Endurance racing at Spa began with the Spa 24 Hours, introduced in 1924 as a race for touring cars and grand touring machinery. The lineage of the current sports car event begins with the Coupe de Spa in 1953, held earlier that year before the 24 Hours round of the inaugural World Sports Car Championship. The first Spa Grand Prix for sports cars followed in 1954 and joined the World Sportscar Championship in 1963, running to 500 km. From 1966 the race adopted the 1000 km format, placing it alongside the 1000 km races at the Nürburgring and Monza as one of the signature endurance events of that era.
The original race was run on a 14-kilometre layout using public roads through the Ardennes, one of the fastest and most dangerous circuits in the world. Safety concerns led to the race being discontinued after 1975.
The event resumed in 1982 after the circuit was comprehensively rebuilt, shortened to approximately 7 kilometres. This new layout retained the defining characteristics of Spa — Eau Rouge, Blanchimont, the famous uphill Raidillon — while eliminating the most hazardous public-road sections. The 1000 km race ran through the 1980s before declining interest in the World Sportscar Championship caused another hiatus after 1990.
The race returned in 1999 as part of the SportsRacing World Cup, then running to a 2 hour 30 minute time limit. In 2003 the 1000 km format was revived as a joint event with the British GT Championship. From 2004 the race was part of the Le Mans Series, and in 2011 it formed part of the Intercontinental Le Mans Cup. When the FIA World Endurance Championship was launched in 2012, Spa joined as a permanent round, this time reduced to a six-hour duration.
The 1985 race was one of the most tragic in the event's history. Stefan Bellof, driving a Brun Motorsport Porsche 956, collided with Jacky Ickx's Rothmans Porsche 962 at Eau Rouge while attempting an overtaking manoeuvre. Bellof died in hospital from his injuries. Officials stopped the race at five hours, 122 laps into a planned 145.
In 2019 the race was stopped early due to heavy snowfall — an extraordinary event for a June race meeting. In 2010 an electrical outage caused a red flag; the race concluded on the six-hour time limit having covered approximately 975 km.
Jacky Ickx holds the record for most victories, having won the race five times: 1967, 1968, 1974, 1982, and 1983. He is one of only two drivers to have won the 1000 km race on both the old long-circuit layout and the current rebuilt track, the other being Derek Bell.
Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps is widely regarded as the finest and most demanding circuit in modern motorsport. Its combination of high-speed corners, elevation change, and the Ardennes microclimate — which can produce dramatically different weather in different sectors simultaneously — makes it a thorough test of both car and driver. The fast final sector through Blanchimont and the bus-stop chicane, and the legendary Raidillon-Eau Rouge complex, define the circuit's character and make it a favourite venue for manufacturers and fans alike. Its inclusion in the WEC calendar reflects its status as one of the most prestigious venues in world motorsport.
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