Successful Spa Classic for GDM Motors

GT3 Revival by SRO Motorsport

One of the highlights of the Spa Classic was the second round of the GT3 Revival Series. With the Aston Martin Vantage V12 driven by Guillaume Dumarey, GDM Motors immediately made its mark in the first of two races. Dumarey started from second place and held that position for a long time behind Jonathan Mitchell’s Aston Martin (Scott Sport), whilst also leading the Pro-Am class. A racing incident resulting in a red flag ultimately led to the race being neutralised after eight laps.

As the pit window had not yet opened when the red flag was shown, compensation time from the previous race could not be served. Five cars had time added post-race, the most notable being Mitchell, who dropped from P1 to P4 overall. This allowed Dumarey to claim victory in the first race, and that in his debut outing with the Aston Martin. He finished ahead of the Nissan GTR driven by Andrew Bentley and Max Lynn (Team Parker Racing) and the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG driven by Philip Kadoorie and Rob Huff (Motohistorics).

Unfortunately, he was unable to repeat this performance in the second race. Dumarey’s weekend took a more challenging turn during the second qualifying session, where traffic and interference from another car prevented him from setting a representative lap time. As a result, he could only qualify seventh for Race 2.

The consequences of his victory in the opening race also played a significant role. As the winner of Race 1, Dumarey was required to serve an additional 14 seconds during the mandatory pit stop, causing him to drop back to ninth position. However, GDM Motors and Lifelive Motorsport responded with a well-executed strategy in the aftermath of a safety car period. Making the most of the race’s closing stages, Dumarey fought his way back through the field to finish an impressive fifth overall.

Taking both races into account, the Spa Classic weekend can be considered a major success for GDM Motors. The Aston Martin had not been raced for a considerable period and was thoroughly inspected, prepared and finely tuned by the Lifelive Motorsport team before arriving at Spa-Francorchamps. Combined with Guillaume Dumarey’s determination and pace in his very first race weekend behind the wheel of a GT3 car, it proved to be the perfect recipe for a Belgian success story in the GT3 Revival Series at Spa-Francorchamps.

Heritage Touring Cup 2

Another category in which GDM Motors made an appearance was the Heritage Touring Cup 2, a touring car championship focused on the post-1982 era. Rey King and Konstantions Zannos clocked a time of 2'45"469 in qualifying with the original Volvo 240 Turbo, placing seventh in a strong field. The Volvo competes in the A1 category, reserved for cars built up to and including 1985, alongside iconic Group A machinery such as the BMW 635 CSi and Jaguar XJS. The A2 category is reserved for cars from 1986 onwards and includes considerably more powerful cars such as the BMW M3 E30, Ford Sierra Cosworth RS500 and Mercedes 190E 2.5-16. Despite qualifying seventh overall, the Volvo was moved back to the ninth row of the starting grid, effectively ruling out any chance of a top result.

Nevertheless, the Volvo once again demonstrated its potential throughout the race weekend. A number of minor technical issues prevented the drivers from maintaining their pace for the full race distance, but the car showed that it is more than capable of competing at the front of the A1 field. Once again, the team at Lifelive Motorsport did an outstanding job in preparing and running the car throughout the weekend.

In any case, that did nothing to spoil the race weekend. We’ll remember it above all for the excellent weather, the perfect organisation and, of course, the special atmosphere at the legendary Spa-Francorchamps circuit. In addition, GDM Motors also enjoyed its first successful collaboration with Lifelive Motorsport there.

Both the Volvo 240 Turbo and the BMW 635 CSi are now being prepared for an endurance test session during the summer months. After that, both cars will be fully ready for the Dix Mille Tours by Peter Auto at Circuit Paul Ricard on 29 and 30 August. Competing in the Heritage Touring Cup 2, they will once again represent the A1 category against a field of classic Group A touring cars. Set on the Côte d’Azur, Paul Ricard offers an accessible and enjoyable circuit in a unique atmosphere, making it the perfect finale to the summer racing season.

Fancy joining us next time in one of our cars in a perfect setting, just arrive and drive? Our next event is the Dix Mille Tours by Peter Auto, at the Circuit Paul Ricard on 29 and 30 August, where we will be competing in the Heritage Touring Cup 2 with our BMW 635 CSi and Volvo 240 Turbo.