24 Hours of Spa 2026: Porsche triumphs after an epic comeback, Ferrari AF Corse finishes on the podium

The 77th edition of the Belgian classic delivers a spectacular race. Porsche Lionspeed GP wins starting from the pit lane, while AF Corse narrowly misses out on victory after dominating for long stretches.

The 24 Hours of Spa 2026 firmly ranks among the most spectacular editions of recent years. At the Ardennes circuit, the scene of the world's most prestigious GT race, victory went to the Porsche 911 GT3 R of the Lionspeed GP team, driven by Thomas Preining, Ricardo Feller and Bastian Buus, the protagonists of an extraordinary comeback that culminated after they had started right from the pit lane.

Behind them finished the Mercedes-AMG n.48, which managed to defend itself until the end from the attacks of the Ferrari AF Corse n.51, which completed the podium after a race spent constantly in the leading positions.

Ferrari AF Corse, a starring race but without a happy ending

For much of the race it seemed that Ferrari could end the drought in the Belgian classic.

The Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo number 51 of AF Corse, driven by Alessio Rovera, Nicklas Nielsen and Tommaso Mosca, had taken pole position and set its own pace from the first hours of the race, confirming itself as the car to beat.

Ferrari's race was however compromised by a series of unfavourable incidents. A puncture, some contacts on track, penalties and several neutralisations broke the rhythm of the Italian car, forcing the team into a long comeback. Despite everything, AF Corse managed to climb back to third place, even narrowly missing out on the overtake on the Mercedes-AMG in the final stages.

Porsche builds the masterpiece

Porsche's success takes on even greater value considering how they started.

The Lionspeed GP car had in fact started from the pit lane, a handicap that seemed to rule it out of the fight for victory. Instead, thanks to impeccable strategy, a constant race pace and perfect tyre management in the extreme heat conditions experienced at Spa-Francorchamps, the Preining-Feller-Buus trio completed a memorable comeback.

In the final stages Thomas Preining managed the advantage without making mistakes, giving Porsche its first win in the 24 Hours of Spa since 2020.

An unpredictable race until the very end

The 2026 edition was marked by constant changes at the front.

Ferrari, Mercedes-AMG, Porsche, Audi, BMW and even Ford Mustang GT3 took turns at the head of the race, demonstrating the very high technical level of the GT World Challenge Europe. The numerous Full Course Yellow periods, the interventions of the Safety Car and the different strategies kept the result in the balance practically until the final hour.

For Ferrari, there remains the satisfaction of having shown absolute competitiveness over the twenty-four hours, even if it failed to turn into a victory that seemed possible after pole position and the opening stages of the race.

Ferrari looks ahead to the rest of the season with confidence

Despite third place, the balance for AF Corse remains positive.

The Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo confirmed itself as one of the most competitive GT3 cars on the international scene and the performance shown at Spa represents an important signal ahead of the next rounds of the GT World Challenge Europe.

For Porsche, meanwhile, this victory represents a huge injection of confidence: winning the most prestigious GT race on the calendar starting from the pit lane is an achievement destined to go down in the history of the category.