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Mercedes-BenzBy Motorsport

Mercedes-AMG Teams Secure Fourth and Eighth in New Superpole Format at 24 Hours of Spa

Jules Gounon placed fourth in the new Superpole shootout for the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, while Lucas Auer took eighth.

Gounon's qualifying time

2m 19.735s

Best Mercedes-AMG grid position

Fourth

Auer's grid position

Eighth

What Happened

Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing's Jules Gounon secured fourth on the grid for the 78th CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa after qualifying with a time of 2m 19.735s in the new Superpole knockout format. Lucas Auer and the Mercedes-AMG Team MANN-FILTER reached the top-eight segment and will start eighth. Five Mercedes-AMG customer racing teams are making final preparations ahead of Saturday's race.

Qualifying and Race Schedule

  1. Thursday evening

    All-car qualifying session; Mercedes-AMG entries secure class positions including second in BRONZE Cup and third in PRO-AM.

  2. Friday

    Superpole knockout format determines grid; Gounon fourth, Auer eighth. Warm-up session at 7:20 PM.

  3. Saturday, 4:30 PM

    Start of the 78th CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa.

“The first qualifying session and the first Superpole under the new format were initially unfamiliar to everyone involved, but at the same time extremely exciting. We’re heading into the race from promising positions and are satisfied with our starting places. However, the first sessions have also shown just how strong the field is. Our aim is to keep the pressure on our rivals throughout the full ”
— Stefan Wendl, Head of Customer Racing, Mercedes-AMG Motorsport
“Fourth place is a promising starting position. We’ve been continuously improving our car throughout the race week. As a result, it felt really good today. The new Superpole format was great fun. In theory, every lap could be your last. That’s why every run has to be spot on.”
— Jules Gounon, Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing #3

Why this matters

The new Superpole format adds excitement by making every lap potentially the last, and strong starting positions are crucial for the endurance race.

Terms in This Story

Superpole
A knockout qualifying format where drivers compete in successive sessions to determine the starting grid.
GT3
A category of grand touring cars used in endurance racing, built to FIA regulations.
SILVER Cup
A class within the 24 Hours of Spa for amateur drivers with a silver rating.
BRONZE Cup
A class for bronze-rated amateur drivers.
Read Original: Mercedes-Benz

Summarised from the linked release; details can be imperfect — always verify against the original source.

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