By After hosting in June an Endurance World Championship round, the legendary Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium was the venue last weekend for the six-hours race finale of Belgian Masters of Endurance (previous two rounds at Zolder Circuit).
Post 140 completed laps, overall victory spoils, outright Championship honours were captured by M1000RR BMW propelled Masteroil by MRP team of IDM specialists in recent times Dutch rider Pepijn Bijsterbosch and German Jan Buhn, plus 2016 & 2022 IRRC Superbike Champion, Frohburger Dreieck lap record holder Vincent Lonbois.
Lonbois replaced the injured Come Geenen (third overall – IRRC Superbike 2024) who won with above-showcased riders Bijsterbosch, Buhn the prior series event at Zolder.
600-Pro category (40th overall race wise) winners were the British Team Danik Group Motorsport trio, ‘130 Mph Club’ TT member, first time TT Races podium finisher from last June, Dominic Herbertson, Dan Burnham and Dean Brown.
Second position outright at Spa was sealed by the Interbike Racing Team, 2015 & 2017 IRRC Superbike Champion Sebastien Le Grelle, former IRRC racers Gian Mertens, Nicky De Wit, 2nd in 2013 IRRC Superbike Championship, recent Belgian Twin Trophy participant around Frohburger Dreieck.
One position behind Le Grelle, Mertens, De Wit were Mototech GYTR Proshop team’s David Drieghe, Davy Maes (both IRRC experienced) and Arno Verstrepen.
Two times successive IRRC Supersport Champion in 2012 & 2013, Laurent Hoffmann formed part of fourteenth place finishers’ Team Seventy’s squad with no strangers to Circuit De Chimay, Patrick Vander Eeecken, Fedrik Matthys.
Team Ninet-One (10th place finishers) featured the respected Ouri Bikkems, Yan Ancia (sub 1.40 lap time at Chimay and sub 1.50 at Hengelo) and Sander Claessen, on Belgian Twin Trophy riding duties earlier this month at Frohburg, another member of sub 1.50 lap time group at Hengelo.
Further roads scene forces, new wave, seasoned, veterans competing included:
Fourth place finishers overall aside Arnaud De Kimpe, Team CL Racing’s Christopher Lequeux and Cedric Fievet.
Geert Verhelst (Chimay experienced), Wim Van Den Bossche, Thibault De Hert, Wes Kleinfeld (IRRC Supersport wild card at Chimay this year), Bram Lambrechts, Wouter De Cooman. Former TT riders, Dave Hewson and Richard Wilson riding under the Kibosh Obsession banner (63rd, last classified crew in Spa six-hours race).
Added UK entrants were Mid-Atlantic NWR’s Lee Devonport, Sam Middlemas, Nicky Wilson (15th place finishers), the KH Hire team of Kiaran Hankin, Mark Cheetham and Peter Whiteside.
It is great to see so many experienced road racers from IRRC, BeNeLux Trophy, Belgian Twin Trophy, TT action all competing at the same location. Hopefully many of them will appear at real road races next year at venues including Circuit De Chimay and the Hengelo hosted Varsselring.
Words by Jan Vavra
