Thrilling action at Zandvoort: McLaren victory in the first GT World race

Thomas Fleming and Louis Prette have won the first race of the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup at Zandvoort. The Garage 59 duo fought their way through from second on the grid to win the first of the two one-hour races. The two drivers also claimed the Gold Cup.

Morris Schuring and Dorian Boccolacci finished the race in second place in the Boutsen VDS Porsche 911 GT3 R. They were just 0.676 seconds behind the winning McLaren.

Thierry Vermeulen and Ben Green completed the podium in the Emil Frey Racing Ferrari. Green secured third place with a spectacular double overtaking manoeuvre in the closing stages.

After six minutes, the safety car was deployed onto the track. In the Hugenholtzbocht, Carl Bennett in the AF Corse Ferrari and Amaury Cordell in the WRT BMW collided. Bennett spun in the steep corner and, as he attempted to continue, he struck the Belgian’s BMW.

After the pit stop window closed, the race was neutralised with a Full Course Yellow as championship leader Kelvin van der Linde coasted to a halt due to technical problems.

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GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup Zandvoort Race 1 results (Top 10):

1. Thomas Fleming/Louis Prette – Garage 59 – McLaren 720S GT3

2. Morris Schuring/Dorian Boccolacci – Boutsen VDS – Porsche 911 GT3 R

3. Thierry Vermeulen/Ben Green – Emil Frey Racing – Ferrari 296 GT3

4. Klaus Bachler/Simon Birch – razoon – more than racing – Porsche 911 GT3 R

5. Bastian Buus/Ricardo Feller – Lionspeed GP – Porsche 911 GT3 R

6. Dani Juncadella/Chris Lulham – Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing – Mercedes-AMG GT3

7. Thomas Neubauer/Arthur Leclerc – AF Corse – Ferrari 296 GT3

8. Tommaso Mosca/Matias Zagazeta – AF Corse – Ferrari 296 GT3

9. Matisse Lismont/Ignazio Montenegro – WRT – BMW M4 GT3

10. Nicki Thiim/Kobe Pauwels – Comtoyou Racing – Aston Martin Vantage GT3