GT Racing - GT1, GT3, Blancpain Endurance Series & National GT SeriesSports Cars 

Estre always takes a lot of risk while overtaking slower cars. I remember seeing him multiple time overtaking cars with 2 wheels on the grass.

I guess it's a risk vs reward thing and this time he went a tiny bit too far. And yes I feel like it was deserved.
That‘s understandable, he just has a winner‘s mentality. And I agree with you, the penalty was deserved. He took the risk and it came at a price. That happens.
 
Taking the curbs on the right of Estre as the subject.

Miss:

View attachment 1459892

Hit:

View attachment 1459893

Miss:

View attachment 1459894


I think the giveaway is in the first frame. The Aston isn't leaving Estre a gap, he's just on the racing line, and that's evidenced by the fact the M4 we're on board with is taking the same line.
Looks like Estre did it perfectly.

He missed the Aston at the first apex
He hit the Aston at the second apex
He missed the Aston at the third apex

Textbook stuff 😂
 
Day 1 at the Spa 24h complete (for me anyway!) - Qualifying starts shortly, and is online here:



That's followed by night practice, then a pitwalk session - but the pitwalk doesn't start until 0045 😅

I'm still recovering from some bug, and I really needed some good rest over the last 2 days, and it has paid dividends - so I'm not going back to the track tonight.

There's another pit and track walk tomorrow night as well, and it's much earlier (still 10.30 pm, but hey...)

-

I can't overemphasise how much better it is staying in Francorchamps than it is in Spa. I've already met two fellow guests and we bumped into each other a few times at the track. I also had a very brief chat with Kelvin van der Linde and Jann Mardenborough, and Sandy Mitchell gave me a nod of approval from his scooter for getting out of his way 😅

So far it has been awesome, and tomorrow will be a lazy day so I have enough energy for the pit and track walk by night.

Free Practice is almost my favourite part of the race meet, since the crowds are still small and you can go wherever you like. I got some amazing views from spots that will be jammed packed on Saturday.
 
Last edited:
It's bonkers - I'm less than 1km from La Source and it is not raining where I am, and yet it is raining quite heavily at the track - Q1 has been red-flagged three times already (it's only a 15 minute session!!), and yet I'm watching a gorgeous sunset with no rain at all.
 
It's raining in Francorchamps this morning, and it looks set to stay wet for most of the afternoon and into the early evening. It's more like a heavy mist/constant drizzle, so nothing like the monsoon conditions yesterday... it was darker at midday yesterday than it was at 9pm...

IMG_5760.jpeg


I was planning on having a lazy morning today anyway, so I'll head to the track for the first GT2 race around 3pm today, which is followed by Superpole.
 
Last edited:
Beautiful Pole Position from McLaren!
They have the car, now I hope they will have the reliability.
Not a fan of McLarens but credit where credit's due, excellent lap from Kirchhoefer. I'm surprised by the many +1.x second differences. The fact that Rossi can't quite keep up with the long-time GT3 pros is understandable. But KVL, Eng etc... Let's hope we have a good race tomorrow, hopefully no red flags!
 
IMG_5764.jpeg IMG_5765.jpeg
IMG_5772.jpeg

IMG_5771.jpeg

IMG_5773.jpeg

IMG_5774.jpeg


I had a great day yesterday at Spa, watching Superpole and the various support races, followed by a pitwalk/autograph session where I got my model #007 Aston Martin signed by the team; the day ended with a night track walk, which was amazing - I've been up Eau Rouge before, but it was pretty special at night - then I walked up to La Source and down the F1 pit lane, before walking back to my hotel.

Staying in Francorchamps itself has made a huge difference - and not least because my hosts are so lovely (they just brought me fresh bread, apple juice and bananas!) - I enjoyed Spa in 2023, but this year has been exceptionally good so far, and the race hasn't even started yet!
 
I can see Mercedes, Ferrari and may be BMW fighting for the win. McLaren and Lamborghini are cursed here, Porsche and Aston ca do something but I feel they will have to go and tear it out. Ford? Mmmm... Nah.
 
I thought the racing graphics were fine, they show who is driving which car, the position, and you know how much time is left. It also doesn't really take up the screen like some other graphics do.
 
Last edited:
I don't think any series gets the graphics just right. Clock, lap and track status should be permanent and separate from running orders... and we don't need something telling us what race we're watching!

This hour's beer... Duvel.

Big Off for the Aston, good job no one was exiting the pits!
 
Last edited:
Why's that?
  • Useless
  • Poorly executed and glitchy, redundant informations, sometimes hiding other cars
  • I wanna see cars evolving on track, not cars with rectangular panels twice their size on their roofs.
Yeah, I'm only speaking about this "AI" panel thing above the cars. They tried this last year too.

Poor #11 Aston Martin... :boggled:
 
BMWs now in the 2:18s as the Macs n Mercs doing 2:17s

Whatever this talk of the BMWs doing better on a cooling track is, I need it to be real now!
 
Back