Well, what a weekend….. Despite not getting the results I would have liked, the event was amazing! Here we were, debuting Porsche's new GT2RS Clubsport during its maiden races, in of all places, SPA, within the backdrop of the largest GT3 race in the world!

I have never driven the track before, so I was extra excited to experience what so many have called the greatest track on earth! With 700hp on tap, the GT2RS CS was going to stretch its muscles on the Kemmel Straight and it sure did, to the tune of just over 280kph






Regarding the car, I was surprised to see how agile it was for its heft, relatively speaking, and the brakes were impressive to say the least as they were certainly tested on a Circuit like Spa. I love the massive endurance brake pad setup as you don’t want to be changing pads every weekend and I would say we only used about 10% of the pad life over 3 hours of track time.






It was great to have my friend and client, Jason Bell, join me for this trip as I knew he would equally enjoy this experience. It didn’t take long to convince him to make the voyage across the ocean as he had a shorter trip coming from Florida but once he arrived, I could tell he was as anxious as I was to get on track.






My first trip up Eau Rouge was mind blowing! TV doesn’t do that corner justice, as it’s much steeper when running through that corner in 5th gear, around 130mph! Then, soon we are touching 175mph before we put the brakes to use.





Practice went well as the first session was all about learning both the car and track. We had good pace but I knew I would have to pick it up in qualifying as there were 2 past LeMans Class winners on the grid, so the talent in the field was nothing to take lightly. But again, this trip was more for us to get our hands on the car as soon as possible so we could learn all we could before bringing the cars back to the States. As it turned out, we qualified 3rd behind the Pole winning 935 for race 1 and 4th for race 2.






Race one started out well as I timed the lights perfectly and got into the lead but we had a problem with the TPMS screen as it wasn’t reading properly and after my first lap, the pressures were reset and they were already over their limit. They were bled prior to the race but the readings were incorrect, so none the less, when I realized they were reaching 2.6 bar, I had to come into the pits after slowing down a bit to play it safe.





Race 2 fared a little better as we had another great start and I muscled my way into 2nd behind the pole winning 935 after a late braking move on the first lap into Les Combes on the 2nd place car. From there, the 935 started to slowly pull away while 2nd – 4th was nose to tail. I had great battles with Jan Erik Slooten and Christian Reid, both very experienced racers and had to settle for a 4th place, just 1/10 of a second off the podium.






Needless to say, I had the time of my life during this event. Despite not getting my luggage or race gear until the day of the race, the crazy hot record temps for the first 2 days, and the fact that I hadn’t turned a lap at Spa or in this car, it was a weekend I will never forget. The competitors were fantastic as I made a lot of new friends and the GT2RS Clubsport is even better than I expected. Porsche Hospitality was 2nd to none, as it was first class all the way with plenty of Belgium beers, chocolate and waffles consumed (after the 2nd race!! Haha) I was so fortunate to have my wife by my side as that made everything perfect and I am already making plans to head back in 2020……. Spa, you had me at Eau Rouge!!

 

Just wow and thanks for sharing. Great write up and an epic experience.

 

Holy hell is that kick ***!! Totally awesome!!

 

looks like one hell of an event! thanks for sharing

 

Wow - that looks incredible. Closest I've come to driving that is on XBOX Forza with my son . Glad you had a good time.

 

Epic!!!!

Congratulations, I have not driven Spa yet, but it is the one racetrack in the World that I want to drive the most. The track has its tricks, so placing the car at the front and holding the 935 for a few laps while running in 1st place was fantastic.

I had the pleasure to watch the race online, and also watch the real car in Boca Raton this past week.

It looks like the GT2RS-Clubsport on a full load of fuel and no driver exceeds the 3,230 lbs mark, which is light compared to the street car, but nowhere close to the GT3Cup or GT3 R.

I can't wait to see the GT2RS-CS races here in U.S. at Laguna Seca, Sebring, Road America, VIR, Watkins Glen and COTA.

I thought you ran out of water in the little tank.

Awesome!!!

 

What an amazing experience!!

 

Super well done James! Not easy at all to compete for the first time and in a new 700 hp car at Spa. No doubt a few more days running there you had that second place easy, and those were very experienced drivers as well.

I noticed that the 935 was pulling out stronger as laps progressed, I am wondering if the cooling fans on the ICs made a difference holding temps lower vs. the GT2.

Beautiful race beautiful cars and super cool of you to share your experience.

 

James, how much more downforce and front tire did the 935 have over the CS?
Did you have enough time to set the car up for the track?
Did you make adjustments to the wing?
Does it have the same adjustable blade-type front and rear sway bar(s) as the 718 GT4CS?
What kind of set-up changes need to be made if using Pirelli tires?
Learn anything from the Porsche factory people?
Any aero mods available from PMNA coming?

You did great on a first-time track and car.

 

I was watching and pulling for you James... thanks for the post. Hope you find your helmet too.

 

Thanks guys, Spa is a must for any track lover.......there's no question about that!
The GT2RS CS is a little on the heavy side but the weight is manageable. If you are slow on the wheel, the car will go where you want it to.
If you are easy on the brakes, it stops with authority. You don't drive this car like the GT3R, you drive it more like the Cayman MR.
In fact, this car will be the perfect transition car for someone going from the Cayman MR to the GT2RS CS.

More info to come.....

BTW, here are the links to the broadcast for each race:

Race 1:
Race 2:

 

Damn amazing event - every event here will be boring compared

 

James, great drive, I watched the streams.

 

The biggest advantage the 935 has is the bigger front wheel/tire which gives the car more front grip, something the GT2RS CS could use.
Add the additional downforce, which really helps in sector 2, and the 935 was good for 1-2 more seconds per lap.

 

I basically arrived an hour before the first practice session without my gear so I was scrambling to make the first session.
I just wanted to learn the track and that place takes a little longer than most to figure out all the little nuances of the circuit.
We used Porsche's basic setup to start and we played with the bars and wing as well as ride height.
The wing makes a huge different and you can basically fail the car in by just using that option.
We plan to play with the car A LOT more when we get it back here as I understand Porsche is shipping the cars out later this week, so we should see ours very soon!