The International GT Open championship began the second half of its season at the Circuit Paul Ricard, venue for the fifth round of the series. A hot weekend full of twists and turns saw Alex Fontana claim Pro-Am class points in both races held on the French track, with 6th place in Race-1 and 8th place on the Sunday. For the occasion, Alex was once again at the wheel of the #31 Porsche 992 GT3 R entered by Car Collection Motorsport, sharing the Stuttgart car in the Pro-Am category with an AF Academy driver.
The free practice sessions saw the crew finish both in the top three overall, demonstrating their excellent potential. In Saturday’s qualifying, which was characterised by a few drops of rain, it was Alex’s teammate who took to the track, securing 9th place in their class. Following a flawless and well-paced first stint, Fontana was able to take over the car at the start of the mandatory pit stop window, returning to the track with just under 40 minutes remaining on the clock and still in 9th place. From that moment on, the Swiss driver showed enviable pace, proving to be one of the fastest drivers in the field and making up ground thanks to his aggressive driving style, which allowed him to make a couple of impressive overtakes, even at the expense of Pro crews. At the end of the 70-minute race, Fontana crossed the finish line in 6th place in the Pro-Am class.
The second race saw Alex taking on driving duties in the official qualifying session. A red flag a few minutes before the end did not play out in his favour, preventing him from improving his lap time in the final stages; however, Fontana still managed to qualify 3rd in the Pro-Am class, narrowly missing out on a place in the overall top 10. A poor start saw Alex slip to 5th place in the category, but once he found his rhythm, the Swiss driver managed to fight his way back to 3rd. With no traffic in front of him, Fontana immediately began to improve his race pace, making up a lot of ground and proving to be one of the fastest on the track. Alex handed the car over to his teammate in 3rd place with 24 minutes to go. Despite some difficulties in the final stint, the Car Collection Motorsport crew found themselves fighting for 6th place in the Pro-Am class through to the end of the race. Unfortunately, contact with another car on the penultimate lap put the #31 Porsche 992 GT3 R out of the running, but it still managed to finish 8th in class, scoring important points for the championship. After the summer break, the next round of the International GT Open will see Fontana take to the track at the Red Bull Ring, with the Austrian circuit hosting the series from the 5th to the 7th of September.
Alex Fontana
“It was a difficult weekend, and it was a shame that it ended with an accident in the closing stages of Race-2; however, my teammate is fine and that’s what’s important. We still managed to finish in the points on both occasions, which is a result we are proud of. I would like to thank both Car Collection Motorsport and my teammate for their hard work again this weekend, and I can’t wait to get back on track at the Red Bull Ring after the summer break.”