stephan Jobstl/Will Nuthall/Ben Mitchell (GT40).
Top Touring Car was the Ford Mustang of Luxembourgers Bob Kellen/Yann Munhowen/Max Schiltz, 16th overall, a late “splash and dash” having left Dutchmen Christiaen van Lanschot/Karsten le Blanc and Briton Jeremy Welch’s Falcon Sprint a lap down. In GTP- there was excitement behind the Ginetta when Australian Robert Ingram’s Marcos-Volvo 1800GT, shared by Brits Nick Topliss and Darren Dunne, passed Frenchmen Pierre-Etienne and Emeric Bordet’s sister car on the final lap.
Great Danes’ Ginetta G4 comes closest yet
Little Ginetta again took the fight to the GT40s
Photo by: Red Water Images
On paper, a Ginetta G4 should not have a prayer of beating 13 Ford GT40s, but the Spa Six Hours is run on one of the world’s most demanding circuits, carved into Belgium’s densely wooded Ardennes. Running as a Sports Prototype in G4R spec, with a 1720cc Ford/Lotus twin-cam engine, Palle Birkelund Pedersen’s car started life as Whitley Bay tailor Johnny Blades’ 1966 racer.
Road registered from 1967 and acquired from legendary Swedish Formula Vee constructor Jens Hansen in 2019, Pedersen’s self-prepared giant-killer tips the scales inside 500kg, half a 4.7-litre GT40’s homologated weight and 110kg inside the 1600cc Elans’ 610kg. With a 100-litre fuel tank it can run beyond three hours, without savings during safety car interventions, thus requires one refill to the GT40s’ two. With inevitable delays at the pumps, the numbers stack up even more strongly. Nikolai Kjaergaard and Alexander Weiss are determined to go one better next September.
Dutch courage brings bumper YTCC crop
Group C2 ADA was at the head of the huge 78-car Youngtimer Touring Car Challenge field
Photo by: Red Water Images
For sheer variety and spirit in historic ‘tin-top’ racing, nothing matches the Dutch-based Youngtimer Touring Car Challenge, a family-oriented ‘run what ya brung’ series founded by Jan van Duijn and Klaas van Vuure as the Youngtimer Trophy in 1993.
Closing its 34th season, a sensational 78-car field spanned Jasper de Kruijff’s Citroen Saxo Cup to Felix Haas’ Group C2 ADA 03, via Beat Gubler’s fire-breathing Dodge Challenger. Martin Reynolds and Malcolm Harding (Ford Escorts), Alex Taylor (TVR Tuscan) and Grahame and Olly Bryant (Morgan +8) were among the British regulars.
Haas and Christian Nowak’s Chevrolet LS7-powered Cobra set the pace in the end of an era triple-header. Inspirational promoters Randall Lawson and Ig de Bakker are stepping down after 14 years, due to Lawson’s recent cancer diagnosis, “but it will go on,” he assured subscribers defiantly at the final podium.
Frazer Nash chain gang stars in the Ardennes
Frazer Nashes made for a stunning sight at Spa
Photo by: Red Water Images
The Frazer Nash Car Club’s ambitious effort to populate a race grid at the Spa Six Hours, in conjunction with a road ‘Raid’ taking in the Sinsheim Motor Museum and the Nurburgring, proved popular but a bridge too far mechanically for Archie FN’s mainly chain-driven creations, plus GN, BMW and Acedes Nash.
A magnificent field of 38 cars, some over 100 years old, and 60 intrepid drivers took to the majestic four-mile Belgian Grand Prix circuit for Friday qualifying, during which favourite Patrick Blakeney-Edwards’ Super Sports’ Meadows engine dropped a valve after two laps.
Brothers Andrew and Adam Smith’s sister car, which Andrew qualified on pole with a 3m21.265s (77.86mph) lap, led Saturday’s race before breaking, leaving Cliff Gray’s post-war Le Mans Rep to win The Jenks Trophy – named for Denis Jenkinson. Organiser Rob Beebee (1932 TT Replica), Michael Bock (Targa Florio) and Clive Fidgeon/Simon Blakeney-Edwards (TT Replica) were next home.
Goodwin sees son win and reunites with Chevron
Chris Goodwin was a double Formula Junior victor
Photo by: Red Water Images
Formula Junior Historic Racing Association president Dr Tony Goodwin enjoyed a memorable weekend at Spa. Son Chris – the 1989 Formula Ford 1600 champion of Brands Hatch who competes infrequently these days – won both FJ races from third on the grid, sharing the podiums with Hibberd Racing team-mates Rufus Flann and Andrew Hibberd, all driving Lotus 22s.
Long-time Aston Martin development driver and Garage 59 GT team founder Chris also reunited his father with the 1967 Chevron B6 he raced from 1968 with Dr Peter Taggart. The coupe was subsequently ‘decapitated’ by the doctors to form the Redex RPA Special for the Spa 1000kms race in 1971, when open cars attracted more start money!
Owned by Andy Newall, having been cherished by Michael Schryver for many years, and long restored to the glorious coupe form in which designer Derek Bennett envisaged it, the B6 finished second in Sunday’s pre-’65 enduro.
Rabagliati clocks 750th race start in Alexis
Rabagliati’s landmark race was celebrated by Formula Junior community
Photo by: Red Water Images
Duncan Rabagliati’s 750th race start in the Formula Junior Alexis HF1 – the first car built by marque founders Alex Francis and Bill Harris in 1959 – at Spa constitutes a remarkable record.
Career solicitor and motorsport historian Rabagliati, 81, first raced the BMC-engined machine, aka ‘the Flying Carrot’, at Lydden Hill in 1989. “I drove in slip-on shoes, jeans and a college jumper, with helmet and gloves in deference to the [RAC Motor Sports Association’s] regulations,” he recalled.
The revival of Count ‘Johnny’ Lurani’s international training class of 1958-1963, through which F1 champions Jim Clark, John Surtees and Denny Hulme emerged, as an historic series in 1975 led to Rabagliati founding the Formula Junior Historic Racing Association in 1993. Daughter Sarah Mitrike, who manages the FJHRA, arranged the surprise photocall at Francorchamps. Over 37 years, including anniversary world tours, Duncan and the Alexis, long prepared by Iain Rowley, have competed on more than 100 circuits.
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– The Autosport.com Team
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