Race 2 of the Spa Heat ran under beautiful blue skies on Saturday, 24 August. Once again, the drivers gave no quarter. At the end of a high-tension race, Iko Segret and ANS Motorsport took their first win of the season after three second-place finishes in the two previous rounds. Marta Garcia won the JS2 R category in the #85 Iron Dames by M Racing in her Ligier European Series and GT debut meeting.
JS P4: First victory for Iko Segret and ANS Motorsport
Poleman Jeronimo Berrio kept the lead at the start in the #66 Team Virage JS P4 and extended his advantage over Ian Aguilera in the #77 RLR MSport entry and Theo Micouris in the #1 from Team Virage.
Just five minutes into the race, the safety car intervened to secure the #60 JS2 R (Iron Lynx by LRMotorsport) driven by Gregorio Bertocco, which had gone off track following contact with another car. Jeronimo Berrio (Team Virage #66) maintained his lead over Ian Aguilera (RLR MSport #77) on the restart. Just behind, the battle raged for third place between Romain Favre’s #7 (Inter Europol Competition) and Theo Micouris’s #1 (Team Virage).
The safety car made another appearance after André Vieira in the #44 ASM Motorsport JS P4 went off the track. Once the marshals cleared the car away, the race resumed. Theo Micouris, in the #1 Team Virage, went off at the Bus Stop chicane, which cost him several positions, allowing Iko Segret, in the #6 ANS Motorsport JS P4, to move up to third place. In fourth place, Chun-Ting Chou (Monza Garage #71) put in a solid stint before handing over to teammate James Winslow.
After the pitstops, James Winslow, now behind the wheel of the #71 Monza Garage JS P4, battled with Iko Segret (ANS Motorsport #6). Contact between the two sent James Winslow into the gravel trap, causing a third safety car period. Pedro Moreno, in the #66 of Team Virage, led from Iko Segret and Ian Aguilera (RLR M Sport #77).
When the action returned, Iko Segret and Pedro Moreno fought for the first place. In the #77 from RLR M Sport, Ian Aguilera out-braked Iko Segret’s (ANS Motorsport #6) to move up to second place. It was at this point that Team Virage’s #66 received a 5-second penalty for overtaking outside track limits. Pedro Moreno saw his podium chances dwindle.
On lap 16, Inter Europol Competition’s #7, with Romain Favre on board, took the lead. He then engaged in a relentless battle with Ian Aguilera in the #77 of RLR MSport, who retook the advantage on the following lap.
The battle continued into the final lap when Iko Segret (ANS Motorsport #6) attacked Romain Favre (Inter Europol Competition #7). Favre was pushed off by another car and crashed into the safety barriers. The French driver restarted but dropped down the order.
In the #77 RLR MSport JS P4, Ian Aguilera crossed the finish line first followed by Iko Segret (ANS Motorsport #6) and Haydn Chance and Theo Micouris in Team Virage’s #1.
The #77 was sanctioned after the race for not respecting the pit stop procedure and received a 5-second penalty. It dropped back to third place. Iko Segret and ANS Motorsport inherited victory, their first of the season after three second-place finishes in the two previous rounds (Paul Ricard and Le Mans). Haydn Chance and Theo Micouris got promoted to second place with the Team Virage #1 car, and picked up valuable points in the provisional championship standings.
In the AM category, Jeremy Ferguson once again claimed the class win in #7 P4 Racing JS P4.
Iko Segret, ANS Motorsport, #6 JS P4, Winner, Race 1:
“It feels great to finally take my first win, after finishing P2 at Le Castellet and Le Mans. We should already have finished P1 at Le Mans, but it was a complicated race and we didn’t manage to finish ahead. We won in Spa. I didn’t want to win the race like that, but a win is still a win. So I’m very happy.”
JS2 R: First victory for Marta Garcia with the #85 of Iron Dames by M Racing
The start of race two began without incident. Marta Garcia, driving the #85 Iron Dames by M Racing JS2 R, took the lead from poleman Tomas Granzella in the #53 M Racing entry. Race 1 winner Clément Moreno was third in the #31 from ANS Motorsport.
After the first Safety Car period, Tomas Granzella attacked Marta Garcia. The #86 (Les Deux Arbres), driven by Sacha Bottemanne, completed the top three. Contact between the #86 of Les Deux Arbres and the #53 of M Racing caused Sacha Bottemanne to spin. But the latter managed to take the lead ahead of Marta Garcia (#85 Iron Dames by M Racing) and Clément Moreno (#31 ANS Motorsport).
After the second neutralisation period, Sacha Bottemanne was penalised with a drive-through penalty for causing contact with the #53 of M Racing. Marta Garcia took first place behind the wheel of the #85 Iron Dames by M Racing.
Following the mandatory pitstops, Louis Stern, driving the #18 from Pegasus Racing, came out with the lead ahead of Clément Moreno (ANS Motorsport #31) and Julien Schell (Pegasus Racing #29). At this point, the race was neutralised for the third time. The race restarted with just 18 minutes remaining on the clock. Louis Stern, who was leading the race, received a drive-through penalty for causing the contact with Clément Moreno. His chances of a podium finish were over.
Marta Garcia (Iron Dames by M Racing #85) regained first place four laps before the chequered flag, ahead of Julien Schell (Pegasus Racing #29) and Tomas Granzella (M Racing #53). The young Spanish driver resisted the onslaught of her rivals and crossed the finish line in the lead, taking her first Ligier European Series win on her debut in the series. Julien Schell and David Caussanel (#29 Pegasus Racing) were second and first in the PRO-AM category. Tomas Granzella and M Racing finished third in the JS2 R
overall classification. Clément Moreno in the #31 of ANS Motorsport finished fourth overall and first in the AM category.
Marta Garcia, Iron Dames by M Racing, #86 JS2 R, JS2 R Winner, Race 2:
“It was a very good weekend for me. It was my first competition with a GT car. I did one test day before the meeting with M Racing, one month ago. So obviously I didn’t have a lot of experience with the JS2 R. I’m really happy of course. I was lucky to have Yann Ehrlacher here with me. He is a very good driver and also a great coach. That helped a lot. I’m super proud of winning my second race in GT. I just want to thank Iron Dames as well for their support and M Racing”.
The next Ligier European Series race weekend, the fifth of the 2024 season, will be held at the Mugello circuit in Italy on 27-28 September.
CLICK HERE for the results.
CICK HERE for the provisional classifications (coming soon).
