In front of no fewer than 101,606 spectators who attended the event – the last on the calendar before the 24 Hours of Le Mans – the number 83 499P of Ye-Hanson-Kubica crossed the line sixth under the chequered flag.
The race for the number 51 of Pier Guidi-Calado-Giovinazzi ended prematurely following contact sustained.
Valuable points. The 499Ps tackled a difficult race with determination, as expected in the run-up to the event, a 6 Hours of Spa in which the crews sought to make the most of the available potential, taking advantage of the team’s error-free strategies.
A performance that allowed the official Ferrari – AF Corse team to leave Belgium having secured valuable points for the World Manufacturers’ Championship standings with the number 50 crew; only the contact sustained late on by the blameless number 51 prevented Ferrari from concluding the Belgian trip with an even better result.
The race. The number 50 499P, which started eighth, recovered ground during the opening two hours, climbing to third place with Miguel Molina. An issue during the second pit stop delayed Nicklas Nielsen’s opening stint, but the Dane then managed to climb significantly through the standings, handing over the 499P to Antonio Fuoco for the closing hours, with the Italian firmly establishing himself inside the top five. In the final drama-filled 60 minutes, which featured several neutralisations, Fuoco made the most of every opportunity to complete the team’s extraordinary work by finishing third, 2’’622 behind the winners.
The sister car of the Ferrari – AF Corse team was unlucky. Starting 15th with Antonio Giovinazzi, the number 51 showed consistent pace that enabled the Italian, James Calado in the middle phase and later Alessandro Pier Guidi to join the battle for a strong points-scoring finish.
What ruined the race for the reigning World Champions was the contact sustained by a blameless Pier Guidi with just over an hour remaining: hit by a GT car at turn one, the Ferrari driver was forced to retire from the race prematurely due to the damage sustained.
The trio of the Ferrari number 83 entered by the privateer AF Corse team, which started 13th with Phil Hanson – handed over to another Prancing Horse official driver Yifei Ye – managed to move into the upper part of the standings at the end with Robert Kubica. The great comeback of the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans winners allowed the yellow-liveried Ferrari to finish sixth.
Next stop France. Following the rounds contested at Imola and Spa, the FIA WEC will return to the spotlight at the Circuit de La Sarthe, venue for the 24 Hours of Le Mans scheduled for Saturday, 13 and Sunday, 14 June.
Ferdinando Cannizzo, Head of Endurance Race Cars: “There’s a slight bitter taste because we interpreted the strategy well knowing we were not the favourites. Thanks to our consistency we managed to climb back up with all the cars, we were a little unlucky with the pit stop for the number 50 and it’s a shame about the incident that put the number 51 out of the race. We collected important points for the championship, even if only with one car. Thanks and congratulations to the whole team, who stayed focused despite the adversity – now we can look ahead to Le Mans with optimism.”
Antonello Coletta, Global Head of Endurance and Corse Clienti: “We are pleased to have secured a podium after an unsatisfactory qualifying session, but at the same time there is disappointment at having lost the number 51 car in an incident for which it bore no responsibility. The team’s strategy was impeccable, as also demonstrated by the comeback of the AF Corse number 83, and we have nothing to reproach ourselves for. We now hope to return to fighting at the front from qualifying and from the opening lap of the next race.”
