Historic Endurance with positive results from its visit to Pau...
... and prepares for the rendez-vous at Spa-Francorchamps
Historic Endurance has once again made its mark on its return to the streets of Pau, spreading elegance and speed across the Circuit de Pau-Ville. The eclectic field of the Race Ready competition now travels to the Spa-Francorchamps Circuit for one of the highlights of the season.
Diogo Ferrão, CEO of Race Ready, saw this return to the Pau Classic Grand Prix as the resumption of a Historic Endurance tradition, which has visited the Pyrenees-Atlantic region since 2014 and which in the last two years has been deprived of this tradition due to the event not being held.
"We were delighted to return to the Pau street circuit and to the Historic Grand Prix weekend, resuming a tradition that is now nine years old. In addition to having gathered the largest starting grid of all the races on the programme, we witnessed two very interesting races, with various battles between such different cars on a circuit where it is not particularly easy to overtake. It's also worth noting that, from our first visit to Pau, the three 3Cs - "No Crashing, No Cheating, No Complaning" - have been followed to the letter both on and off the track."
After the start of the season in Barcelona and this unforgettable passage through France, the competition governed by the motto "Relaxed Historic Racing" heads to Belgium to compete on what is considered by many to be "Le plus beau Circuit du Monde".
"We will complete our international 'tour' by going to Spa-Francorchamps in just over a month's time. This is one of the most spectacular and mythical circuits in the world, of which we have great memories and it is very dear to our drivers. We have seventy entries, including some cars that can only be found on the great international stages," emphasizes Diogo Ferrão.
This year's running of the 3 Hours of Spa for GT and Tourism cars built until 1976 will take place on the weekend of June 25 and 26 as part of the Spa Summer Classic weekend.
#3HSpa - What to expect...
More competitors. New participants. Dream cars.
Besides the usual Historic Endurance drivers and teams, the Ardennes race usually attracts a lot of fascinating cars that give another charm and elegance to the starting grid. Among the seven dozen participants, from ten different nationalities, are some of the 'habitués' of the Historic Endurance, as well as four Shelby Cobra or a rare Ferrari 308 GR4 Facetti. Restored by Gipimotor, and engine by Roelofs, as the name indicates, this car was a creation of the former Ferrari Formula 1 engineer Carlo Facetti, having won races in Italy and completed the 24 Hours of Daytona back in the day.
#PauClassicGP - The untold stories...
The only Japanese car
In such a diverse field, where twelve car manufacturers were represented, the Portuguese Trisport team lined up with the only Japanese car at the start. Rented to the French duo Samuel Vidal/Frédéric Lariau, the Datsun 1200 did justice to its reliability, finishing both races of 45 minutes, in the twelfth and ninth positions of the Gentlemen Driver Spirit (GDS) class in the first and second race, respectively.
On the other hand, the link between Japanese drivers and Historic Endurance visit to Pau remains strong, with at least one driver from the land of the rising sun taking part in every single race of the series here. This year it was Lotus collector Katsu Kubota, who drove an Elan and took a double podium finish in the H-1965 category, to fly the flag of his country in France.
A dream of racing here
At the wheel of an MG B Roadster, Paul Rayment, who teamed up with James Wheeler, travelled to Pau to fulfil a dream of driving on this circuit where, when he was young, he saw his father race. His MG B Roadster broke a suspension arm on the last lap of the first race, but he still finished second in the GDS class. Thanks to the precious help of the Portuguese team RP Motorsport the British pair managed to get back on track for the second race.
The Alfa Romeo GTP
As the name says, Grand Touring Prototype and Sport Cars, the GTP & SC class is meant for prototypes and sportscars, so many people wonder why Paulo Rompante's Alfa Romeo Ti Super runs there. Bought in the Netherlands, the Portuguese driver Alfa Romeo is fitted with a 2000cc engine, which was used in races in the United States of America, and that's why it runs in the GTP & SC class. After a DNF in the first race, a spectacular second race, where Paulo Rompante climbed twenty-five positions, allowed the red and white Alfa Romeo to close the weekend with a fourth place in the GTP & SC class.
Over thirty thousand spectators
According to figures from the French organisation, 35,000 spectators watched on site the return of the Pau Classic Grand Prix. This, without counting the numerous spectators who took the opportunity to follow the races 'free of charge' from the Boulevard des Pyrénées. In addition to the races, which are in themselves moving exhibitions, many other activities and exhibitions complemented the off-track spectacle.
