WEC: First victory and double success for BMW

      The BMW factory team achieved its first victory in the Hypercar category, and it was even a winning double, as the second BMW M Hybrid V8 sports prototype finished in the "6 Hours of Spa" less than two seconds after the first. The race was won by crew number 20, consisting of René Rast, Sheldon van der Linde, and Robin Frijns, and the success of this trio was brought about by a bold strategy, as well as the appearance of the safety car on the track in the last hour of the race. The experienced and accomplished drivers decided to make their very first of six pit stops as short as possible, allowing them to operate under an alternative tactical scheme, unlike most of their competitors. BMW's previous victory in the overall classification at a World Endurance Championship event dates back to 1999, when Joachim Winkelhock, Pierluigi Martini, and Yannick Dalmas won the "24 Hours of Le Mans" in the BMW V12 LMR sports prototype. Each victory is important and interesting in its own way, but today's achievement by the Bavarian brand is likely more impressive precisely because it is a winning double. Standing next to the race winners on the second step of the podium were their colleagues from the BMW M Team WRT, competing in hypercar number 15 – Kevin Magnussen, Raffaele Marchello, and Dries Vanthoor. However, the race results are currently only preliminary, as an investigation has been launched regarding the BMW crews – the stewards suspect them of violating restart rules when the safety car last left the track and returned to the pit lane. The Ferrari AF Corse factory team finished in third place, with drivers Antonio Fuoco, Miguel Molina, and Niklas Nielsen. By the way, Fuoco was quite actively pressuring Magnussen towards the end of the race, but the experienced Dane managed to fend him off, even though he was on clearly more worn tires. BMW's success was hard to foresee, as the team's crews started from 10th and 11th positions based on qualifying results. It is also worth noting the 4th place of the Aston Martin drivers, who, taking turns, piloted the Valkyrie hypercar with the number 007 – Harry Tincknell and Tom Gamble. In the LMGT3 category, the race was won by crew number 10 from the British team Garage 59, consisting of Antares Wu, Tom Fleming, and Marvin Kirchhöfer, competing in the McLaren 720S GT3 Evo sports car. The next WEC event this year will be the "24 Hours of Le Mans," the classic marathon at the Sarthe circuit, which will take place on June 13-14.