BMW Win & Podiums At Brands Hatch

The GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup championship held their first pair of races at the Brands Hatch circuit in the UK this past weekend of May 3-4, 2025, and BMW teams came away with a class win and podium finishes.

BMW has four M4 GT3 EVO entries in the Sprint Cup championship among three classes, with three of the cars run by BMW M Team WRT. In Pro Cup, factory drivers Charles Weerts and Kelvin van der Linde share the #32 car. In Silver Cup, Gustav Bergstrom and Gilles Stadsbader share the #30 car, while Maxime Oosten and Mex Jansen are paired in the #992 car run by Paradine Competition. In Gold Cup, factory driver Jens Klingmann is paired with Al Faisal Al Zubair in the #777 AlManar Racing by WRT entry. There were no Bronze Cup cars at Brands Hatch due to a lack of space in the paddock.

Kelvin van der Linde and Charles Weerts finished second in race two.

In the two qualifying sessions for the two races, the BMWs weren’t all that quick. The #32 M4 GT3 EVO was the fastest of the BMWs in both qualifying sessions but was only ninth quickest in the first session and seventh quickest in the second. Within the classes, the #992 BMW was in the best position for the races, starting fourth in class for both.

Brands Hatch is a difficult track to pass on, especially with 30 cars racing at the same time. In race one, Charles Weerts had some contact with other cars on the opening lap in the #32 and fell back to tenth overall. BMW M Team WRT has the quickest pit crew in the series and were able to move the car up a couple of spots to seventh overall and sixth in Pro Cup after pitting, which Kelvin van der Linde held until the end. The #992 BMW of Oosten and Jansen had a strong race to finish on the podium in second in Silver Cup, while the #777 car finished fifth in Gold Cup.

Maxime Oosten and Mex Jansen finished second in Silver Cup in race one for Paradine Competition.

In race two, BMW M Team WRT once again used a quick pit stop to move up within the field. Kelvin van der Linde had worked his way up to sixth overall in the #32 by the time he pitted, but a quick pit stop put the car out into second behind the #48 Mercedes-AMG. Charles Weerts put some pressure on the leading Mercedes-AMG but had to settle for second overall and in Pro Cup.

Al Faisal Al Zubair and Jens Klingmann celebrate their Gold Cup win in race two.

Meanwhile, in the Gold Cup class, solid driving by Jens Klingmann and Al Faisal Al Zubair as well as fast pit work put the #777 M4 GT3 EVO into the class lead, and Al Zubair finished the race strong to get the class win and finish eighth overall. The #992 car of Oosten and Jansen finished a solid fifth in the Silver Cup class. “This morning we didn’t think we had the pace to win, but ultimately it’s the teamwork,” said Klingmann. “I think we showed today with our pit stops that the (WRT) crew is really the best in the business and it’s been a pleasure working with them.”