Race report for FIA GT-Championship round eight in Zolder, Belgium

Another championship title for the Porsche 911 GT3 RSR

A tailor-made finale for Richard Westbrook. Claiming victory in Belgium’s Zolder at the wheel of a Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, the Briton secured the FIA GT Championship GT2 class drivers’ title to continue the streak of 911 successes this year. With the 911 GT3 RSR, Porsche pilots won the GT2 championship titles in the American Le Mans Series, the Le Mans Series, as well as other championships. Moreover, the 450 hp racer from Weissach was celebrated as the winning car at the prestigious Nürburgring 24 hour race in 2009.

“We can look back on a highly successful year with the 911,” said a satisfied Hartmut Kristen, head of motorsport at Porsche. “Again the 911 GT3 RSR proved to be the most successful GT race car in the world. Congratulations to Richard Westbrook and the Belgian Prospeed team who made this feat possible.”

“This is the most important title of my career,” said a delighted Richard Westbrook. The Briton and his teammate, the French Porsche works driver Emmanuel Collard, had dominated the FIA GT Championship season. With two victories to open their campaign, they planted themselves at the head of the championship standings, which they only lost prior to the finale to the strongest Ferrari team. The pair travelled to Zolder with a three-point gap to the leader, where the Belgian top squad, Prospeed Competition, put together a clever strategy with the support of Porsche. The two title candidates manned different cars to increase their championship chances. Twenty-one-year-old Porsche Junior Marco Holzer joined Richard Westbrook as his new teammate. And the trick worked. Westbrook and Holzer dominated the two-hour final in the fiercely contested and highly competitive GT2 class. The young German performed equally as well as the experienced Briton – Westbrook was the champion of the Porsche Supercup in 2006 and 2007. “Marco did a super job,” praised 34-year-old Westbrook. It was with a touch of regret that Emmanuel Collard congratulated his English teammate on his title win. Together with Porsche Junior Martin Ragginger (Austria), Collard finished the race sixth at the wheel of the 911 fielded by the Italian Brixia Racing team to claim third overall in the championship.

Statistics: 8th of 8 races in the FIA GT Championship in Zolder, Belgium

 

Result GT2 class:

1. Westbrook/Holzer (GBR/GER), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, 76 laps

2. Ruberti/Malucelli (ITA/ITA), Ferrari F430, + 4.157 seconds

3. Bell/Kirkaldy (GBR/GBR), Ferrari F430, + 5.041

4. Bruni/Vilander (ITA/FIN), Ferrari F430, + 11.280

5. Bergmeister/Mamerow (GER/GER), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 22.947

6. Collard/Ragginger (FRA/AUT), Porsche 911 GT3 RSR, + 59.237

Final classification GT2 class drivers

1. Richard Westbrook, Porsche, 56 points

2. Gianmaria Bruni, Toni Vilander, Ferrari, 54 points

3. Emmanuel Collard, Porsche, 49 points

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