WEATHER
The hot and heavy weather broke during the evening break, and the resulting rainshower meant that the first hour of night qualifying was declared a wet practice. The drivers were all warned that it was particularly wet at Stavelot and Blanchimont. The weather grew gradually worse as the night progressed.
RULES AND REGULATIONS
To qualify for the race, all the drivers have to complete three laps of the track in night conditions. All drivers also have to set a lap time within 125% of the average time set by the three fastest cars, and within 110 % of the best time in their category.
NIGHT QUALIFYING :
Fastest in both free practice sessions, the nr 3 Carsport Holland Chrysler Viper GTS-R claimed provisional pole in a wet night session, while the nr 63 JMB Competition Ferrari 360 Modena was fastest in the N-GT category. In Category 2, the nr 88 Belgian Racing Vertigo Streiff took provisional pole, with Land Motorsport Porsche Carrera 996 on provisional pole for Category 3.
FIRST NIGHT SESSION
The session started with the three Paul Belmondo Chrysler Vipers at the top of the tables, until Mike Hezemans set a lap of 2:24.05, placing the nr 3 Carsport Holland Chrysler Viper GTS-R back into the lead. Shortly before 10 pm, Emanuele Naspetti put the nr 5 Rafanelli Ferrari 550 Modena up into second place, with a lap of 2:25.273, despite the worsening conditions. Setting a good time was something of a lottery, depending on choosing the right tyres at the right time. Those drivers who missed the first minutes of the session, or moved to wet tyres too soon, found it difficult to set a competitive time.
Throughout the session, the battle for the N-GT lead was between David Terrien in the nr 62 JMB Competition Ferrari 360 Modena, and Stephane Ortelli in the nr 58 Freisinger Porsche 996 GT3-R. Ortelli's best time of 2:33.149 was eventually eclipsed by Terrien's time of 2:32.661.
Half way through the session, most cars were going out on wet or intermediate tyres, and times were significantly slower, with visibility extremely low. Most teams therefore concentrated on getting their drivers qualified, setting the three obligatory night laps. Shortly before the end of the session the Cirtek Motorsport Porsche 996 GT3-R stopped on the track, having run out of fuel.
At the end of the session, the nr 3 Carsport Holland Chrysler Viper GTS-R still led the timesheets, over a second ahead of the nr 5 Rafanelli Ferrari 550 Maranello. They were followed by the three Paul Belmondo Chrysler Vipers, with the second Carsport Viper in sixth. Unusually, the nr 7 Larbre Competition Chéreau Chrysler Viper GTS-R, currently leading the Championship, was 11th, after choosing the wrong tyres early in the session.
SECOND NIGHT SESSION
The second session started wet, and times remained relatively slow, although the rain was slowing by mid-way through the session. However, the track remained damp, so that no-one was able to improve on their times.
Created and Designed by Joe Favata
