What It Takes to Break the Spa-Francorchamps GT3 Lap Record
David Perel went from barely being a pro GT3 driver to setting a 2:15.88 lap record at Spa.
GT3 racing is among the most competitive racing class in the entire motorsport world. Drivers amateur and professional dream of being able to set foot in a proper GT3, let alone throw around a lap in one. The thing about GT3 cars is that they are the highest level of vehicles that still are based off of a production car. LMP cars and open-wheel formula cars like those seen in Formula One are distant fields in context, they look more like spaceships than actual cars. However, when you see a GT3 car you can see and understand, “Oh, that’s without a doubt a Ferrari”.
David Perel, successful professional GT3 driver, has his own story how he came from sim-racing in his home to going wheel-to-wheel in a 488 GT3 at tracks around the world. We actually covered his story previously here on 6SpeedOnline and if you’d like to learn more about it, please check out this link. However, this article will cover rather the incredible story of breaking the Spa-Francorchamps lap record in a GT3 car. Thanks to Perel’s YouTube channel, we get a chance to run through the lap and understand how he managed to take down the record.
For those who don’t know, Spa is without a doubt the premiere GT3 track. Some call it the make or break circuit for any professional driver and it determines careers for many. Being able to set a record lap would put you in a place of stardom instantly, especially at a level as esteemed as GT3. For Perel, this lap was his big break. He had recently been upgraded to a pro license and now was competing with the big boys. However, this put him in a complex situation because the team he was racing with wanted to use a more experienced pro for their important races.
However, Perel was given a chance by the team director. He stated that if he wanted the seat for the Spa 24 hour race, he needed to get pole position, fastest lap, and lead the race for the GT Open a couple weeks before. If he could do all three, we would be considered for the 24 race. At that point, Perel had not been able to do any of those things in the pro category, he had barely become a pro driver to begin with. He struggled with the practice sessions and was off the pace of many of the pro drivers. However, when qualifying happened, Perel went out the track a changed man fervent with determination and broke the record. The best part about it was he didn’t even know he did until after qualifying was done.
If you want the full breakdown of the lap by Perel himself, please watch the full video. Cheers to Perel, what an amazing lap.
