Mueller Leads Rain-Soaked Second Hour at Spa

Photo: Audi

Team WRT’s Nico Mueller leads the TotalEnergies 24 Hours of Spa with two hours complete in wet but drying conditions.

The Audi Sport factory driver holds a five-second lead over the No. 38 JOTA McLaren 720S GT3 Evo of Ben Barnicoat following a shakeup in the running order due to a downpour shortly after the race’s restart from the massive four-car accident that marred the opening hour.

The top four cars, including the pole-sitting No. 88 AKKA-ASP Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Raffaele Marciello and second-placed No. 63 Grasser Racing Team Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo of Mirko Bortolotti, elected to stay out, with Mueller pitting three laps earlier to undercut the leaders.

Barnicoat, meanwhile, got around the No. 4 Team HRT Mercedes of Luca Stolz, who ultimately dropped from second to fourth in the running order after also getting passed by Marciello a few laps later.

The No. 89 AKKA-ASP Mercedes of Lucas Auer runs fifth overall, ahead of the Silver class-leading No. 90 Madpanda Mercedes of Rik Breukers.

Bortolotti, who briefly took the lead during the opening hour pit sequence, has dropped to seventh in the No. 63 Orange 1 FFF Racing Team Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo, with Klaus Bachler the highest-placed Porsche in eighth for Dinamic Motorsport.

The race has run green since the restart on Lap 20 following the serious accident involving the No. 21 Rutronik Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R of Kevin Estre, Davide Rigon’s No. 71 Iron Lynx Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo 2020 and the Emil Frey Racing Lamborghinis driven by Franck Perera and Jack Aitken.

Both Estre and Perera were evaluated and released from the medical center with Aitken and Rigon having been transported to the hospital with “non life-threatening” injuries per a SRO Motorsports Group spokesperson.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John