Sacha Norden (Team GP Elite) takes the double and is firmly leader in PRO-AM
Ralph Poppelaars (Hans Weijs Motorsport) does the same in the class AM
Zandvoort, June 25, 2023. The Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux was for the third meeting of the 2023 season as a guest in the dunes of Zandvoort. Wonderful summer weather, 24,000 spectators and two eventful races were the ingredients for a great motorsport weekend. In the fastest one-make cup in the Benelux, victories went to Robert De Haan (Richardson Racing) and Ariel Levi (Huber Racing). Robert De Haan, as leader in the championship, is therefore heading towards the second half of the season, a second half of the season that starts on August 11, 12 and 13 with the Jack's Racing Day in Assen and promises to be very exciting .
The qualifications already showed how small the differences in the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux are and how high the level is now. Benjamin Paque (AUGUST by NGT) and Robert De Haan took pole positions for the first and second race at Zandvoort respectively, but the differences were expressed in hundredths and thousandths of a second.
Benjamin Paque: “I am very happy with this pole position and second place in qualifying, because I have had a few difficult weeks and this gives me the necessary confidence. I am looking forward to the matches.”
De Haan's third
The first race of the weekend unfortunately didn't start well for the young man from Liège who lost quite a few places just after the green light. That played in favor of Robert De Haan, Flynt Schuring (Huber Racing) and Glenn Van Parijs (AUGUST by NGT), who shared the podium places in that order at the front. Paul Meijer (HWM) and Gus Burton (Richardson Racing) completed the top 5. De Haan was of course also the best rookie of the race.
Robert De Haan: “What a feeling to be able to win in front of my home crowd in this Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux. I feel particularly good in this competition and in the beautiful Porsche 911 GT3 Cyp – Type 992 – and this victory only motivates me even more for the rest of the season.”
In PRO-AM, the battle was at least as intense, with another win for Sacha Norden, ahead of Ryan Ratcliffe and Aaron Mason, both in Revs Motorsport livery. Ralph Poppelaars scored his third victory of the season in his home race, ahead of the newcomers Jules Grouwels (Speedlover) and Rik Geerts (HWM).
First victory for Ariel Levi
In the second race, Glenn Van Parijs took a great start, but when going up the Hunserug, Van Parijs and De Haan went off track, allowing Levi to take the lead ahead of Paque, Schuring and Burton. De Haan fell back to fifth place, while Van Parijs had to retire.
After the restart we also lost Schuring at the front. What followed was an exciting race, in which the safety car came out three times and eventually the race was red flagged. As prescribed by international motorsport rules, the result will then be determined on the basis of the previous lap. That meant that Levi crossed the line as the winner ahead of Paque, who also crossed the line as the best rookie. Micah Stanley (Richardson Racing) moved up to third after a result adjustment, ahead of Dirk Schouten (Q1 Trackracing) and Pro-Am winner Sacha Norden. He was ahead of Mason and Didier Glorieux (Speedlover) in that class. Ralph Poppelaars again won the Am class ahead of son and father Rik Geerts and Ad Geerts (RedAnt Racing).
Appointment now on 11, 12 and 13 August for the Jack's Racing Day at the circuit of Assen in the north of the Netherlands.