GRT Secures Victory at Magny-Cours in GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup
Magny-Cours, France – Grasser Racing Team clinched an impressive victory in the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup race held at Magny-Cours, with drivers Luca Engstler and Jordan Pepper making a calculated comeback after starting from pole position.
Engstler initially dominated in the #63 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2, establishing a two-second lead over Patric Niederhauser’s #96 Rutronik Racing Porsche 911 GT3.R. However, a rapid pit stop by Rutronik propelled Sven Müller into the lead. Despite Müller’s early advantage, Pepper quickly closed the gap upon returning to the track.
With 18 minutes remaining, a Full Course Yellow altered the dynamics of the race. Following the restart, Pepper executed a sharp maneuver to overtake Müller at Turn 13, subsequently extending his lead to secure Grasser’s first Sprint Cup win of the season. The victory marked a significant milestone, with Engstler and Pepper joining a record seven different winning crews in consecutive Sprint Cup events.
Müller maintained a solid second place, finishing 1.243 seconds behind Pepper, while Charles Weerts and Kelvin van der Linde completed the podium in the #32 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 Evo, bolstering their drivers’ championship position.
The fourth position was occupied by Lucas Auer and Maro Engel in the #48 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo, followed closely by the #9 Boutsen VDS AMG of Luca Stolz and Maxime Martin. Stolz and Martin secured their best finish of the season, narrowly missing out on the podium due to strategic pit changes.
In the Gold Cup category, Thomas Fleming and Louis Prette claimed victory with their #58 Garage 59 McLaren GT3 Evo, followed by the #25 Sainteloc Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II and the #777 AlManar Racing by WRT BMW.
The Silver Cup saw a dramatic turn of events for class pole sitter Chris Lulham in the #69 Emil Frey Racing Ferrari, who was compromised by a multiple-car incident on the opening lap. Comtoyou Racing’s Kobe Pauwels capitalized, inheriting the class lead in the #21 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo, ultimately maintaining an 11-second buffer prior to the pit window.
In the Bronze Cup, Bastian Buus and Bashar Mardini triumphed in the #89 Lionspeed GP Porsche 911 GT3.R, marking their second class victory of the season. Mardini expertly defended against a late challenge from Darren Leung’s #991 Paradine Competition BMW, finishing just 0.561 seconds ahead.
Looking ahead, Race 2 at Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours is scheduled for 15:15 CEST tomorrow, with qualifying preceding it at 10:30 CEST.
Further updates to follow.
