Vermeulen and Lulham take landmark GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup win in Valencia

Chris Lulham of No. 69 Emil Frey Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 Ferrari | Credit: SRO/JEP

Thierry Vermeulen and Chris Lulham made GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup history in Valencia, becoming the first Gold Cup drivers to win a race outright. The Emil Frey Racing duo guided the No. 69 Ferrari 296 GT3 to victory in Race 1 at Circuit Ricardo Tormo, also sealing the Gold Cup title with one round to spare.

The weekend started with Balance of Performance changes. Lamborghini carried an extra 5kg, Ferrari and McLaren each got 10kg plus a small turbo reduction, while Porsche had the toughest penalty with 15kg added. Qualifying also shook things up. Alessio Rovera’s No. 51 AF Corse Ferrari was hit with a five-place grid penalty for too many reprimands, which bumped Lucas Auer in the No. 48 Winward Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo to the top Pro spot in fifth.

Thomas Fleming in the No. 58 Garage 59 McLaren also moved up to fourth, while Eddie Cheever’s No. 93 Ziggo Sport Tempesta Ferrari dropped five spots after his own penalty.

The star of qualifying was Dennis Marschall in the No. 74 Kessel Racing Ferrari 296 GT3, setting a 1:31.081 in Group B to take overall pole. It was already a big story for a Bronze Cup entry to start at the front, but the race itself delivered even bigger drama.

The opening lap was chaos. At Turn 2, Charles Weerts in the No. 32 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 Evo was wiped out when the No. 66 Tresor Attempto Audi slammed into his car, ending the points leader’s race. Further around the lap, the No. 59 Garage 59 McLaren of Benjamin Goethe was squeezed between Rovera’s Ferrari and the No. 99 Audi, then hit from behind by the No. 21 Comtoyou Racing Aston Martin, sending Patric Niederhauser’s No. 96 Rutronik Porsche 911 GT3 R spinning. The McLaren retired on the spot and the Porsche was badly damaged. Elsewhere, the No. 992 Paradine BMW and No. 111 CSA Racing McLaren collided, triggering a pile-up that eliminated even more cars and brought out the Safety Car.

Through all this, Vermeulen in the No. 69 Ferrari made huge gains. Starting ninth, he climbed to fifth by simply staying clear of trouble. Once racing resumed, Marschall held the lead in the Kessel Ferrari, but pit stop rules for Bronze Cup cars meant he couldn’t stay in front for long. Emil Frey delivered a quick stop, and Lulham took over the No. 69 Ferrari in the lead.

From there, Lulham controlled the race. Louis Prette in the No. 58 Garage 59 McLaren briefly ran second to make it a Gold Cup one-two, but was later passed by the No. 63 GRT Grasser Lamborghini of Jordan Pepper and Luca Engstler. Prette and Fleming still held on for third overall, putting two Gold Cup entries on the podium. Out front, Lulham pulled away and crossed the line 14.183 seconds clear to claim a famous win.

“I don’t really know what to say,” Lulham admitted. “The team pulled through with a quick pit stop to take the lead in the Gold Cup but also overall. Everything was good, the car was feeling amazing, I was even able to extend the gap a little bit. I couldn’t be happier.”

No. 32 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 Evo | Credit: SRO/JEP

Weerts and Van der Linde kept their points lead even though their No. 32 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 Evo retired on the opening lap after the Turn 2 crash. It looked like a big blow, but with Auer and Engel only finishing fourth in the No. 48 Winward Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo, the WRT pair stayed on top by a slim margin. Now just two points cover the top three, with Auer and Engel moving up to third, setting up a close fight in Sunday’s finale.

In Silver Cup, Kobe Pauwels and Jamie Day in the No. 21 Comtoyou Aston Martin provisionally clinched the title with their fourth straight win, even though they faced a post-race investigation for track limits. Their closest rivals, Aurélien Panis and César Gazeau, retired mid-race, ending their championship challenge.

In Bronze Cup, Marschall and Dustin Blattner in the No. 74 Kessel Ferrari turned their pole into a class win. Although they lost the overall lead during pit stops, the pair extended their championship advantage over the No. 89 Lionspeed GP Porsche of Bastian Buus and Bashar Mardini.

What began with BoP changes and grid penalties ended with chaos, history, and title twists. For Emil Frey Racing, it was a landmark day. For Vermeulen and Lulham in the No. 69 Ferrari, it was the moment they became the first Gold Cup pairing to win overall in Sprint Cup history.