The GT World Challenge Europe series traveled to Holland on the weekend of May 15th-18th to the challenging Zandvoort circuit for two Sprint Cup rounds, and BMW teams came away with a win and podium finishes.
In race one, the fastest BMW was down in nineteenth in qualifying with the #32 BMW M Team WRT M4 GT3 EVO driven by Charles Weerts and Kelvin van der Linde setting a fast lap of 1:33.456, which was just over six-tenths of a second off the pole time of the #89 Porsche. The top twelve cars were within a half-second of each other.
Kelvin van der Linde (left) and Charles Weerts celebrate their race two win.
In the first race, BMW teams made up positions from their qualifying spots to get on the podium. The #32 car of Weerts and van der Linde (shown in top photo) moved up to fourth in the Pro Cup class and fifth overall by the end of the race, with the overall and Pro Cup win going to the #96 Porsche. In the Gold Cup class, the #777 AlManar Racing by WRT entry of Jens Klingmann and Al Faisal Al Zubair finished on the podium in third, while the #991 Paradine Competition M4 GT3 EVO of Darren Leung and Augusto Farfus finished second in the Bronze Cup class.
Jens Klingmann and Al Faisal Al Zubair finished on the Gold Cup podium in both races.
Race two went better for BMW M Team WRT, with the #32 M4 GT3 EVO of Weerts and van der Linde taking the win overall and in Pro Cup thanks to incredible pit work by the WRT team. The car started in ninth and made up two spots at the start with van der Linde at the wheel, then moved up to sixth by pit stops. BMW M Team WRT is the fastest pit crew in the series and put in a sensational stop to move the #32 car to the front. With a super-fast pit crew as their secret weapon, Weerts and van der Linde were leading the championship points in the Pro Cup class after Zandvoort. “We know our guys are the best and always bring us back into the game with their fast pit stops,” said Weerts.
Augusto Farfus and Darren Leung finished second in the Bronze Cup class in race one.
BMW teams were also successful in the other classes in race two. Klingmann and Al Zubair were on the podium again in the Gold Cup class with a third-place finish, while Maxime Oosten and Mex Jansen finished third in the Silver Cup class in their #992 Paradine Competition M4 GT3 EVO. Augusto Farfus and Darren Leung finished just off the podium in fourth in the Bronze Cup class.
Maxime Oosten and Mex Jansen finished third in Silver Cup in race two.
Next up for GT World Challenge Europe is and Endurance Cup race at Monza in Italy on the weekend of May 30th-June 1st.
—David Haueter
[Photos courtesy SRO]
