Weekend notebook: wins and podiums at Zandvoort and Spa

Ferrari celebrated class victories and multiple podium finishes in the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup at Zandvoort in the Netherlands. Meanwhile, just across the border at Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium, MERTEL Motorsport claimed its first win in this championship with the 296 Challenge. The International GT Open, also held at the Ardennes circuit, delivered a podium finish in the Am class.

GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup. Ferrari emerged from the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint event at Zandvoort with class wins and podium finishes – the highlights of a weekend that also included its share of misfortune in the Pro class for the Maranello-based manufacturer.

Prancing Horse official driver Alessio Rovera, partnered with Vincent Abril, was forced to retire from Race-1 following a collision. AF Corse – Francorchamps Motors’ number 51 finished in 14th place overall and eighth in class in Race-2. The Italo-Belgian team’s second Pro entry, the number 50 with Ferrari officials Thomas Neubauer and Arthur Leclerc at the steering wheel, claimed ninth place overall and eighth in class in the opening race, but retired just six laps into the second.

There was also disappointment in Race-1 for Emil Frey Racing’s number 14 entry, which did not finish. However, drivers Ben Green and Konsta Lappalainen rebounded in Race-2, securing 11th place overall and seventh in class.

One of Ferrari’s weekend highlights was Sunday’s Gold Cup, where local driver Thierry Vermeulen and Chris Lulham secured victory in Emil Frey Racing’s number 69, adding to their second-place finish in Race-1.

AF Corse – Francorchamps Motors also entered a third car in the Silver class, with Jef Machiels and Marcos Siebert at the wheel of the number 52. The pair returned from the Netherlands with sixth- and seventh-place finishes in their class.

Dennis Marschall and Bustin Blattner delivered a standout performance in the Bronze Cup, securing the class pole position for Race-2 in Kessel Racing’s number 74. Blattner led throughout the opening stint before handing over to Marschall, who sealed the win. The pair also claimed an impressive third place in Race-1, recovering well after a first-lap collision that initially threatened to derail their race.

Series rookies Eddie Cheever and Marco Pulcini also impressed by finishing both races in the top ten with Ziggo Tempesta Racing’s 296 GT3 number 93.

The Endurance Cup returns for the next round of the championship, from 30 May to 1 June at Italy’s Autodromo Nazionale Monza.

International GT Open. Maranello’s best result in the GT Open 500 at Spa, the first of two endurance races on the International GT Open calendar, was a fifth-place finish for the AF Corse 296 GT3 number 51, driven by Carl Bennett and Tommaso Mosca. The number 17 of Elite Motorsport with Entire Race Engineering, driven by Tom Lebbon and Tom Emson, followed in seventh place. MERTEL Motorsport’s 488 GT3 Evo 2020 number 80, crewed by Luca Ludwig and Andrea Montermini, finished in 15th place overall and ninth in the Pro class. Rinaldi Racing’s 296 GT3 number 45, driven by Christian Hook and Felipe Fernandez, took 20th overall and eighth in the Pro-Am class. In addition, the second AF Corse entry, car number 55 with Laurent De Meeus and Jamie Stanley, finished tenth in the Pro-Am category.

In the Am class, the AF Corse 296 GT3 number 21, driven by Gino Forgione and Michele Rugolo, secured runner up spot, placing them second in the standings, just six points behind the leader. Stanislaw Jedlinski and Krystian Korzeniowski finished just off the Am podium in fourth position in the number 5 car of Olimp Racing. Round three of the championship will take place at Hockenheim on 7–8 June.

GT CUP Europe. Race-2 of the second round of the GT Cup Europe season – held at the Spa-Francorchamps circuit – brought the Maranello-based manufacturer its first win of the year in the series and marked the maiden victory for the 296 Challenge in the championship. The crew of Simone Patrinicola and Luca Demarchi was first over the line in MERTEL Motorsport number 80, clinching victory at the end of a hard-fought race filled with drama and on-track incidents. Their teammate Antoine Berbercich-Martin joined them on the podium, finishing third with the Ferrari 296 Challenge number 1. In the opening race on Saturday, Ferrari’s best result came from MERTEL Motorsport’s 488 Challenge Evo number 19, driven by Fernando Navarrete and Manuel Cañizares, who finished as runners-up in the Pro-Am class. The next round of the GT Cup Europe is on 8 June at Hockenheim.