The 57th edition of the Proximus 24 Hours of Spa - the fifth running of the event as part of the FIA GT Championship - got underway earlier today, in the bright Belgian sunshine.

An exciting, high-quality field of cars, with more variety in the top class than ever before - including Maserati, Ferrari, Aston Marti and Chevrolet - started the day's two free practice sessions for the 24-hour race, which will get underway on Saturday at 1600. The activities actually got underway yesterday, with a parade down to the historic town of Spa. An autograph session and the traditional group photo took place before the the cars paraded back up to the circuit, in front of large crowds of of enthusiastic spectators who lined the town's roads.

The Vitaphone team’s Maserati MC12 was the quickest car overall in the first 90 minute free practice session. The car with Michael Bartels, Timo Scheider and Eric Van De Poele behind the wheel, stopped the clock at 2:18.012. This time was .305 faster than that set by Vincent Vosse, Kurt Mollekens, Christophe Bouchut and Gabriel Gardel in the Larbre Competitione run Ferrari 550 Maranello. In third place came Bert Longin, Anthony Kumpen, Mike Hezemans and Jeroen Bleekemolen driving the GLPK Racing entered Corvette C5-R with a time of 2:18.935. Fourth went to Andrea Bertolini, Karl Wendlinger and Phillipp Peter (2:19.517) in the first of the JMB Racing MC12's while next on the timesheet was the second Vitaphone car crewed by Fabio Babini, Thomas Biagi and Jamie Davies, who set a 2:19.925. The JMB Racing car, driven by Rob van der Zwaan, Arjan van der Zwaan, and Peter Kutemann, was sixth in 2:22.814.

Bartels, Scheider and Van de Poele confirmed that they would be aiming to be the trio to beat in the 24 Hour race after they also fastest in today’s second 90-minute free practice session.
 

The second free practice took place in hot, damp conditions, with the skies clouding over towards the end, followed by a heavy shower shortly after the end of the 90 minutes track time.

The Team Vitaphone MC12 cemented its position at the top of the timesheets thanks to a time of 2:16.680. This saw the crew beat off the challenge of the Corvette C5R by eight tenths (2:17.495). The Aston Martin DBR9 with Marc Goossens, Peter Kox - and regular Larbre Competitione Ferrari pilot - Pedro Lamy on board came home third in 2:18.163. A close fourth was the other Vitaphone MC12 (2:18.275). Bertolini, Wendlinger and Peter continued to use the sessions to perfect their race set up in the number 15 JMB Racing MC12. They set the fifth quickest time of 2:18.532 to edge out the Ferrari 550 Maranello crewed by Vosse, Mollekens, Bouchut, Gardel. R. van der Zwaan, A. van der Zwaan and Kutemann spent the two sessions familiarising themselves with JMB Racing’s other MC12, and they finished twelfth, with a lap of 2:23.867.

Perennial racer Gianni Guidici has taken time out from contesting the GT3 class in the CSAI Italia GT Championship to enter his Maserati Light. The eponymous Team Giudici’s Trofeo Light GT came in twenty seventh overall, with a time of 2:39.391. Raffaele Raimondi and Diego Romanini join Guidici in an all-Italian line-up, the trio taking on the Gillet Vertigo, a Chrysler Viper and six Porsche GT3 Cup racers for honours in the G2 class.