- The PEUGEOT 9X8 #93 (Di Resta/Vergne/Jensen) finished 11th. The #94 (Duval/Jakobsen/Vandoorne) had to retire after contact with another competitor.
- Both PEUGEOT 9X8s qualified in the top 10 and showed strong pace during the race, battling for top-5 positions.
- Despite a disappointing result at Spa-Francorchamps, there are many positives to take away ahead of the 24 Hours of Le Mans.
Both PEUGEOT 9X8s, having qualified in the top 10, swapped positions during the first hour of the race after intense on-track battles and skillful driving by Paul di Resta (#93) and Loïc Duval (#94) in traffic.
The Team TotalEnergies strategists took advantage of a Virtual Safety Car (VSC) to bring forward the second pit stop, fitting two new medium tires on the #93 and four on the #94. With fresh rubber, Paul and Loïc pushed hard—taking risks under braking at Les Combes and through the iconic Raidillon—to climb to 3rd and 4th in the overall standings.
After two and a half hours of intense racing, Paul and Loïc were replaced by Jean-Eric Vergne (#93) and Malthe Jakobsen (#94). At the halfway point, the #94 took advantage of a Safety Car to pit, while the #93 was unable to do so and remained on track, leading the race for ten laps. Despite the determined efforts of Jean-Eric Vergne and Mikkel Jensen, the #93 ultimately missed out on a top-10 finish.
A few minutes later, while Malthe Jakobsen was defending 5th position, the PEUGEOT #94 suffered contact with another Hypercar and was forced to retire before Stoffel Vandoorne had the chance to drive.
The outcome of the 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps was disappointing for Team Peugeot TotalEnergies, with an 11th place for the PEUGEOT 9X8 #93 and a DNF for the #94. However, there are positives to take heading into the 24 Hours of Le Mans. The PEUGEOT 9X8 showed strong performance in both qualifying and the race, running in the top five—a promising sign for Le Mans.
In a month, Team Peugeot TotalEnergies will be at Le Mans for the 93rd edition of the most prestigious endurance race in the world (June 14–15).
Olivier Jansonnie, Technical Director of Peugeot Sport
“It’s a very disappointing result, as we had the pace to do much better, which we showed in qualifying and early in the race. We decided to split the strategies of the two cars midway through the race to cover all options, but we weren’t able to capitalize on the Safety Car opportunity with the #93. The #94 was better placed, but it was caught up in a race incident. A suspension part broke after the contact with another car. The positive: we had good pace in qualifying and during the race, a potential we’ll try to convert at Le Mans.”
Paul Di Resta (PEUGEOT #93)
“I had a pretty solid double stint, gaining some positions. After the Safety Car, the Hypercars were on different tire strategies. With our two new tires, I think it was the right call—we managed to benefit from it and save tires for later. It was great to be fighting with the leaders.”
Loïc Duval (PEUGEOT #94)
“I had a good start but my first stint was frustrating because I kept catching GTs at the worst places for overtaking. In my second, shorter stint, I felt the tires degrading. Finally, in my last stint, we had good pace on the new tires. I think it was the right strategy. It’s a shame we got a five-second penalty. In any case, it felt good to be battling at the front.”
Malthe Jakobsen (PEUGEOT 9X8 #94)
“Unfortunately, we were forced to retire while having a strong race. At the Safety Car restart, I was defending 5th place from the #20 BMW. In Turn 5, we had slight contact and a piece of my left rear suspension broke. I limped back to the pits, but there was nothing more we could do. I’m really sorry for the team, who deserved a podium this weekend.”
