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24 h Spa-Francorchamps

Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium

Date: 24/7/1971 to: 25/7/1971
Track length: 14.100 m
Attendance: 80.000/180.000?
Entries accepted: unknown
Starters: 60? 62?
Finishers: 19 (18 classified)

Pole position: Grauls in 4.04,5
Fastest lap: Grauls in 4.06,2 = 206,341 kmh

Distance: 24 hours
Average speed: 182,69 kmh
Weather: overcast, later rain showers
Ruleset: Group 2/70
Car info: 1971 Cars

Pictures

A star entry for Spa this year. Ten 3-litre BMW coupés, the obvious Camaro, fastest in practice once again, a string of Opel Commodores (of Transeurop and Steinmetz) and the Ford Capris of which there was doubt if they could withstand the 24-hour torture. As usual, Autodelta entered a string of Alfa Romeo’s.

And there was this outsider: a privateer Mercedes 300 SEL 6.8, tuned by AMG and finally driven by Heyer and Schickentanz after others had turned down the offer to drive the heavyweight (fresh Le Mans winner van Lennep amongst them, giving priority to a call from David Yorke for a race for the Wyer team). Finally, a Citroen SM to give a little extra colour to the field.

Glemser took the lead after the start, followed by the Camaro and the mighty Mercedes. After one hour, Lauda blew up the gearbox and had it replaced in the pits. All Commodores suffered from fuel pump failure, and the Camaro who had taken over the lead dropped back with overheating problems and oil loss. The order was now Glemser, the Camaro, Kelleners’ BMW and the Mercedes, which had to come in for fuel as often as the Camaro.
In spite of what was expected the Capris proved reliable, unlike Lauda’s BMW who had to give up after the gearbox was replaced for the second time.
At midnight, a thunderstorm caused a fatality, claiming the life of Raymond Mathay.

All group 2 BMW coupés had given up now, leaving the Ford duo in the lead, followed by the Mercedes four laps behind. But when Mass/Birrell in the second Capri had to retire, the AMG beast landed an unexpected second place after the winning Capri of Glemser/Soler-Roig. Third (not second this time!), fourth and fifth finishers was the Alfa Romeo GTAm armada. Since the Hezemans car had to be repaired (the engine head and the radiator had to be replaced), the other two team cars had passed him, but because Hezemans should win his class to keep his title chances open, strategy was called for. So the number 40 and 41 car had long pit stops, and the windows were cleaned like never before, enabling a 3-4-5 finish - and the King’s cup.


Division 1, 2 and 3
Pos Pos in class # Team / Entrant
Car- Engine
Drivers, Nationality Engine
vol. (cc)
Engine
Type
Group Distance,
time
Qualifying position Qualifying time Fastest lap Reason out,
remarks
1 1 22 Ford Köln
Ford Capri RS 2600
Dieter Glemser, D
Alex Soler-Roig, E
2873 V6 Gr. 2 Div. 3 311 laps 3 4.12,2    
2 2 35 AMG
Mercedes 300 SEL 6.3
Hans Heyer, D
Clemens Schickentanz, D
6834 V8 Gr. 2 Div. 3 308 5 4.14,5    
3 1 42 Autodelta S.p.A.
Alfa Romeo 2000 GTAm
Carlo Facetti, I
Toine Hezemans, NL
1985 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2 289 11 4.26,4    
4 2 40 Autodelta S.p.A.
Alfa Romeo 2000 GTAm
Nino Vaccarella, I
Jacques Berger, B
1985 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2 289 19 4.30,1    
5 3 41 Autodelta S.p.A.
Alfa Romeo 2000 GTAm
Philippe Toussaint, B
Pierre-Yves Bertinchamps, B
1985 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2 289 23 4.33,0    
6 3 23 Luigi Racing
BMW 2800 CS
Alain Peltier, B
Noël Van Assche ("Pedro"), B
2788 L6 Gr. 1 Div. 3 280 36 4.49,3    
7 4 25  
BMW 2800 CS
Pierre Maublanc, F
Nicolas Koob, L
2788 L6 Gr. 1 Div. 3 276 50 5.08,1    
8 5 34  
Opel Commodore GS
Dany Wauters, B
Rick Coemans, B
2998 L6 Gr. 1 Div. 3 275 40 4.53,4    
9 6 24  
BMW 2800 CS
Achim Warmbold, D
Rainer Braun, D
2788 L6 Gr. 1 Div. 3 269 46 5.01,8    
10 7 33  
BMW 2800 CS
Helmut Gall, D
Eckard Babendenderde, D
2996 L6 Gr. 1 Div. 3 262 45 5.01,2    
11 1 94  
NSU 1000 TTS
Lucien Guitteny, F
Jean-Claude Boucher, F
996 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1 255 52 5.12,1    
12 4 52 Ken Coffey/Westune
Ford Escort TC
Ken Coffey, GB
John Myerscough, GB
1594 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2 254 44 5.00,2    
13 2 73 Fernand Neri
Fiat 128 1300
Fernand Néri, B
Raffaele Pinto, I
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1 253 47 5.05,8    
14 3 87 East Belgian Racing Team
Alfa Romeo 1300 GTA Junior
Edgar Gillessen, B
Emmanuel Remion, B
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1 244 53 5.14,0    
15 4 82  
NSU 1200 TT
Lubbenz, D
Bernhard Niehaus, D
1296 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1 243 57 5.29,4    
16 5 57  
Moskvitch 412
Claude Collaer, B
Jean-P. Moers, B
1479 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2 237 59 5.34,6    
17 6 58  
Moskvitch 412
Willy Segers, B
Emile Businaro, B
1479 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2 236 60 5.38,7    
18 5 71 Team Broadspeed
Ford Escort 1300 GT
Robin Searle, GB
Vic Sanders, GB
1298 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1 222 54 5.17,6    
NC   79  
Alfa Romeo 1300 GTA Junior
Pierre Rubens, B
Charles van Rijn, B
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1 191 29 4.41,2    
DNF   18 Transeurop Racing/Gulf
Opel Commodore GS
Paul Joossens, B
Joost Byttebier, B
2998 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   13 4.26,5   Spun off
DNF   19 Écurie Azur
BMW 2800 CS
Raymond Mathay, B
Jean Xhenceval, B
2996 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   14 4.27,1   Fatal accident (Mathay)
DNF   1  
Chevrolet Camaro Z28
Ivo Grauls, B
Peter Hoffmann, D
7443 V8 Gr. 2 Div. 3   1 4.04,5 4.06,2 Head gasket
DNF   21 Ford Köln
Ford Capri RS 2600
Jochen Mass, D
Gerry Birrell, GB
2873 V6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   6 4.17,7   Camshaft
DNF   77 Autodelta S.p.A.
Alfa Romeo 1300 GTA Junior
Gianluigi Picchi, I
Teodoro Zeccoli, I
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   30 4.42,3   Valve/gearbox
DNF   27 Marabout Racing
Opel Commodore GS
Vincent Gaye, B
René Tricot, B
2784? L6 Gr. 1 Div. 3   39 4.52,5   Head Gasket
DNF   47 BMW-Alpina
BMW 2002
Gerold Pankl, A
Hans-Joachim Stuck, D
1990 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   15 4.27,6   Piston
DNF   15 Steinmetz Automobiltechnik
Opel Commodore GS
Taf Gosselin, B
Teddy Pilette, B
2998 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   8 4.18,9   Head Gasket
DNF   74 Fernand Neri
Fiat 128 1300
Marco de Tomasi, I
Antonio Vimercati, I
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   48 5.06,5   Spun off
DNF   76  
Alfa Romeo 1300 GTA Junior
Massimo Larini, I
Luigi Colzani, I
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   37 4.50,8   Spun off, alternator
DNF   90  
Alfa Romeo 1300 GTA Junior
Daniel Dezy, B
Dino Pizzinato, L
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   43 4.59,7   Gearbox
DNF   51 Racing Team BP/British Vita
Ford Escort RS 1600
Han Akersloot, NL
Yvette Fontaine, B
1701 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   16 4.28,0   Driveshaft
DNF   48 Team Schnitzer Motul
BMW 2800 CS
Rauno Aaltonen, SF
Helmut Kelleners, D
2996 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   4 4.13,6   DQ too long repair
DNF   53 Ford Köln
Ford Escort RS 1600
John Fitzpatrick, GB
François Mazet, F
1701 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   7 4.18,5   Flywheel
DNF   32 Grab Ford Siegen
Ford Capri RS 2600
Harald Menzel, D
Bernd Blank, D
2873 V6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   22 4.32,4   Oil pressure
DNF   75 Écurie Grafo
Alfa Romeo 1300 GTA Junior
"Jean Hex", B
Claude Collignon, B
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   51 5.09,0   Piston
DNF   81 Écurie Van Stolle
Alfa Romeo 1300 GTA Junior
Charles Van Stalle ("Chavan"), B
Guy Chasseuil, F
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   32 4.43,2   Piston
DNF   64  
BMW 2002 TI
Bernd Henne, D
Helmut "Helle" Bein, D
1990 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   17 4.28,5   Driveshaft
DNF   10 BMW-Alpina
BMW 2800 CS
Niki Lauda, A
Gérard Larrousse, F
2996 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   2 4.09,9   Gearbox
DNF   17 Steinmetz Automobiltechnik
Opel Commodore GS
Claude Bourgoignie, B
Yves Deprez, B
2998 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   21 4.31,6   Oil pump
DNF   44 Écurie Grafo
Alfa Romeo 2000 GTAm
Gérald Simonis, B
Luc Goris, B
1985 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   34 4.44,7   Gearbox
DNF   43 Écurie Grafo
Alfa Romeo 2000 GTAm
Jean-Claude Franck, B
Robert Derom, B
1985 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   27 4.39,8   Piston
DNF   26 Team Lucien Bianchi
Citroën SM
Roland De Jamblinne, B
Jacques Bigrat ("Bagrit"), F
2670 V6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   26 4.36,5   Engine
DNF   16 Steinmetz Automobiltechnik
Opel Commodore GS
Willy Braillard, B
Paul Verbeeck, B
2998 L6 Div. 3   12 4.26,4   Oil pump
DNF   12 BMW-Alpina
BMW 2800 CS
Liane Engeman, NL
Christine Beckers ("Christine"), B
2996 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   10 4.23,4   Engine
DNF   30  
Chevrolet Camaro
Jean-Pierre "Pino" Ortmans, B
Edouard Duvigneaud, B
6500 V8 Gr. 1 Div. 3   35 4.46,4   Brakes
DNF   9 Castrol BMW Team
BMW 2800 CS
Dominique Moorkens, B
Jean-Louis Haxhe, B
2996 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   28 4.40,8   Engine
DNF   54 Team Broadspeed
Ford Escort RS 1600
Mike Crabtree, GB
Trevor Taylor, GB
1701? L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   9 4.19,0   Piston
DNF   55  
Alfa Romeo 1300 GTA Junior
Vincenzo Cazzago ("Pooky"), I
Umberto Grano, I
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   33 4.44,7   Piston
DNF   60  
BMW 2002 TI
Rudy Host ("MacIntosh"), B
Pieter Cath, B
1990 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   42 4.55,4   Engine
DNF   70  
BMC Mini Cooper S
Jacques Hendrickx, B
Philippe Verdeyen, B
1293 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   55 5.22,9   Clutch
DNF   80 Team Broadspeed
Ford Escort 1300 GT
Dave Matthews, GB
Rod Mansfield, GB
1298 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   25 4.36,3   Suspension
DNF   78 Scuderia Palladio
Fiat 128
Jacopo "Pino" Trivellato, I
Angelino Lepri, I
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1   49 5.06,8   Engine
DNF   50 Racing Team BP
Ford Escort RS 1600
Hughes de Fierlant, B
Pierre Dieudonné, B
1800 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   18 4.29,3   Gear selection
DNF   20  
BMW 2800 CS
Karl-Heinz Eisenschenk, D
Hans-Günther Stoffel, D
2996 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   31 4.42,6   Spun off
DNF   7 VDS Racing team
Ford Mustang Boss
Serge Trosch, B
Martin Birrane, IRL
4965 V8 Gr. 1 Div. 3   41 4.53,9   Engine
DNF   72 Fernand Neri
Fiat 128
Frank van der Mast, NL
Man Bergsteijn, NL
1148 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1 7 56 5.27,1   Head gasket
DNF   66  
BMW 2002 TI
Alex Aebersold, CH
Cuno Ackermann, CH
Peter Wiederkehr, CH
1990 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   20 4.30,3   Ignition
DNF   56  
Moskvitch 412
Jean-Marie Lagae, B
Etienne Stalpaert, B
1479 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2   58 5.33,8   Head Gasket
DNF   2  
Chevrolet Camaro Z28
Marie-Claude Charmasson ("Beaumont"), F
Gabrielle Konig, GB
5736 V8 Gr. 1 Div. 3   38 4.52,0   Oil pressure
DNF   14 Steinmetz Automobiltechnik
Opel Commodore GS
Chris Tuerlinx, B
Henri Greder, F
2998 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   24 4.35,5   Oil pressure
DNS   11 BMW-Alpina
BMW 2800 CS
Gunther Huber, A
Willi Kauhsen, D
2996 L6 Gr. 2 Div. 3   (6) 4.16,2   Accident in practice
DNS   61  
BMW 2002 TI
Guy Brunninghausen, B
Maurice Lenaif ("Alix"), B
1990 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2     5.00,2    
DNS   3 Roger Lamoral
Chevrolet Camaro
Roger Lamoral, F
Sylvain Garant, F
7000 V8 Gr. ? Div. 3     5.10,9   Engine
DNS   63  
BMW 2002 TI
A. Clement, F
Y. Martin, F
1990 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2     5.15,3    
DNS   92  
Renault R 8 Gordini
Roman Feitler, L
Pascal Mathieu, L
1255 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1     5.16,1    
DNS   62  
Ford Escort RS 1600
Wolfgang Stumpf, A
Hanno Maurer-Stroh, A
  L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2     5.21,1    
DNS   91  
Alfa Romeo 1300 GT Junior
Bernard Carlier, B
Marcel Engels, B
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1     5.27,7    
DNS   86  
Renault R 8 Gordini
Jean-Marie Morlet, B
Michel Lurquin, B
1255 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1     5.28,8    
DNS   88  
NSU 1000 TTS
Jean-Baptiste Laurent, B
Marcel Tombeur, B
996 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1     5.29,0    
DNS   89  
Alfa Romeo 1300 GT Junior
Michel Degraeve, B
M. Lessenes, B
1290 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1     5.32,4    
DNS   59  
Moskvitch 412
Jacques Dernelle, B
Jean-Pierre Guyette, B
1479 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 2     5.33,0    
DNS/DNQ?   93  
NSU 1200 TT
D. Vincent, F
Gilles Delafosse, F
1296 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1     5.46,5    
DNQ   8  
Ford Capri RS 2600
Jean-Claude Geurie, F
Jean-Francois Piot, F
2873 V6 Gr. 2 Div. 3     no time   Fuel pump
DNA   83 Scuderia Filipinetti
Fiat 128
Claude Haldi, CH
Bernard Chenevière, CH
1148 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1          
DNA   84 Scuderia Filipinetti
Fiat 128
Walter Dona, I
Jean-Jacques Cochet, F
1148 L4 Gr. 2 Div. 1          
DNA   5  
Chevrolet Camaro
Jean Sage, F
Jean-Pierre Hanrioud, F
  V8 Gr. 1? Div. 3          

Remarks: King’s cup: Alfa Romeo; Spanish TCC coefficient: 10,0