PK Chevy wins eventful FIA GT race

Hezemans, who started only seventh, emerged in the lead after a first-corner incident delayed the top three qualifiers. The Dutchman subsequently pitted at just the right time as light rain intensified, allowing team-mate Kumpen to resume with a 15-second lead.

Kumpen was able to extend his lead over Miguel Ramos to 25s before the Vitaphone Maserati driver was overtaken by his team boss, Michael Bartels. The reigning FIA GT champion was able to halve that advantage before handing back to Andrea Bertolini, but PK's decision to leave Kumpen out until the final 10 minutes of the two-hour race sealed the victory for the stalwart FIA GT squad.

"We had no problems whatsoever," said Hezemans, "it turned out to be an easy win."

Ramos and pole winner Alex Muller finished third despite the former dropping right to the back of the field after the clash at the first corner. The accident happened when the Maserati driver, Karl Wendlinger and Xavier Maassen arrived at the right-hander three abreast.

Muller brought the car back up to second in the space of 33 laps, but a conservative stint from Ramos after an early off in the rain meant they could finish no higher than third behind their Vitaphone team-mates.

Wendlinger and K plus K Saleen team-mate Ryan Sharp also looked set for a decent result despite their delay.

The Austrian clawed his way back to third only to spin down to fifth as the rain started to fall. Sharp was subsequently the fastest man on the track in the wet despite windscreen wiper failure, but the combination of no wipers and bent front suspension, almost certainly the result of a clash between Sharp and Ramos, resulted in Wendlinger freefalling down the order after retaking the wheel of the car.

The Saleen then retired on the final lap when the damaged left front suspension failed.

GT2 honours went to Gianmaria Bruni and Toni Vilander in the AF Corse Ferrari 430 GT. A strong stint from wet weather expert Vilander cemented the reigning champions' first class win of the season.

Pos  Cl   Drivers              Car              Time/Gap
 1.  GT1  Hezemans/Kumpen      Corvette Z06     2h00m42.748s
 2.  GT1  Bertolini/Bartels    Maserati MC12     +    9.207s
 3.  GT1  Muller/Ramos         Maserati MC12     +   35.696s
 4.  GT1  Longin/Ruffier       Corvette Z06      + 1m47.676s
 5.  GT1  Maassen/Biagi        Corvette Z06      +     1 lap
 6.  GT1  Leinders/Kuppens     Ford GT           +     1 lap
 7.  GT1  Mutsch/Hennerici     Ford GT           +     1 lap
 8.  GT1  Hines/Lemeret        Saleen S7         +    2 laps
 9.  GT2  Bruni/Vilander       Ferrari F430      +    2 laps
10.  GT2  Holzer/Edwards       Porsche 911 GT3   +    2 laps
11.  GT2  Mucke/Makowiecki     Aston Martin V8   +    2 laps
12.  GT2  Mullen/Niarchos      Ferrari F430      +    3 laps
13.  GT2  Ragginger/Lucchini   Porsche 911 GT3   +    3 laps
14.  GT1  Krumm/Turner         Nissan GT-R       +    3 laps
15.  GT1  Wendlinger/Sharp     Saleen S7         +    4 laps
16.  GT2  Bell/Kirkaldy        Ferrari F430      +    4 laps
17.  GT2  Bergmeister/Ashburn  Porsche 911 GT3   +    5 laps
18.  GT2  Barba Lopez/Cadei    Ferrari F430      +    7 laps
19.  GT2  Heyer/Romanini       Ferrari F430      +    8 laps

Retirements:

     GT1  Monfardini/Mowlem    Saleen S7          42 laps
     GT2  Russo/Perez Companc  Ferrari F430       18 laps
     GT2  Ruberti/Malucelli    Ferrari F430       17 laps
     GT2  Collard/Westbrook    Porsche 911 GT3    16 laps
     GT1  Dominguez/Lacko      Saleen S7          12 laps