Valentino Rossi reveals BMW “didn’t have the pace” for Spa 24 Hours glory

(Credit: SRO/JEP)

MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi has opened up about BMW’s struggles in the 24 Hours of Spa, which left them out of overall podium or victory contention.

The No.46 WRT BMW squad, consisting of Rossi, Dan Harper and Max Hesse, started the 24 Hours of Spa from 20th place. Between the three of them, they managed to slowly and consistently push the machine through the field, at one point leading the Race on Sunday morning.

As the temperatures around the circuit cooled down overnight, Harper led the charge behind the wheel. When not leading the Race, the Briton still put the car in contention with the leaders — an exceptional feat considering where the team had started.

Eventually, the crew came over the line to finish in sixth place, equalling Rossi’s best result at the event back in 2023 alongside Maxime Martin and Augusto Farfus. Interestingly, there are some striking similarities for the No.46 team across both 2023 and 2026. The squad qualified in 21st place back in 2023, 20th in 2026, and on both occasions lacked significant pace to put them in serious victory or podium contention.

Speaking about the performance, Rossi revealed: “I'm happy because we did a great job. It was a race that was close to perfection. We had every reason to dream of a great result. When I woke up this morning, we were leading the race, and that was fantastic. But afterwards, it was a real shame that, in normal dry conditions, we simply didn't have the pace to fight for the win or even for a podium. That was disappointing. Still, the team and my teammates did a great job, and I really enjoyed it.”

The only major issue for the No.46 car came when Rossi picked up a 10-second penalty in the first quarter of the Race for a Full Course Yellow infringement. Aside from this, the team kept in contention for a strong result by remaining consistent and keeping the car alive, avoiding risky manoeuvres that could have left them with damage. 

(Credit: SRO/JEP)

The BMW M4 GT3 appeared to lack significant pace down the straights, with the car looking more aerodynamic and effective in medium and high-speed corners. This may have been a contributing factor behind their competitiveness in cooler conditions, with the package working best when tyres are kept below peak operating temperatures.

Across the other entries, the No.998 Rowe squad achieved a dominant victory in the Gold Cup, with Tim Tramnitz stating: “I’m incredibly happy – it feels fantastic. Given where we started, we certainly didn’t expect to win, especially not by such a large margin. But everyone did an amazing job. We got through the race very cleanly, had a great set-up, and the car worked beautifully. It felt excellent throughout the race and remained very consistent during the night.”

The No.998 Rowe squad, consisting of Tramnitz, Ugo de Wilde and Jens Klingmann, finished in 11th place overall, winning the Gold Cup by six Laps over the No.10 Boutsen VDS Porsche squad, who finished second in class and 22nd place overall.

Meanwhile, the No.30 WRT crew finished in second place in the Silver Cup and 15th place overall. Matisse Lismont said: “I am very satisfied with the result. Of course, the class victory was also possible, but considering we started from 14th place, we can be very happy with our performance. We had no penalties, no accidents, and no pit stops due to damage to the car. The strategy was also spot on. I am very happy with the work of the team and the mechanics, and my teammates also did a great job.”

Despite a strong result, the No.30 crew — consisting of Lismont, Amaury Cordeel, Mathieu Detry and Ignacio Montenegro — finished just 12 seconds behind the Silver Cup winners, the No.45 Rinaldi Ferrari squad, who finished one place ahead of them overall.

In the Bronze Cup, the No.991 Paradine entry managed to finish in second place and 13th position overall. Speaking about their result, Darren Leung stated: “Overall, we executed a really good race. I am super proud of the team and the drivers. They all did an incredible job. To come away with P2 has been fantastic. It has been really nice that we survived this year because in the last two years we were super strong and we had been drawn from the lead through no fault of us own so we are really looking forward to next year now.”

The No.991 Paradine team — consisting of Leung, Leyton Fourie, David Pittard and Dries Vanthoor — ended up 13th overall, one Lap behind the Bronze Cup winners, the No.74 Kessel Ferrari squad.

(Credit: SRO/JEP)

It appears that the German manufacturer has some work ahead if it wishes to mount a stronger challenge at the 24 Hours of Spa in the future. The car seemingly lacked pace on the straights, a trait that has been visible across the GT World Challenge Europe season, with the brand struggling for straight-line speed at Paul Ricard and Monza.

Whilst the manufacturer may have struggled for outright performance in Spa, the individual operations consisting of WRT, Rowe and Paradine performed to the highest of their ability, with the leading cars in all classes keeping mistakes to an absolute minimum.

This sentiment was shared by the Head of BMW Motorsport, Andreas Roos, who stated: “We are leaving Spa with mixed feelings. We travelled to the 24-hour race with the ambition of having a say in the fight for overall victory. As record winners, that is our expectation. Therefore, it is very disappointing for BMW M Motorsport that we were unable to achieve that in the overall ranking with these strong drivers, teams, and the BMW M4 GT3 EVO, which has already proven itself multiple times as a successful endurance racing car.

He added: “Many thanks to ROWE Racing and Team WRT, who did a great job in terms of strategy and pit stops. From our side, all the ingredients were there to challenge for overall victory. Unfortunately, the performance was not sufficient to be able to play a role in the battle for the win.”

The next round of the GT World Challenge Europe gets underway in a few weeks for the Sprint Cup at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli — a track where Rossi has won across 2023, 2024 and 2025. The Italian icon will surely be looking to go for four victories in a row on home soil.