The Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux and the Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux in action on the renewed Zandvoort
Vandierendonck, Cool and Verhoeven continue an exciting battle in the Sprint Challenge
Who dethrones Vermeulen in the Clubsport Division?
After Belgium (Zolder) and Germany (Nürburgring), the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux and Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux will travel to a third country this weekend. This time it is the turn of Circuit Zandvoort, which was completely modernized for the organization of the F1 GP of the Netherlands. The three races scheduled for this weekend as part of the GT World Challenge Europe will thus be the first of a Porsche mono-brand cup on the Dutch dune circuit!
“The drivers will be presented with the renewed route, including the two new bankings,” said a delighted Olivier Aerts, Series Manager of the Porsche competitions in the Benelux. “Unfortunately, this has to be done behind closed doors. The corona situation in the Netherlands is anything but simple… and that does not make organizing competitions easy. Given the current context, some of our loyal participants have decided not to go to the Dutch coast. ”
Still, there are a dozen Porschists at the appointment, and there are a lot of eye-catchers on the sporting side.
Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux: duel between Schuring and Hartog
Two meetings, four races… and a perfectly tied score. This is how the game between Loek Hartog (Bas Koeten Racing) and Morris Schuring (Team GP Elite) in the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux can be summarized the fastest. The two young wolves (17 and 15 years old) and their respective teams ride on their home circuit in Zandvoort. Both are determined to turn the tide on the dune circulation in their favor.
In the wake of the two young talents, the best Pro-Am riders will continue their battle in their class. After his two victories at the Nürburgring, Nicolas Vandierendonck (EMG Motorsport) leads the standings with a four-point lead, but Michael Cool (NGT Racing) is more than ever ready to close that gap. Can the Dutchman Bas Barenbrug (Bas Koeten Racing) fulfill the role of executioner on his home circuit?
After his absence in Germany, Gilles Smits (Speedlover) wants to confirm his good performance at Zolder. Not only does he want to compete for victory in Am, against Jean-Pierre and Jaxon Verhoeven (Speedlover), but in the overall ranking he also wants to get close to the best Pro-Am drivers.
Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux: excitement at the top
With the exception of Pro’s Hartog and Schuring, all Porsche 911 GT3 Cup drivers can also score points in the Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux. In addition to two sprint races, this competition also consists of a long race (55 minutes) at each meeting. With three results per weekend, the “Cup Division” championship looks a little different.
The top-3 is only separated by three points: Nicolas Vandierendonck leads with one point for Michael Cool, and three for Jaxon Verhoeven.
In the “Clubsport Division”, reserved for the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport, there is a driver active who by now earns the label “Cannibal”. With the exception of the qualifying session at the Nürburgring, Thierry Vermeulen was always at the top of this category. With six wins in six races, the Team GP Elite rider has already put together a nice lead over the competition. That competition also consists of his teammates, Alexander Goddijn and Steven van Rhee. This time they want to get involved in the battle for victory, but at the same time have to keep an eye on Harold Goddijn (Alexander’s father).
The two qualifying sessions will be completed on Saturday at 10:50 AM and 11:10 AM. In the afternoon (4 pm) the first race will follow in 30 minutes. On Sunday there is a second sprint on the program at 10:55 AM, after which the long race will close the weekend between 3:15 PM and 4:10 PM. All races will be broadcast live and can be followed on the championships YouTube channel and Facebook page with English commentary.
Qualifications Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux & Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux: https://youtu.be/u1555bJLP7k
Race 1 Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux & Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux: https://youtu.be/RdoBURRorkw
Race 2 Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux & Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux: https://youtu.be/of4l1dpbqMw
Race 3 Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux – 55 minutesn long race: https://youtu.be/Ins9NJOl8Hc
Follow the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux and the Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux via::
Instagram: @carreracupbenelux @sprintchallengebenelux
Facebook: /carreracupbenelux /sprintchallengebenelux
