RW-Idrofoglia Racing GP travels to Barcelona for 2024 season finale and last Grand Prix together with Baltus
This weekend, the 20th and final Grand Prix of 2024 will be held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya. The organisers have decided to move to the Catalan circuit as the Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia, and the surrounding area, has been severely affected by floods. Proceeds from this Grand Prix weekend in Barcelona will therefore be donated to the victims of this disaster.
After a long journey through Asia and Oceania, the Grand Prix paddock returns to Europe this weekend for the final race weekend of 2024. Not at the usual Circuit Ricardo Tormo in Valencia but at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, which also hosted a Grand Prix earlier this year in May.
As always, it will be a special weekend but especially for Barry Baltus and the RW-Idrofoglia Racing GP team, who are entering their last Grand Prix together. After four seasons with the Dutch team, the Belgian rider will race for another team in 2025. For Baltus but also for Zonta van den Goorbergh, the goal will be to end the season on a positive note after which everyone can start looking forward to 2025.
Barry Baltus: “This will be my last race weekend with RW-Idrofoglia Racing GP and I’m looking forward to get a good result for them, and for these four years we have had together. I will give my maximum to get the best result possible and end this period in a good way. It will be emotional for sure, so let’s enjoy the last Grand Prix together.”
Zonta van den Goorbergh: “It feels like yesterday that we started the season in Qatar, but we are already on the eve of the final race weekend of the year. That is always a special Grand Prix, which this year will of course be held at a different circuit than planned because of the events in Valencia. It is great that we can still have a Grand Prix and that we are all racing for Valencia. Of course, we have been to Barcelona before this year and that was not a bad weekend then, although the conditions will be very different now. It will be a lot cooler than last time we were there and that will make a lot of difference in terms of track conditions. I’m looking forward to it and we’re going to make sure we can go into the winter with a good feeling.”
Jarno Janssen – RW-Idrofoglia Racing GP team manager: “It is already the last of the year, in a bit of an unexpected location. Because of everything that happened in Valencia, we are moving to Barcelona, so it will be a special weekend. In addition, it is also Barry’s last race with us. After four years it is time for something new, both for him and for the team. We are therefore very happy that he has found a new challenge and can join his new team from next week. For us it stops after Valencia, our first tests are scheduled in early February with Zonta and Ayumu. A new challenge in which we are immensely proud to have been able to attract a rider of Ayumu’s calibre.
Looking back on the season, we have had highs and lows but overall we can look back on it with pride. We got off to a great start in Qatar followed by some mixed results. After a very nice TT weekend, we showed in the second half of the season what we can do when everything is right. That gives us insight and a lot of motivation to do better next year.”
The race weekend at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya starts with free practice on Friday morning after which the first official practice session will be held in the afternoon. Then the second official practice will take place on Saturday morning after which it will be clear which riders will have to take part in Q1 or Q2. Qualifying starts at 13:45 on Saturday afternoon, with the 21-lap race starting at 12:15 on Sunday afternoon.