- Record starting grid of no less than 29 cars also has six AM drivers
Zonhoven, 11 April 2023. The 2023 motorsport season is just around the corner in the Benelux and fans of high-quality and competitive brand cups can indulge themselves once again this year. For the eleventh season of the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux, there are no fewer than 29 cars on the starting grid for the full season, including six AM entries or the entrepreneurs that race with a heart for Porsche. During the last official test day, they were also present to prepare for the 2023 season.
Spa-Francorchamps was the place of appointment for the test day of the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux on Friday 7th of April and it was immediately full house on the asphalt in the Ardennes. In addition to the Pro drivers, including the seven drivers of the Talent Pool, the Pro-AM drivers and the AM drivers had also descended on Francorchamps.
Specifically, this season we see the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup – Type 992 – with AM drivers or “gentlemen drivers” at the wheel. DUWO Racing does it with Marc Wächter, Speedlover with Peter Ameloot, Hans Weijs Motorsport with Ralph Poppelaars, Team GP Elite with Cedric Chassang and last but not least RedAnt Racing with Philippe Wils on the one hand and one Porsche 911 GT3 Cup for Luc Vanderfeesten and Ad Geerts on the other. They are the starting field of this competition in the league. As we have already observed in recent years, the battle in the belly of the peloton is always intense and very pleasant to follow.
What makes a participant in the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux able and allowed to compete in the AM ranking?
"That format is one that we decide for ourselves, as all Porsche competitions do," explains Series Manager Olivier Aerts. That classification is not an exact science, but we do look for as many stable parameters as possible that make it easy for us and that are clear to the teams and drivers. In any case, it is clear that anyone who is younger than, say, 30 to 35 years old, cannot in principle compete in this category and you may not have experience in, for example, international single-seater classes or have a distinct national or international motorsportrecord. Actually, the AM category is one for men and women who are primarily entrepreneurs or are professionally very active and who also want to enjoy motorsport in the form of the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux. "
A regular customer in the AM category of the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux is Hasselaar Luc Vanderfeesten who shares his RedAnt Racing car with Ad Geerts.
"The Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux is a wonderful sporting platform for gentlemen drivers and as a Porsche dealer – Porsche Centrum Eindhoven and Porsche Centrum Maastricht – I notice how the brand's DNA is highlighted on the race track. Moreover, the competition as such is very strongly organized, with beautiful race weekends, a very nice hospitality for the guests and of course a wonderful competition in which Ad and I can completely let go of the professional. Thanks to the RedAnt Racing team, we have also made a lot of progress in recent years and I enjoy racing even more."
Where Luc Vanderfeesten and Ad Geerts have been racing for years, there is also room for newcomers, such as the Dutch entrepreneur Ralph Poppelaars, who will start in the colors of Hans Weijs Motorsport .
"I am indeed new to this competition and I am very much looking forward to the start of the season. I am a Porsche enthusiast pur sang and have tasted driving on track in the past thanks to the Porsche Experience. For me, racing with Porsche is a dream come true in a beautiful environment and in a safe context. As an entrepreneur and young father, racing should not involve an irresponsible risk and porsche's safety standards are for me exactly what I am looking for, in addition to all the fun you have here. My goal this year is to make as much progress as possible."
The Porsche Carrera Cup 2023 starts on 27, 28 and 29 April at the Circuit Spa-Francorchamps during the Belgian round of the FIA WEC.