TRIPLE PODIUM FOR TEAM WRT AT MAGNY-COURS KEEPS CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD INTACT

TRIPLE PODIUM FOR TEAM WRT AT MAGNY-COURS KEEPS CHAMPIONSHIP LEAD INTACT

03/08/2025

Team WRT returned to GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup action this weekend at Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours for the fourth and penultimate round of the season. With three BMW M4 GT3 EVOs entered, one in each of the Pro, Gold, and Silver classes, the Belgian squad delivered consistent results across both one-hour races. Strong finishes were secured including two podiums in the Pro category with Kelvin van der Linde and Charles Weerts, and one podium in the Gold category with Jens Klingmann and Al Faisal Al Zubair. Team WRT, van der Linde and Weerts retain their lead in both the Sprint and Overall championships.

RACE 1 HIGHLIGHTS

• The #32 BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Charles Weerts and Kelvin van der Linde climbed from sixth on the grid to secure P3 overall, thanks to a clean race and a well-executed pitstop strategy.
• In the Gold Cup, the AlManar Racing by WRT #777’s Jens Klingmann and Al Faisal Al Zubair also finished P3 on the road, later promoted to P2 following a rival’s penalty.
• The #30 Silver Cup car of Gustav Bergström and Gilles Stadsbader delivered a clean race to finish P5 in class.
• Strategic gains in the pits for all three cars thanks to swift and well-timed pit stops: #32 advanced from P7 to P3, #777 from P5 to P2, and #30 from P7 to P6, all within their respective classes.

RACE 2 HIGHLIGHTS

• The #32 crew repeated their consistency with another P3 overall, ensuring they remain in the Sprint Cup title fight with a 1.5 point lead.
• In the Gold Cup, the #777 battled strongly to P4 in class after starting from the middle of the pack.
• For personal reasons, Gustav Bergström had to return home before track action began on Sunday, meaning Gilles Stadsbader completed race 2 solo. The #30 BMW secured P7 in Silver Cup, adding further mileage and points to its campaign.

LOOKING AHEAD

Team WRT leaves Magny-Cours still leading both the Overall (Endurance and Sprint) and Sprint team and driver standings. The decisive final Sprint Cup round will take place in Valencia on September 20th and 21st, but before that, the squad will regroup for the penultimate round of the Endurance Cup at the Nürburgring on August 31st.

Vincent VOSSE, Team Principal Team WRT: "A tough weekend where we had again no more pace to offer than what we showed yesterday and today. However, thanks to the hard work of our pit crew, drivers, and engineers, we delivered strong races. Their excellent pit stops helped us gain positions on track. We secured a triple podium with two P3 finishes for car #32 and a P2 for #777. Car #30 had two decent races, though unfortunately Gustav Bergström had to withdraw on Sunday morning due to personal reasons. We’re ready for Valencia and we will seize every opportunity. Indeed, we’re still leading the championship so I'm looking forward to the finale!”

Kelvin VAN DER LINDE, driver #32: “A solid weekend in terms of points, but we’re still lacking pace compared to our main contenders. We need to analyse the data carefully to find where we can gain performance. While our race execution was strong, we’ll need a bit more speed in Valencia if we want to win this championship and that’s of course definitely our goal”.

Charles WEERTS, driver #32: “A very strong weekend with great execution from the team, but once again, we faced challenges with pace despite significant adjustments that were made throughout the weekend. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough for us to keep us fully in the fight. Still, our solid performance earned us two podiums and valuable points. It’s frustrating to be battling closely with two cars ahead and not able to close the gap. Anyway, we’re still leading the championship, but the fight is far from over. Hopefully, we’ll have the extra pace needed to truly challenge for the title at the finale in Valencia”.

Al Faisal AL ZUBAIR, driver #777: “A challenging weekend overall. P2 in Saturday night’s race was a strong result and a real highlight. In race 2, we got everything we could out of the package, but it was tough to fight against our rivals. It’s not easy to accept, but we take the points, learn what we can, and shift our focus to Valencia”.

Jens KLINGMANN, driver #777: "It was a tough weekend for our #777, even though Saturday gave us something to be proud of, second place in Race 1. We scored the maximum points we could, as the winning car was simply out of reach. We got the most out of that day. Sunday, however, was a different story. Once we were in the pack, it became difficult to create real opportunities. The car allowed us to stay in the mix, but moving forward proved challenging. It’s frustrating, but we’ll take the positives from Saturday, learn what we can, and move on to the final Sprint weekend. Let’s push in Valencia. I’m looking forward to it!”