It is the finale, of the 2023 SRO Intercontinental GT Challenge, the Gulf 12 Hours at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi. We have a field of 28 GT3 cars set to do battle, and championships on the line for drivers' and manufacturers' honors that will come down to two German heavyweights, the roundel of BMW (Bavarian Motorwerks) vs. the three-pointed star of Mercedes Benz, Mercedes-AMG. Some teams have three nominated drivers while others have four and I believe it depends on the driver's FIA ratings. We join, for the 13th edition of this race, Alan Hyde, our pit reporter, joining alongside our team in the broadcast booth, with David Addison and Mark Werrell. We have a great race track, great weather, and a wonderful entry of cars and drivers.
Drivers and manufacturers championships are on the line in addition to the race itself. So, any way you slice it, this is going to be a barnburner, perhaps. We've got 12 hours of racing ahead. A professional driver knows the rollercoaster. Last year, we predicted the Mercedes cars would be bulletproof and they weren't. The traffic and unavoidable incidents could turn the motor race on its head. You just cannot predict anything. Stefano Constantini had a massive wreck in qualifying and the car was completely written off. Stefano Constantini, Yannick Mettler, HASH, and Alex Fontana will not start this race. This is an arduous 12 hours of racing coming up.
GT3 is a global success story thanks to Stephane Ratel. There are tons of championships that run GT3 cars and the whole situation is absolutely awesome. So many great cars and so many great engine noises that are all different. GT cars are all different shapes, sizes, and engines. Small vs. big, naturally aspirated vs. turbocharged, and they all make this fabulous noise. The cars are coming out to the grid. This is the 12th Gulf 12 Hours at Yas Marina of the 13 races that have been run. There are titles up for grabs in a number of the classes. The BMW and Mercedes-AMG manufacturers' battle is only nine points apart.
The W Hotel surrounds Yas Marina, and we saw Valentino Rossi take us for a lap of this track earlier on. The cars are on the grid and the #99 pole sitting Mercedes-AMG GT3 has not yet ventured onto the track, the car of Maro Engel, Luca Stolz, and Mikael Grenier. One sole Audi is in the race and we have no Lamborghini's, but we have the Ferrari's, BMW's, Mercedes', McLaren's, Porsche's, and a few more. We'll talk about all of them as this race goes on today, tonight in the United States, and well, Sunday afternoon obviously, in Abu Dhabi. Ferrari's have won this race the most between the 458 Italia and the 488 model. This is the first race in Abu Dhabi for the new 296 GT3.
Last year we ran this race for a full 12 hours without any breaks and we had seven yellows last year as well. We saw a couple big accidents in qualifying last night but believe me, we hope and pray for a safe race today. We've lost the Porsche and we've lost the Mercedes from Seven T Six, so 24 cars will start the race this afternoon. Nobody knows what the true pace is going to be. Ten regulation pit stops are called for. Last year, we saw pit stops taken on the first lap and at the end of each hour which is compulsory, the ten of them. If they are done under safety car conditions, it is not classified as an imposed pit stop that lasts five minutes.
100 seconds including the refueling, tire change, and driver change, is the minimum pit stop delta with only one joker allowed. The cars are off on their formation laps. Again, 24 cars starting. Yas Marina has everything in it, fast and slow corners, straightaways, you name it. We thought we knew who would win last year and were surprised and again, we are dealing with the same scenario. Here comes the field towards turns 15 and 16 with the all-Mercedes front row. Maro Engel and Maximilian Gotz with Antares Au and Dries Vanthoor. Away we go! We're racing! All sorts of scrambling into the first corner.
Antares Au could have an issue with the Porsche and there is a spinning McLaren in turn two, look. Is that Mark Radcliffe? No. It is Chris Froggatt in the #93 Sky Tempesta McLaren 720S GT3. Did he have contact with another car? There was surely a bottleneck somewhere. Everyone wants to pass right on the first lap. All this 'calm down, sunbeam' stuff is not going to work with a racing driver. Milka Panu in the sole Audi in the race is moving up and we are setting up for pit stops right away. Maro Engel in the lane. Maximilian Gotz is now your new leader. Two of the top three are in the pit lane.
Antares Au, the Hong Kong driver, he had to do a control, alt, delete, and now, he is back in the motor race. No need for driver changes, tires, or fuel. They will take fuel and just wait. Maro Engel has taken tires, so he will have fresher boots on all four corners. Brenton Grove having a go on Giorgio Roda in the #11 Ferrari 296 GT3. That is Giorgio Roda in the Kessel Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 and now Sheldon van der Linde in the lane for the #32 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3. Chris Froggatt and Antares Au are back into the motor race.
Incident at turn three noted by the marshals, by the stewards in Race Control. Milka Panu of Finland makes a pass on one of the two 2 Seas Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3's. Maro Engel is just ahead of Dries Vanthoor as Lucas Auer makes a pit stop in the #77 Mercedes-AMG GT3. This is the GruppeM car of Lucas Auer. He shares with Frank Bird and Lorenzo Ferrari. Engel is 22nd and now Maxi Gotz has the #14 2 Seas Motorsports Mercedes in the lane. Gotz sharing with Jules Gounon and Fabian Schiller. They have four tires, new sticker tires bolted onto the car. One rattle gun used for each side of the car.
Meanwhile, Giorgio Roda has just passed Sean Balfe. Louis Prette will lead ahead of Mark Radcliffe now and Giorgio Roda and Martin Konrad are both pushing hard and Milka Panu, the Finlander, he has been in Creventic racing lately but is stepping up to the big leagues now. I hope to follow more Creventic racing here in the coming weeks and will post those to the blog as soon as possible. Louis Prette, Brenton Grove, Mark Radcliffe, Giorgio Roda, Martin Konrad, and now we have a Porsche battle between Herberth Motorsports and Car Collection Motorsports. Mark Radcliffe vs. Ralf Bohn. Maro Engel uncorks fastest lap on new tires at 1:51.2.
Dries Vanthoor at 1:51.6 and Sheldon van der Linde at 1:52.2. Dustin Blackner in one of the Porsche's went off the road and Giorgio Roda ran wide out of turn two and he was ahead of Chris Froggatt's McLaren I believe. Froggatt has not pitted yet so he should be OK for the time being. OK. Hopefully this race simmers down for a wee while. Sheldon van der Linde in the BMW M4 GT3 remains on the lead lap as Louis Prette leads the motor race in the Garage 59 McLaren 720S GT3. Louis Prette was being talked about by his driver coach, 1998 24 Hours of Le Mans winner, Stephane Ortelli, about how well he has been doing.
Prette, the Monegasque is your leader. We have six brands in this race and all six are in the top seven places thus far. Milka Panu and Giorgio Roda are really going for it. Brenton Grove, the Australian, is second in the Porsche 911 GT3R (992). Stephen and Brenton Grove sharing with Richie Stanaway. Stanaway making his return to GT racing after being a factory works FIA World Endurance Championship driver for Aston Martin many moons ago. There are some draconian and confusing rules on the pit stops, to put emphasis on the pit crew and the driver to get it right so you don't gain time advantages over your rivals. We have eight laps now on the board.
Brenton and Steven Grove are son and father, and Richie Stanaway is their third driver. Martin Konrad reeling in Mark Radcliffe for third place. Radcliffe, a rookie. He makes a mistake into turn five and Martin Konrad says, "thanks, mate" and whistles right by. Milka Panu and Giorgio Roda are now right on Radcliffe's six. Panu wriggles through the corner and continues chasing Mark Radcliffe. This first stint has been fun to watch, and we only have 20 minutes on the board. Sean Balfe is being caught hand over fist by Ralf Bohn. Miguel Ramos and Dustin Blattner are making inroads. Balfe in the McLaren followed by a couple of Porsche's.
The most recent race we saw for IGTC was at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway for the Indianapolis 8 Hours back in October. There is a long, long way to go yet. Maybe Sean Balfe is letting quicker cars by and he is making his debut here at Yas Marina. Balfe ran with Rob Bell in a McLaren in the British GT Championship a handful of years ago. Martin Konrad is chasing Brenton Grove in the Independent Cup for the IGTC. The factory cars all pitted early doors. This is a 12-hour sprint race. It really is. Milka Panu has made his move on Mark Radcliffe, the Audi R8 LMS Evo II vs. the McLaren 720S GT3.
Miguel Ramos in the Ferrari is coming, fast. He has one of the new Ferrari 296 GT3's. Team managers of McLaren #93 and Ferrari #11 are to report to the stewards' office for a discussion. No pain au chocolat and cafe, or tea and biscuits for you. Blattner in the #21 Car Collection Porsche 911 GT3R and the sister car crashed hard in qualifying with Stefano Constantini, the Italian, who was to have shared it with HASH, Alex Fontana, and with Yannick Mettler as Antares Au passes by Kriton Lendoudis, the Greek driver. Lendoudis driving another Porsche. Manuela Gostner is pressing in the green MP Motorsports Mercedes-AMG GT3 on another of the Porsche's. I can't tell who it is though.
So, Louis Prette continues to lead. However, the deal is that Brenton Grove is still being chased by Martin Konrad. Chris Froggatt has moved back up to 12th place and we are almost half an hour into this motor race. Froggatt in an IGTC eligible car, he shares with Jonathan Hui and Eddie Cheever III. Sean Balfe is sharing Mark Sanson, Oliver Goethe and Benjamin Goethe and the Sky Tempesta car has this driver lineup. It is Kevin Tse, Eddie Cheever III., Jonathan Hui, and Chris Froggatt. The Grove team have done so well at their home circuit at Mount Panorama Bathurst in Australia, and we will be seeing the next IGTC season start there, in a couple months, in the middle of February.
It is a shame we do not have a Porsche that has an all-pro lineup, but they don't really need one. Martin Konrad chipping away the margin to Brenton Grove. Louis Prette leading the motor race by 11 seconds or so. Yellow flag at turn 13. Is that to remove the dud cone? The bollard that got squished. Someone has clipped the cone, and it has fallen over and become a sleeping policeman, a speed bump. Into the pit lane comes Martin Konrad for service. 17 laps on the board now. Full Course Yellow in ten seconds as the #3 and #75 Mercedes' are both in the pit lane.
Full Course Yellow, now. There are cones all over the shop, look. 17 laps, 56 miles. A brave marshal hops over the wall and clears the bollard out of the way. Martin Konrad handed the #75 SunEnergy1 Mercedes to Kenny Habul while Ian Loggie stays in the car, and we are back to green. Loggie in the 2 Seas Motorsports Mercedes he shares with Al Faisal Al Zubair and Isa Al Khalifa. Maximilian Gotz is trying to pass the Tsunami RT Porsche 911 GT3R of Johannes Zelger and does so. Zelger sharing with Davide Scannicchio, Marco Cassara, and Stefano Borghi.
Manuela Gostner passes for 18th place in the MP Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3. Manuela Gostner sharing her family car with Thomas Gostner, Corinna Gostner, and David Gostner. Father, son, and two daughters, I believe. Ralf Bohn is chasing Mark Radcliffe and behind Bohn it is Giorgio Roda with 21 laps on the board. Chris Froggatt has now moved into the top ten. Antares Au is passed by Maro Engel. Look for Dustin Blackner who is chasing Miguel Ramos and Sean Balfe is making good his escape. Ralf Bohn is still on Mark Radcliffe's tail. Giorgio Roda is handed a ten second penalty on the next pit stop for causing a collision, a ten second penalty before the team starts their pit stop.
We saw Roda run wide before getting back onto the circuit. No damage for either driver in the aforementioned shemozzle. In 13 minutes, we will indeed be at the end of the first hour. Maro Engel in 12th in the #99 GruppeM Mercedes-AMG GT3. Kenny Habul is stymied in traffic having cleared Johannes Zelger but is now in chase mode and in the meantime, Giorgio Roda is chasing Mark Radcliffe and Ralf Bohn. Engel is motoring away from Dries Vanthoor, currently. Those two blokes were the first of the pit stop takers and are leading the Pro divison but running 12th and 13th overall.
Sean Balfe, Miguel Ramos, and Justin Blackner continue squabbling. Mark Ratcliffe's gap to Ralf Bohn continues to stretch out. Whoa! Sean Balfe lostrs the tail of the McLaren, spins, and... ker-runch! He obliterates the front end of the McLaren! Game over! Safety car scramble. Safety car scramble. Maro Engel in the lane for service. In replay at tutrn one, Sean Balfe hooks the wheel on the curb, spins, and... boom! He clobbers the wall and creams the front end! Ouch! Maro Engel in the pit lane and so is the #77 both taking fuel and tires.
Sean Balfe gingerly gets out of the car, sits down, and goes over the barrier. Hopefully he isn't winded. That was a massive impact! He did hobble away from that automobile, the Armco barriers withstanding the ferocity of the impact, but that McLaren is a write-off, a worthless pile of junk, off to the scrapyard. In replay, he ran wide, hooked a wheel, and... smash! Straight into the barrier. The Garage 59 McLaren team said Sean Balfe felt wobbly, so, he's probably a little dizzy and has had the wind knocked out of him. Such a shame we will not see Mark Sanson and the Goethe brothers, Oliver Goethe and Benjamin Goethe.
Into the lane is the #20 Ferrari 296 GT3, one of the two AF Corse entries having a quick pit stop. The pit stops under yellow will not count towards the compulsory ones that must be made. Garage 59 will have a Captain Cook at the McLaren but it will be a retirement. The barriers might be OK compared to last night's qualifying wreck for poor old Stefano Constantini. Brenton Grove is now in the lane for service. Do you come in during these stops that don't count? You still have to serve ten more 100 second regulation pit stops.
Milka Panu is now in second place in the Audi R8. Watching the Sean Balfe crash again, he hits the barroers, and these shards of carbon fiber explode and get strewn across the road because they are like razor blades and could puncture a tire. Louis Prette, Milka Panu, Ralf Bohn, the top three. Mark Radcliffe is fourth followed by Giorgio Roda and Miguel Ramos. The leading Pro entry is Dries Vanthoor in the BMW M4 GT3, the #46 car. Sean Balfe's car has been recovered onto the flatbed.
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