SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, BELGIUM – Al-Manar Racing by Getspeed regulars Al-Faisal bin Khalid Al-Zubair (Oman), Dominik Baumann (Austria) and Mikaël Grenier (Canada) are joined by Swiss racer Philip Ellis for this weekend’s CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, the flagship second round of the 2024 Fanatec GT World Challenge powered by AWS Endurance Cup.
The four-driver crew is entered in the Gold category in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo, targeting a podium and class win. The trio finished second in Gold at the season opener at Paul Ricard in early April.
Ellis, 31, will share a car with Al-Zubair for the first time. The Munich-born Swiss driver has wide experience in GT World Challenge America, the IMSA SportsCar Championship, the Intercontinental GT Challenge and the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, and started this season with Winward Racing in IMSA.
I am really excited to get this weekend’s Spa 24 started. It’s definitely one of the biggest events in the endurance racing calendar. It is definitely the biggest GT race of the year. It won’t be easy. There are 67 cars, I believe, across all the classes so the field will be extremely competitive throughout.
Al-Faisal Al-Zubair
Nonetheless, our package is very strong with the drivers, the car and the team. It’s looking good so far. The track has been resurfaced since the recent test and it definitely won’t be easy. We are committed to perform our best and hopefully we can come back with a podium position or a win in class. I am really looking forward to it.
Al-Faisal Al-Zubair
Gold rivals include class leaders Saintéloc Racing (Audi R8), 2 Seas Motorsport (Mercedes-AMG), Haupt Racing Team (Mercedes), Tresor Attempto Racing (Audi) and CSA Racing (Audi R8). Saintéloc is a former Spa winner.
Schedule
Free practice starts at 11:20 CET on Thursday, June 27, followed by pre-qualifying at 16:30, three qualifying sessions from 20:35 and night practice from 22:25. Friday features Super Pole from 15:45 and an evening warm-up from 20:10. The race starts at 16:30 on Saturday, June 29 on the 7.004km circuit and finishes at the same time on Sunday, with Belgian legend Jacky Ickx waving the start flag.