For 105 laps of the Spa-Francorchamps circuit a battle raged between the Ford GT40s of Nico Verdonck/Andy Newall and Phil Keen/Olly Bryant, with Danes Nikolai Kjaergaard/Alexander Weiss more than a thorn in the 13-strong GT40 contingent’s side in Palle Birkelund Pedersen’s Ginetta G4 during last weekend’s Spa Six Hours. But, with five minutes remaining and Keen determinedly reeling-in Verdonck at an alarming 20 seconds a lap, driveshaft failure stopped the Belgian’s car on lap 106.
As modern GT3 ace Keen notched his first Spa Six Hours victory, bookending Kyle Tilley’s Era Motorsport challenge, Bryant repeated 2021’s win (when he triumphed with James Cottingham). For Tilley, “gutted to miss out” with back surgery imminent, it was a welcome tonic, but brother Kane managed the car’s third onslaught expertly.
