The last shall be first, and it helps if they’re driving a Porsche.
The Lionspeed GP team had to swap an engine in their 911 GT3 R (992) and so it, and several other cars with similar stories, had to wait until the entire rest of the 69-car field started the race before they were allowed out of pit lane and onto the legendary Spa track for the Crowdstrike 24 Hours of Spa.
No problem, they had 24 hours to pick through the field.
CROWDSTRIKE 24 HOURS OF SPA
Winning team of #80 Lionspeed GP: Ricardo Feller, Thomas Preining, and Bastian Buus.
And pick they did. The Lionspeed GP Porsche worked its way through the field all night and took the lead in the 2026 24 Hours of Spa at the 16-hour mark, when driver Thomas Preining passed the pole-winning AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo number 51, crewed by Ferrari official drivers Alessio Rovera, Nicklas Nielsen, and Tommaso Mosca. The lead was juggled around by the front runners thereafter, but apart from some pit stop timing, it was Lionspeed GP that held onto it the longest and, most critically, had it at the end.
It was Porsche’s ninth win at Spa, but its first victory since 2020.
“It wasn’t because of a lack of trying,” said Lionspeed driver Thomas Preining, who shared the 911 GT3 R with Ricardo Feller and Bastian Buus, all three first-time Spa winners.
CROWDSTRIKE 24 HOURS OF SPA
The #51 Ferrari sits on the pole.
It seemed like it might be a Ferrari at top, especially after the #51 AF Corse 296 took pole and the lead at many points in the first half of the race and beyond. But after numerous problems for the prancing horse, including three tire blowouts and some contact that damaged the left front corner, the AF Corse Ferrari finished the race third after 24 hours.
The #48 Mercedes-AMG drove an equally perfect race to finish as this year’s runner-up, never putting a wheel wrong across the 24 Hours.
What was it like this year? As you could try and translate into French, it was hottern’ high hades. Temperatures hit 104 degrees F on Saturday and didn’t drop below 74 all night. You could see fans lounging about in the stands wearing shorts and tank tops at 2 a.m. in the morning.
CROWDSTRIKE 24 HOURS OF SPA
Rain, which is more or less a tradition at Spa, only hit briefly at about 4 a.m., and while it was intense, only lasted about 15 minutes in deluge form. This was unlike previous Spas 24 that had to be halted at points because of lightning striking areas around the track. While you could see dramatic bolts of lightning on the perimeter of this year’s race, it was for the most part off in the distance, like a scrim dropped down behind a Wagnerian opera, put there just for effect.
It didn’t seem to bother the record 132,000 fans who came out to enjoy the otherwise fine weather and to use the word “party” as a verb in numerous different languages. Indeed, there were live bands, DJs, and even a new dance floor at Radillon, which was said to be quite popular.
The other Two Big European Sports Car Races
For us Americans, an HRT Ford Mustang GT3 EVO finished 18th after leading the race at one point during the night, and a pair of Corvette Z06 GT3 Rs finished 29th and 41st overall. American drivers included:
CROWDSTRIKE 24 HOURS OF SPA
Anthony Bartone, the son of Tony Bartone, a former drag racer and founder of Bartone Bros Racing, in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO in the Silver Cup Class.Dylan Medler, an American who grew up in London and the South of France and raced in the Ferrari Challenge in North America in a Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO in Silver CupAaron Muss, an American snowboarder and racing driver who competed in the Michelin Pilot Challenge, IMSA, and GT World Challenge Europe in an Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 in Bronze.Jason Hart, competing in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup for GetSpeed Team Noble Racing and the GTD Pro class of the IMSA SportsCar Championship for Winward Racing. and Scott Noble, who has raced in IMSA and American GT4, shared another Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO in Bronze Cup class. Custodio Toledo, who races in the European Le Mans Series, in a Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO in Pro-Am.Dustin Blattner, who has raced in just about every sports car and GT series there is, in another Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO in Bronze.Kerong Li, who specializes in GT endurance racing, who drove a Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) EVO in Pro-Am.
Was there a bigger picture? Race organizers thought so.
CROWDSTRIKE 24 HOURS OF SPA
The sun went down and the moon came up, and long ago somebody left with the cup, but he’s driving and striving and not giving up, and searching for someone for whom he still burns! He’s going the distance!
“The 2026 CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa underscored the success of modern sportscar racing,” they said in a post-race release. “On the grid before the race, SRO Motorsports Group Founder & CEO Stéphane Ratel was joined by François Cornelis, President of the RACB; Pierre Fillon, President of l’Automobile Club de l’Ouest; and Mirco Hansen, Head of Organization for the ADAC Ravenol 24h Nürburgring. Pierre Fillon waved the Belgian flag to give the official start at 16:30.”
The race was free to fans in North America, too, unlike the Nürburgring 24 and Le Mans, which should have increased viewership, though there’s no word yet on how many American fans watched the race.
CROWDSTRIKE 24 HOURS OF SPA
Spa 24 leaders thought it was all great, of course.
“This brought together the organizers of Europe’s three biggest 24-hour races—Spa-Francorchamps, Le Mans, and the Nürburgring—while IMSA President John Doonan spoke via video during the annual press conference. It is clear that global sportscar racing has a bright future ahead.”
Especially if you can watch it for free on YouTube. Short of another ducu-drama series like Drive to Survive, that could be the best way to get more American viewers.
Mark Vaughn grew up in a Ford family and spent many hours holding a trouble light over a straight-six miraculously fed by a single-barrel carburetor while his father cursed the Blue Oval, all its products and everyone who ever worked there. This was his introduction to objective automotive criticism. He started writing for City News Service in Los Angeles, then moved to Europe and became editor of a car magazine called, creatively, Auto. He decided Auto should cover Formula 1, sports prototypes and touring cars—no one stopped him! From there he interviewed with Autoweek at the 1989 Frankfurt motor show and has been with us ever since.