SPA Classic with Alain Prost's Viper GTS-R

We have just returned from the Spa Classic, where we raced the former Alain Prost Viper GTS-R.
This incredible car competed at the highest level in the 2005 FFSA GT Championship. It was built by Luc Marchetti’s Exagon Engineering to celebrate Alain’s 50th birthday. Alain was joined by Jean-Pierre Jabouille then his son Nicolas, who was just beginning his racing career. The C51 would be Alain’s final race car, and scored his last victory.

After restoring and racing it in 2023, we decided to enter it in a couple more races, 20 years after its memorable 2005 season.

Spa Classic was the perfect place for its return, and we prepared for Le Mans Classic. We entered the ERL1 category, which gathers LMP1, LMP2 and GT1 cars. There were 28 cars on the grid.

Unfortunately, qualifying on Friday didn't go well due to traffic and an imperfect balance in Q1. This car was built for the GT-FFSA and is not very familiar with high-speed tracks. We made considerable improvements to the setup for Q2, but as it was a night session and faced traffic, we could not expect much in terms of lap times.

With heavy rain since noon, Race 1 would be a real challenge. Racing at Spa in the wet is all about being brave and having confidence in your machine.
The Viper was fabulous; the more it rained, the faster it became. We overtook from P16 to an incredible P9 overall, as well as first place in GT. Unfortunately, a safety car came out the lap before our pit stop, which ruined our race. At the restart, we were 18th OA and 5th GT. However, we managed to overtake nine cars in two laps before the race was stopped by a red flag. Former pro driver Markus Palttala in a 996 GT1, benefited from the safety car, gaining a minute and winning the GT class. Congratulations to him.

Race 2 at night could have been a furious revenge, but it was cancelled after one lap behind the safety car; the race direction deemed the track too wet. On the straight, it was impossible to see anything but a wall of water. ERL is motor racing, but it was probably the best decision given the circumstances.

Florent Moulin:

"Friday's Q1 didn't go so well, at Spa, you need to be humble. The driver was a bit rusty, and the car was too nervous at high speeds. Q2 went much better, though, and I knew Saturday would be better. Race 1 will remain a great memory; the car was truly amazing. With the right rain setup, it was easy to push thanks to the car's grip and acceleration. I still can't believe how late it could brake. It reminds me of a conversation I had with Olivier Beretta, a former ORECA ace: ‘In the early days, when we raced against the Porsche GT2s, we were about one second faster per lap. In the rain, it became a two- or three-second advantage, so we were always waiting for the rain’. The team did a perfect job preparing the car; it ran faultlessly and was a dream to drive. I cannot wait to race this iconic car at Le Mans Classic and announce an incredible news.