Rob and Ricky Collard are celebrating having made history together as the first father/son teammates to win the 24 Hours of Spa (25 October).
Together with Leo Machitski and Sandy Mitchell the quartet took the Pro-Am Class win in their #77 Barwell Motorsport Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo at the end of a treacherous race with mixed weather conditions throughout.
They started fourth in class (41th overall) with Rob Collard at the wheel and recovered from a second-lap spin and puncture to move up the order following the first round of pit-stops. After the early set-back, Collard was the last of the Lamborghinis – and one of the last cars in the field – to pit at the end of the first hour, swapping with Lamborghini GT3 Junior Driver Mitchell.
The Scot handed over to Ricky Collard before switching with father Rob, who completed an impressive quadruple stint before the end of the seventh hour where the #77 reclaimed the class lead.
This lead ebbed and flowed throughout the night, with the #93 Tempesta Racing Ferrari and the #188 Garage 59 Aston Martin providing stern tests for the #77. Come the morning though, Mitchell, Collard, Collard and Machitski emerged at the front once more and took the chequered flag by more than a lap’s margin and 15th overall.
This was the first time the prestigious 24 Hours of Spa had been held outside of its traditional July/October date, which threw up a number of challenging variables. The race started in almost dry conditions, but it wasn’t long before the typical Spa rain showers hit the circuit. The track did dry up in the early hours of the morning, but persistent rain for the final quarter ensured tyre choice and calculated driving was necessary.
