McLaren GT car takes first international win as Hexis' Stef Dusseldorp and Fred Makowiecki charge from back in Navarra World GT1

After a stunning opening stint from Stef Dusseldorp, which saw the #1 car climb to second from the back of the grid, Fred Makowiecki took over and passed team-mate Gregoire Demoustier to move into the lead and dominate the remainder of the race.

Demoustier's co-driver Alvaro Parente had started the second McLaren, and took the lead at Turn 3 after an over-ambitious Ford GT of Milos Pavlovic had forced Mike Parisy's Porsche wide, opening the gap for Parente to dive through. Parente then rapidly began to pull away from the polesitting Reiter Lamborghini of Darryl O'Young, who was having to fend off the All-Inkl Mercedes behind.

A fuel issue on the reconnaissance lap forced Yelmer Buurman to start his BMW Z4 from the pitlane instead of second on the grid, but the Dutch driver stayed out longer than anyone else during the pitstop window to take advantage of clear air, emerging in third when Michael Bartels took over. The Vita4One team boss was put under pressure towards the end from the resurgent Lamborghini of Peter Kox, but Bartels held on to finish on the podium, setting his fastest lap of the race on the final tour.

All-Inkl finished fifth and sixth, Marc Basseng ahead of Nicky Pastorelli, but the battle for seventh was where the action was. An incredible five-way battle for that position ensued, including some three-abreast door rubbing down the back straight between Mathias Lauda's BMW, Oliver Jarvis' Audi and Toni Vilander's Ferrari.

Only on the final lap was the order decided, with Lauda finishing ahead of the WRT Audis of Jarvis and Stephane Ortelli. Vilander dropped back to 10th, only half a second ahead of both Matt Halliday in the Porsche and the second Reiter Lamborghini of Tomas Enge.

Results - 36 laps:

Pos  Drivers                   Team/Car                Time/Gap
 1.  Makowiecki/Dusseldorp     Hexis McLaren       1h01m14.538s
 2.  Demoustier/Parente        Hexis McLaren           + 3.598s
 3.  Bartels/Buurman           Vita4One BMW           + 21.694s
 4.  Kox/O'Young               Reiter Lamborghini     + 22.516s
 5.  Basseng/Winkelhock        Munnich Mercedes       + 28.688s
 6.  Pastorelli/Jager          Munnich Mercedes       + 30.406s
 7.  Lauda/Mayr-Meinhof        Vita4One BMW           + 36.685s
 8.  Jarvis/Stippler           WRT Audi               + 37.345s
 9.  Ortelli/Vanthoor          WRT Audi               + 38.302s
10.  Vilander/Salaquarda       AF Corse Ferrari       + 40.162s
11.  Halliday/Parisy           Exim Porsche           + 40.565s
12.  Enge/von Thurn und Taxis  Reiter Lamborghini     + 40.686s
13.  Castellacci/Ide           AF Corse Ferrari       + 45.975s
14.  Martin/Machitski          Valmon Aston         + 1m31.612s
15.  Zuber/Afanasiev           Valmon Aston         + 1m32.465s

Retirements:

     Lariche/Lunardi           Exim Porsche             20 laps
     Cressoni/Pavlovic         Sunred Ford              13 laps