Podium for the VDL Bros in the 24H of Spa!

Audi Sport customer racing took third place on the podium in the overall classification in the 70th running of the Spa 24 Hours. The brothers Sheldon and Kelvin van der Linde finished third together with Jeffrey Schmidt.

A change to the performance categorization on race day left Audi with virtually no chance in the battle for race victory in the Ardennes. Many caution periods also caused significant changes in the classification.

With 13 brands on the grid, the anniversary edition of the Spa 24 Hours promised to be a classic. After four wins since 2011, Audi Sport customer racing aimed to clinch its fifth overall victory. “Unfortunately it just wasn’t quite enough this year,” said Chris Reinke, Head of Audi Sport customer racing. “A couple of hours before the start we had to load 15 kilograms of ballast weight into all the cars. Although we were able to set a few quick lap times, we were unable to fight for victory over the distance. Then in the end two BMW won from two Audi and two Mercedes-AMG.”

When asked about his first Spa 24H podium, Kelvin van der Linde replied, “It has been a rollercoaster race once again in 2018. This race isn’t won until the last lap of the race. We showed great pace all race and both my team mates did a super job. Luck didnt always fall our way during the Full Course Yellow scenarios but despite that we never gave up and fought back to 3rd on the podium! I want to thank Montaplast by Land Motorsport for once again trusting in my services and also for allowing me and my brother to share a cockpit for the second big race of 2018, after the 24H of Nurburgring.”