In the wake of the Formula E World Championship clashing with the Spa 6 Hours on May 11/12, the French manufacturer Peugeot has unveiled its two-driver strategy, as Jean-Eric Vergne and Stoffel Vandoorne will prioritize the electric racing series. This decision leaves Nico Muller and Loic Duval to race the #93 Peugeot as a duo, while the #94 Hypercar class entry will also feature a two-driver lineup. Peugeot has decided against fielding Malthe Jakobsen, who joined the WEC team as a junior driver last year, in the 9X8 at Spa. Jean-Marc Finot, motorsport boss of Peugeot and Stellantis group brands, had previously stated that the team would not seek replacements outside the Peugeot family. The confirmation of Peugeot’s two-driver plan aligns with the recently released entry list for the Spa 6 Hours. Jota Porsche driver Will Stevens, Lamborghini’s Mirko Bortolotti, and Team WRT’s Dries Vanthoor will also miss the Belgian race due to their Formula E commitments with Andretti, Mahindra, and Maserati MSG Racing, respectively. In the #12 Porsche 963 LMDh, Norman Nato will not be replaced alongside Will Stevens and Callum Ilott, as previously confirmed. Mirko Bortolotti, a long-time Lamborghini factory driver, will temporarily switch from the Iron Lynx IMSA SportsCar Championship program to join Franck Perera and Pietro Fittipaldi in the solo WEC SC63 LMDh. Alpine has nominated Ferdinand Habsburg for its #35 A424, anticipating his recovery from back injuries sustained in a testing crash last month. However, it is understood that the Austrian has yet to receive medical clearance to return to racing. Earl Bamber is listed in the Porsche 963 LMDh but is more likely to fulfill his IMSA series obligations in Laguna Seca as part of Ford’s GT Daytona Pro program with the Mustang GT3. Larry Holt, whose Multimatic organization oversees Ford’s GT3 activities, indicated that this drive will likely take precedence for Bamber. Replacing Kelvin van der Linde in the #78 Auto Sport Promotion Lexus RC F GT3 will be Toyota Hypercar class reserve driver Ritomo Miyata. The South African will instead race for the Abt Cupra FE squad in Berlin as a reserve driver. Miyata will make his second race appearance in one of Toyota sister marque Lexus’s GT3 cars after contesting the Daytona 24 Hours IMSA round with the Vasser Sullivan squad. Iron Dames Lamborghini driver Doriane Pin will skip the Spa WEC race to begin her Formula Renault Regional Championship by Alpine campaign at Hockenheim with the same team. She will be replaced in the Iron Lynx-run Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2’s all-female lineup by Rahel Frey, who was part of the team’s WEC lineup alongside Pin and Michelle Gatting in 2021-23. Pin will return to the Iron Dames Lamborghini for the Le Mans 24 Hours WEC round in June before focusing on her single-seater commitments in FRECA and F1 Academy.
Belgian Brawl: Peugeot Races Two Drivers at Spa Amidst Formula E Clash
