Lionspeed GP completed a remarkable recovery from the back of the field to win the 2026 CrowdStrike 24H of Spa with Ricardo Feller, Thomas Preining and Bastian Buus.
An engine change forced the No. 80 Porsche 911 GT3 R to start from the pit lane, behind the remaining 68 cars. However, a faultless drive, strong pace and a decisive strategy call brought Lionspeed into contention before Preining took control during the final six hours.
The Austrian crossed the line 12.288 seconds ahead of the No. 48 Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter entry driven by Lucas Auer, Luca Stolz and Maro Engel. AF Corse’s pole-sitting No. 51 Ferrari of Alessio Rovera, Tommaso Mosca and Nicklas Nielsen completed the podium, only 0.650s behind the Mercedes-AMG.
The result gave Porsche its first overall Spa victory since 2020 and strengthened its Intercontinental GT Challenge Manufacturers’ Championship bid. Meanwhile, Mann-Filter’s second place placed its drivers within reach of the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup title.
Engine change sends Lionspeed to the back of the starting order at the 2026 CrowdStrike 24H of Spa
Lionspeed entered the event among the leading contenders and initially qualified near the front of the 69-car field. However, the team changed the Porsche’s engine on Thursday. The resulting penalty required Feller, Preining and Buus to begin the race from the pit lane, apparently removing the No. 80 crew from serious victory contention before the start.
AF Corse occupied pole with its No. 51 Ferrari after Rovera, Mosca and Nielsen set the fastest combined qualifying time. Lionspeed had originally qualified second, ahead of the Boutsen VDS Porsche, but instead faced an immediate recovery through the largest GT3 field of the season.
Feller, Buus and Preining avoided unnecessary risks during the opening stages and steadily moved through the traffic. While several contenders encountered accidents, penalties and mechanical problems, the Porsche remained on the lead lap and continued to gain ground.
Ferrari sets the pace but loses valuable time
The No. 51 Ferrari appeared to possess the fastest package across the weekend.
Nielsen, Mosca and Rovera controlled portions of the race and displayed the pace required to convert pole into victory. However, two punctures and 40 seconds of pit-stop penalties cost the crew considerable time.
By Saturday evening, the Ferrari had fallen almost two laps behind the leading group. Nevertheless, Full-Course Yellow periods, Safety Cars and heavy rain during the early hours allowed AF Corse to recover much of the deficit.
The changing conditions also kept several manufacturers in contention. Mercedes-AMG, Porsche, BMW and Ford each led on merit at different points, while pit-stop cycles repeatedly altered the visible order.
Despite its setbacks, the No. 51 Ferrari returned to the lead battle during the second half of the race. Rovera and Nielsen then began working their way past the Porsche entries that separated them from the Mann-Filter Mercedes-AMG.
Mann-Filter delivers error-free performance
The No. 48 Mercedes-AMG emerged as the most consistent contender across the full 24 hours.
Auer, Engel and Stolz maintained front-running pace while avoiding the punctures, contact and penalties that affected several rivals. The Winward Racing-run car held a narrow strategic advantage as the race entered Sunday morning and appeared capable of converting its clean performance into victory.
However, Lionspeed had established itself as a genuine threat by that stage.
The No. 80 Porsche joined the Schumacher CLRT and Boutsen VDS entries inside a leading group that also featured both AF Corse Ferraris and Team WRT’s No. 46 BMW.
Lionspeed’s progress depended on more than favourable neutralisations. Feller, Buus and Preining consistently matched or exceeded the pace of the established leaders, allowing the Porsche to remain within range as the pit-stop sequence continued to rotate the order.
Preining undercut changes the race
The decisive moment arrived with approximately five and a half hours remaining.
Preining entered the pits from third as Lionspeed attempted to move ahead of both the Mann-Filter Mercedes-AMG and Schumacher CLRT Porsche. A perfectly executed undercut allowed the No. 80 car to emerge with the net lead.
Once the pit-stop cycle settled, Preining began building an advantage of almost 20 seconds.
Further neutralisations reduced that margin and repeatedly offered Lionspeed’s rivals another opportunity. However, the Porsche responded after each restart and retained control through the closing stages.
The battle behind remained considerably closer.
Rovera and Nielsen passed the other leading Porsches as AF Corse continued its recovery, but the Ferrari drivers could not displace the Mann-Filter Mercedes-AMG. Engel, Stolz and Auer defended second throughout the final hours despite the No. 51 car’s superior late-race pace.
Preining completed 541 laps and took the chequered flag 12.288s clear. Auer secured second for Mercedes-AMG, while Nielsen followed only 0.650s later to earn AF Corse its third consecutive overall Spa podium.
Schumacher CLRT leads remaining Porsche challenge
Schumacher CLRT completed Porsche’s strong performance by finishing fourth with Ayhancan Güven, Matt Campbell and Frédéric Makowiecki.
The No. 22 Porsche had challenged near the front during the closing stages and became involved in an aggressive fight with the No. 2 Boutsen VDS entry. Boutsen VDS sustained damage during that contest and eventually fell to eighth.
AF Corse’s second Ferrari finished fifth. Arthur Leclerc, Sean Gelael and Lilou Wadoux completed the race ahead of the No. 46 Team WRT BMW shared by Dan Harper, Max Hesse and Valentino Rossi.
Natural Elements by Walkenhorst Motorsport brought its Aston Martin home seventh after surviving a dramatic opening-lap incident. The car briefly became airborne during a multi-car accident but continued to complete all 541 laps.
Boutsen VDS followed in eighth, while ROWE Racing’s Pro-class BMW finished ninth. Kessel Racing’s Bronze Cup Ferrari completed the overall top 10.
Ford also showed front-running potential during the race. The No. 64 HRT Ford Racing entry led on merit before retiring at the Bus Stop, while its sister car lost a possible class victory after contact spun it out of contention.
ROWE Racing takes Gold Cup victory
ROWE Racing claimed the Gold Cup with the No. 998 BMW M4 GT3 Evo driven by Jens Klingmann, Ugo de Wilde and Spa rookie Tim Tramnitz.
Garage 59 initially led the category with its No. 58 McLaren and even challenged near the front of the overall order during the opening hours. However, repeated setbacks ended its victory bid on Sunday morning.
ROWE remained the best-placed crew to capitalise and faced little direct opposition during the second half. Klingmann, de Wilde and Tramnitz finished 11th overall and six laps ahead of their nearest Gold Cup rival.
The result delivered ROWE its first class victory at Spa after the German squad had previously secured three overall wins at the event. Boutsen VDS finished second in the category, while Optimum Motorsport completed the podium.
Perel secures Silver Cup in late duel
Rinaldi Racing defeated Team WRT after a close Silver Cup battle that continued into the final stages.
The No. 45 Ferrari crew of David Perel, Dylan Medler, Rafael Duran and Alessandro Balzan remained within reach of the leading No. 30 BMW as the race approached its conclusion.
Perel completed the maximum permitted driving time and passed Amaury Cordeel to take the class lead. Rinaldi then held the position to secure victory and finish 14th overall.
Team WRT’s runner-up result still delivered a significant championship points haul, while the No. 52 AF Corse Ferrari took third in the Silver Cup.
Kessel Racing finishes inside overall top 10 at the 2026 CrowdStrike 24H Spa
Kessel Racing produced one of the event’s standout class performances by winning the Bronze Cup and finishing 10th overall.
Dustin Blattner, Dennis Marschall, Ben Tuck and Mathys Jaubert shared the No. 74 Ferrari 296 GT3. The crew completed 540 laps and finished as the highest-placed non-Pro entry.
Paradine Competition provided the closest challenge for much of the race with its No. 991 BMW. However, Kessel maintained a one-lap advantage at the finish.
The victory represented a second successive class success for Blattner and Marschall. Lionspeed GP added a Bronze Cup podium to its overall triumph by finishing third in the category.
JMR delivers Corvette’s first Spa win since 2009
JMR claimed Pro-Am honours with its Corvette Z06 GT3.R.
Jefri Ibrahim and Abu Bakar Ibrahim shared the car with Ben Green and Jordan Love. Their victory delivered Corvette its first class success at Spa since the manufacturer won the race overall in 2009.
High Class Racing finished second with its Porsche, while the GetSpeed Team PCX Mercedes-AMG completed the Pro-Am podium.
Jefri Ibrahim also secured the Intercontinental GT Challenge Independent Cup victory. However, High Class Racing driver Li Kerong finished second and retained a substantial advantage in the season-long classification.
Mann-Filter closes on 2026 GTWC Europe Endurance Cup title after 24H of Spa success
Although Lionspeed claimed the race victory, the No. 48 Mercedes-AMG crew strengthened its position in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup.
Auer, Engel and Stolz collected points at the six-hour, 12-hour and 24-hour marks before finishing second overall. Their clean run extended their championship advantage and left the trio requiring only 11 more points to guarantee the title.
They could secure the championship when the Endurance Cup resumes at the Nürburgring from 28–30 August.
Winward Racing also leads the wider GT World Challenge Europe Teams’ Championship with 89.5 points. Team WRT holds second on 55, while Lionspeed’s Spa victory has lifted the Porsche squad to third with 48.5.
The Spa result therefore produced two contrasting outcomes. Lionspeed celebrated the championship’s most prestigious race win, while Mann-Filter left Belgium with the stronger position in the season-long Endurance Cup contest.
Engel retains IGTC lead as Porsche moves ahead
Spa also formed the third round of the 2026 Intercontinental GT Challenge.
Engel’s second-place result increased his Drivers’ Championship total to 68 points. He now leads Stolz by 17, while former joint leader Maxime Martin has dropped to third on 50 after the GetSpeed Mercedes-AMG retired on Saturday evening. Meanwhile, Buus has climbed to fourth with 47 points following his first IGTC victory. Feller sits one point behind in fifth, while Preining collected 25 points from his first Intercontinental GT Challenge appearance of the season.
However, Engel may prioritise his DTM programme over the remaining IGTC rounds at Suzuka and Indianapolis. That potential absence leaves Stolz, Martin, Buus and Feller within reach of the championship despite Engel’s current advantage.
Meanwhile, Porsche has taken control of the Manufacturers’ Championship after earning 37 points at Spa. The German marque now leads Mercedes-AMG by eight points, with BMW a further 17 behind.
Ferrari’s podium and fifth-place finish increased its total to 35, while Ford and Chevrolet complete the six-manufacturer table.
The Intercontinental GT Challenge continues with the Suzuka 1000km from 11–13 September.
Record crowd witnesses Lionspeed recovery at 2026 CrowdStrike 24H of Spa
A record 132,000 spectators attended the five-day event, beginning with Wednesday’s traditional parade into Spa town. The programme also included three nights of music, a busy Fan Zone and support races for the GT4 European Series, Lamborghini Super Trofeo, McLaren Trophy Europe and GT3 Legends.
However, the main race supplied the weekend’s defining story.
Lionspeed entered the 24 Hours facing what appeared to be an impossible task. Feller, Buus and Preining started behind the entire field, avoided the problems that eliminated several favourites and combined speed with precise execution throughout the night. Their recovery delivered Porsche its first Spa victory for six years and gave Lionspeed GP the biggest result in its history.
At the same time, Mann-Filter’s faultless run strengthened its GT World Challenge Europe position, while Porsche’s result overturned the Intercontinental GT Challenge manufacturers’ order.
The 2026 edition therefore rewarded both outright speed and endurance consistency, as three different manufacturers completed a closely contested overall podium after 24 hours and 541 laps.
The 2026 CrowdStrike 24H of Spa after 1 Hour | 4 Hours | 8 Hours | 12 Hours | 16 Hours | 20 Hours | 24 Hours | Chequered Flag
