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Manthey EMA leads Porsche 1-2 at the FIA WEC Six Hours of Spa-Francorchamps

• FIA WEC debut victory for Richard Lietz, Morris Schuring and Yasser Shahin in the #91 Manthey EMA Porsche
• Second place for Manthey Pure Rxcing's #92 to complete the team's one-two finish
• Manthey EMA moves up to sixth place in the team standings, Manthey PureRxcing extends its championship lead with the race result

Manthey EMA and Manthey PureRxcing scored a double podium in the FIA WEC LM GT3 class with a 1-2 finish in the six-hour race at Spa-Francorchamps. Richard Lietz made up eight positions in his stint, regained the lead on the final lap of the race and, together with teammates Morris Schuring and Yasser Shahin, secured Manthey EMA's first victory in the World Endurance Championship. The #92 sister car crossed the finish line in second place shortly afterwards, further extending its lead in the LM GT3 Team and Drivers' Championships. The Manthey PureRxcing Porsche was only able to compete thanks to the efforts of the Manthey crew, who rebuilt the car overnight after an accident the day before.

The third round of the FIA WEC at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium started with the #91 and Yasser Shahin in third position on the grid in third, while Alex Malykhin in the #92 would line up in eighth. Yasser made a good start in the #91, and the team worked its way up the field. Morris Schuring took over at the wheel around 20 minutes before the four-hour mark, and moved into the race lead, clocking up the first lead kilometres with the Manthey EMA Porsche 911 GT3 R in the FIA WEC. The Manthey PureRxcing Porsche 911 GT3 R, which had crashed in the Eau Rouge/Raidillon section in the Hyperpole session the day before, was only able to start because the Manthey crew had rebuilt the car by the next morning. Alex Malykhin was unharmed in the accident and was medically cleared to race. The Briton confirmed this with a flawless start, moving up a position on the first lap.

After four hours and 15 minutes, the race was interrupted due to an accident. The red flag favoured the cars that had pitted earlier, like the Manthey PureRxcing crew. Currently leading the pack, the #91 car had a planned pit stop and driver change to take place after the restart, ultimately costing positions. As a result, the pitstop saw Richard Lietz starting the final 90 minutes of the race in ninth place. The two Manthey Porsches continued to make up positions as the race entered the final stages, and were on course for a podium finish in second (#92) and third (#91) shortly before the end of the race. A late pitstop for the leading Lamborghini saw the #92 inherit the lead, but with fuel running low they also had to conserve its last fuel reserves over the final few kilometres. This allowed Richard Lietz in the Manthey EMA sister car to regain the lead on the last lap of the race.

This result marked both the first win for the driver trio of Richard Lietz, Morris Schuring and Yasser Shahin, and the first double podium for Manthey in the LM GT3 category of the FIA World Endurance Championship. With a third podium in the third round of the FIA WEC, Manthey PureRxcing has extended its lead in the team and driver standings to 35 points.

“I am very proud of our whole team. This weekend has shown that this is a team sport. Rebuilding the #92 after the serious accident, and then being able to fight for the victory with it is a really strong performance. The race was strategically very challenging. We made a few clever strategic moves, the mechanics did a great job despite working a night shift, and everyone really contributed to this one-two victory,” summarised Nicolas Raeder, Managing Director of Manthey Racing GmbH.

With the next round of the FIA World Endurance Championship at Le Mans, 15-16 June, the highlight of the WEC season is next on the agenda for Manthey. Before that, the team will contest the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring from 30 May-2 June with a Porsche 911 GT3 R.

Quotes on the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps:

Richard Lietz, Porsche 911 GT3 R #91: “What a turbulent race! Firstly, Manthey worked incredibly hard to get the #92 car back on track. The crew then drove a strong race today. Yasser did a great job for us and had a great qualifying. Morris drove to the front and led comfortably until the red flag. Then it was uncertain for a long time how and whether things would continue. In the end, the race director decided to restart the race. I pushed as hard as I could for an hour and a half, and was able to drive consistently. In the end, with a little bit of luck and the right strategy, we achieved a very good result with first and second place.”

Morris Schuring, Porsche 911 GT3 R #91: “An incredible race. It was a rollercoaster of emotions: I took the lead, drove from P9 to P1 in my stint and then lost the lead due to the red flag. But then the team worked out a great strategy and Richard drove a really good stint. And the teamwork between the 92 and 91 crews was great. I'm really grateful that we have such a good atmosphere in the team. It's been a long time coming for us to win this race and we really deserve it. It's a great feeling to win so close to home and I'm very happy.”

Yasser Shahin, Porsche 911 GT3 R #91: “Today was absolutely one of the highlights of my time in racing. It's a privilege to be here with Manthey EMA and represent The Bend. I'm in the business of motorsport, and there's no greater feeling than winning at one of the world's great circuits. We've had a wonderful day.”