BMW M Team WRT secured a historic one-two finish at the TotalEnergies 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps. The team claimed their first-ever Hypercar victory in a race where strategy was key in their climb from the midfield. The victory marks BMW’s first overall win since Le Mans in 1999. Their achievement was accomplished before a record crowd of 101,606 spectators in the Belgian forest.
Qualifying Storylines
Saturday’s qualifying sessions delivered one of the weekend’s most memorable moments when Malthe Jakobsen put the #94 Peugeot on pole position with a stunning 2:00.653 lap. Given that Jakobsen spun at Raidillon on his out-lap during Hyperpole, it was remarkable that he still managed to recover and set the fastest time. The result was Peugeot’s first pole in WEC and their first in world championship competition since 1992. Jakobsen’s lap edged out Will Stevens in the #12 Cadillac by just 0.043 seconds. The top three were separated by only 0.074 seconds, with the whole Top 10 covered by 0.664 seconds.
Alpine locked out the second row. Charles Milesi’s #35 and Jules Gounon’s #36 machines taking P3 and P4, respectively. Meanwhile, and somewhat surprisingly, Ferrari’s best effort came from Antonio Fuoco in the #50 car, only scraping P8. Toyota struggled as well, with Kamui Kobayashi managing only P12 and Brendon Hartley back in P16.
In LMGT3 qualifying, the #78 Akkodis ASP Team Lexus of Tom Van Rompuy claimed pole with a 2:16.612. His weekend would later unravel with a drive-through penalty for track limits and an eventual retirement for the #78. The #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin filled out the front row in P2. Meanwhile, the #77 Proton Competition Ford Mustang and #87 Akkodis entry filled out the second row.
Hypercar Race Drama
Sunday’s race bore little resemblance to the qualifying pecking order. Stevens’ #12 Cadillac seized the early lead from pole-sitter Loïc Duval’s Peugeot at Les Combes on the opening lap. The #20 BMW employed a short-fueling tactic at its first pit stop, allowing René Rast to emerge with a commanding 19-second advantage. This strategic gamble paid off later, as the race descended into chaos with four safety car interventions disrupting the flow. Ferrari’s #50 entry had climbed impressively from P8 to a net P2 by the two-hour mark. They then suffered a setback when Miguel Molina’s crew encountered a stuck front-left wheel nut during a pit stop. The 20-second delay dropped them down the order to P13. The #50 would eventually recover to finish P3 and claim the final podium position.
The complexion of the race changed dramatically at the four-hour mark. Matteo Cressoni’s #79 Mercedes and Jakobsen’s pole-sitting Peugeot collided at Les Combes. The incident badly damaged both cars and triggered the second safety car. Jakobsen’s Peugeot eventually retired after completing just 103 laps. The pole-sitter’s premature exit capped Peugeot’s weekend of unfulfilled potential. Meanwhile, Louis Delétraz in the #12 Cadillac received a five-second penalty for overtaking off-track at Raidillon. The penalty put a damper on their bid for victory after a strong start. The #35 Alpine of António Félix da Costa briefly held P2 after jumping the Cadillac during the third round of pit stops. However, they could not keep up the pace to challenge BMW.
Sheldon van der Linde held the #20 BMW’s lead through hours three and four on their offset strategy. The safety car periods ultimately sterilized much of the field’s strategic options, putting everyone back on similar fuel schedules for the final stints. Both BMWs were investigated for the final safety car restart. They both emerged unhindered, allowing them to complete their historic one-two finish. The #50 Ferrari of Antonio Fuoco, Nicklas Nielsen, and Miguel Molina claimed P3. They were 2.622 seconds behind the winning BMW, while the #007 Aston Martin THOR Team entry finished in a highest-ever P4.
LMGT3: Redemption Story?
The LMGT3 class delivered its own compelling narrative at Spa. The #10 Garage 59 McLaren of Tom Fleming, Jan Kirchhöfer, and Antares Au claimed victory after starting P15 on the grid. The triumph was incredibly vindicating for the team. The heartbreak of Round 1 in Imola, retiring with just 35 minutes remaining while leading the race – forgotten. The victory didn’t come without controversy. The #21 VISTA AF Corse Ferrari, driven by Simon Mann for the race’s middle stages, crossed the line first. However, the #21 received a five-second post-race penalty for an unsafe pit release. The sanction dropped them from P1 to P4, handing Garage 59 the win by 2.148 seconds.
The #27 Heart of Racing Aston Martin of Ben James, Roman De Angelis, and Maxime Martin inherited P2 after the penalty. The #92 Manthey Porsche of Yasser Shahin, Morris Schuring, and Richard Lietz completed the podium in P3. Antares Au ran patient opening stints for Garage 59, Tom Fleming delivered scintillating pace in the middle hours, and Jan Kirchhöfer brought the car home to secure redemption. The #78 Lexus that had started from pole was aiming for a podium position at minimum. Unfortunately, technical issues slowed the car in the final hour. The #78 eventually retired after 118 laps.
Championship Implications After Round 2
The victory vaults René Rast and Robin Frijns to the top of the Hypercar Drivers’ Championship standings. BMW now leads the Hypercar Manufacturers’ standings heading into the season’s headlining event. Both championships heat up with the 24 Hours of Le Mans looming on the horizon from June 10-14.
For Peugeot, the weekend represented tantalizing progress. Their first pole position suggests they have the pace. Yet race reliability and execution remain question marks. Toyota’s struggles were equally visible. Both entries finished well off the podium despite their historical dominance at Spa.
The field now has just over a month to prepare for the ultimate endurance test at La Sarthe. BMW will arrive as genuine contenders, Ferrari hate being ignored, and Peugeot will hope to convert qualifying speed into race results. Will anyone else step up at the legendary French circuit?
Feature Image: FIA World Endurance Championship Press Centre