Spa24: Spa 24hrs Will be 25hrs Long

The rescheduled Total Spa 24 Hours event of the GT World Challenge Europe championship (formerly Blancpain GT Series) will be extended by 1 hour to become a 25 hour race.

The bizarre circumstances are due to the fact the race will be run on the weekend of October 24th/25th, the weekend that sees the Central European Summer Time end, meaning clocks will go back an hour at midnight of the 24th October, adding an extra hour to the race as the event is due to start and finish at 15:30 local time on the Saturday and Sunday respectively.

Series boss Stephane Ratel wanted the event to become a "race to remember that we talk about in years to come" on what is the first occasion it has not taken place in the summer, and it seems that will happen no matter how the race unfolds.

The event was already set to break records, with a record number of racing hours taking place in the dark due to the later date. The race is also set to count for double points.

Ratel said, "When we had the new date and someone pointed that the clocks change that weekend, I thought why not race for the extra hour?

"In these troubled times it is good to do something different and it could be good promotion for the event if, fingers crossed, we can welcome fans.

"People will remember in 30 years the time that Spa lasted an extra hour."

However, Ratel detailed that it is too early to determine whether spectators will be allowed at the festival-like race, but has vowed that the race will go ahead even if its behind closed doors.

The 2020 GT World Challenge Europe championship will get underway on the 25th/26th July at Imola.