The updated Spa-Francorchamps circuit on Monday hosted free practice sessions ahead of the famous 24 Hour event. The race will take place on 28-29 July.

Every team that will field a Maserati turned up so that they could get their preparations underway for the most important meet of the season. The occasion also meant that the drivers could get a look at the changes made to the Belgian track’s layout. These modifications include the stretch before the home straight (better known as ‘Bus Stop’) and the shifting of the ‘La Source’ hairpin. The paddock area has also been rebuilt with wider garages and a broader pit lane. Following these changes, the track length has increased to 7,004 metres from 6,968 metres. Heavy rain fell during the entire session, making the track surface slippery. However, the weather did not prevent the teams from deciding on their line-ups for the classic event.

The Vitaphone Racing Team, winners in both 2005 and 2006, will have Michael Bartels, Thomas Biagi, Eric Van De Poele and Pedro Lamy in the number 1 MC12. Taking care of the drive in the number 2 car will be the Miguel Ramos, Christian Montanari, Matteo Bobbi and Stéphane Lémeret crew.

Eric Van De Poele, already winner of four editions of the 24 Hours, will once more be flanked by Michael Bartels, who he topped the podium with in the last two races. Pedro Lamy will be climbing into the MC12 again after his victory in the 6 Hours of Vallelunga in 2006 when in Racing Box colours. Matteo Bobbi, the 2003 FIA GT champion alongside Thomas Biagi, will be making his debut in the Modenese GT. Another driver making his first appearance in the MC12 is Stéphane Lémeret, the Belgian who took second in the last 24 Hours.

The Scuderia Playteam Sarafree will be appearing for the first time at Spa in the FIA GT. In the number 11 for the outfit will be Andrea Bertolini, Andrea Piccini, Alessandro Pier Guidi and Fabrizio De Simone while Giambattista Giannoccaro, Massimiliano Busnelli and Alex Mueller are the drivers confirmed to share the drive in the number 12 car. The Milan based team still has to name its fourth driver. Fabrizio De Simone will be making a return to the GT1 class after competing in the MC12 in the 2004 FIA GT and in the 2005 ALMS championship.
 

Massimiliano Busnelli, currently taking part in the International GT Open, will make his FIA GT debut. Alex Mueller, on the other hand, has some endurance racing experience having already raced in the 24 Hours of Spa in 2004.

JMB Racing will go into the race with only one MC12, driven by Joe Macari, Ben Aucott, Phillippe Peter and Marino Franchitti. This means that Philippe Peter will be back driving a Maserati after his stint in 2005 when he also turned out for JMB Racing. Marino Franchitti, who can now be caught competing in the ALMS series, has never before driven the MC12 but has, in the past, done well in endurance races like the 1000km of Nürburgring.

The MC12 again proved its reliability in the test run at the Ardennes circuit, a track on which it has never been beaten. In the morning session, four Maseratis took places in the top six as the track conditions changed rapidly due to the rain. The quickest time of the day was set by the Vitaphone Racing Team’s Bartels/Biagi/Van de Poele/Lamy (2’17”096). The fourth fastest time went to JMB Racing (2’18”446), sixth to the Playteam driven by Bertolini/Piccini/Pier Guidi/De Simone (2’19”947), and seventh to the second Vitaphone Racing Team MC12 with Ramos/Montanari/Bobbi/Lémeret behind the wheel (2’19”990).

The sessions over, the FIA GT circus will move on straight away, destination Oschersleben and the fifth round of the season. The German circuit, like Belgium, is another where the MC12 defends a proud unbeaten record. In 2004, the Bertolini/Salo duo took the chequered flag. This win was matched in 2005 and 2006 as the Vitaphone Racing Team scored a splendid double victory.

The overall situation sees Maserati heading the Manufacturers’ standings with 56 points. The Vitaphone Racing Team leads the Teams’ championship on 40 points and Thomas Biagi commands the Drivers’ with 21.