Team WRT secures Race 2 victory at Zandvoort with lightning-fast pit stop

The Belgian squad had not looked to be a serious contender for the top step, but lightning-fast work from Killian and Alex (tyres and gun), Renaud (lollipop) and Mike (lance) vaulted their car to the head of the order. The result means that Weerts and Van der Linde now lead the Sprint Cup standings, as well as the overall GT World Challenge powered by AWS classification.

Emil Frey Racing controlled the opening phase of the race, the Ferrari squad running one-two with Ben Green in the #14 machine and Chris Lulham aboard the #69 entry. The teammates went side by side through the opening sequence of corners, with pole-sitter Green ultimately emerging in front.

But the Swiss squad suffered a major setback when both cars were hit with separate 10-second penalties: Green was found to have jumped the start, while Lulham was judged to have been out of position as the race began. With the lead pack running in such close proximity, the time loss would be disastrous.

Grasser Racing looked to be the major beneficiary with its #63 Lamborghini, which ran third throughout the opening stint with Jordan Pepper at the wheel. But as is so often the case in the Sprint Cup, the pit stops would change the complexion of the race.

Van der Linde had started ninth and made up two places at the start, then passed the #96 Rutronik Racing Porsche during the opening stint to run sixth. Even with the Emil Frey Racing pair set to lose time, the #32 BMW had four more cars to clear. Incredibly, it did exactly that thanks to a sensational 48.2-second pit stop.

Weerts emerged in the lead of the race and with the #26 Saintéloc Racing Audi as his closest challenger. The French squad ran fourth for much of the opening stint with the impressive Lorens Lecertua at the wheel and stopped early, along with the other Silver Cup and Bronze Cup cars, as part of the split pit window used at Zandvoort.

Ivan Klymenko took the controls for the second half of the race. The Ukrainian had a clear advantage in the Silver Cup and could have prioritised his class win ahead of the overall result. But despite enormous pressure from Luca Engstler in the #63 Lamborghini, Klymenko fought for his place on the podium.

With the cars behind him engaged in a fight for the runner-up spot, Weerts was able to pull away to win by more than 12 seconds, taking his 17th Sprint Cup win and the first alongside Van der Linde. Klymenko kept his cool to score a fantastic P2 finish for Saintéloc Racing, as well as a commanding Silver Cup win for the #26 crew.

Grasser Racing finished third, giving Pepper and Engstler their second podium of the weekend. The #59 Garage 59 McLaren took the chequered flag in fourth – scoring points for the 15th race in succession – while the #96 Rutronik Racing Porsche came home in fifth spot.

Lecertua and Klymenko were not the only Silver Cup squad to impress today, with three more cars from this class finishing among the overall top 10. The #99 Tresor Attempto Racing Audi was sixth, followed by the #992 Paradine Competition BMW and the #21 Comtoyou Racing Aston Martin. Maro Engel and Lucas Auer were ninth after the #48 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG was penalised five seconds for speeding in the pit lane.

Thierry Vermeulen and Chris Lulham took Gold Cup honours despite their 10-second penalty. The #69 Emil Frey Racing Ferrari had built such a lead that it was able to emerge at the head of the class order, beating the #88 Tresor Attempto Racing Audi and the #777 AlManar Racing by WRT BMW.

Kessel Racing scored Bronze Cup victory thanks to another strong showing from Dustin Blattner and Dennis Marschall. Taking the start from class pole, Blattner held his lead throughout the first stint before handing to Marschall to complete the job. The #112 CSA Racing McLaren was second to cap a strong weekend for the French team, followed by the #81 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG.

Results are HERE