Barcelona — Team WRT has clinched the Sprint Cup Teams’ championship in the GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS, marking its fourth title of the season. The Belgian team achieved this during the final Sprint Cup races held at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, where they previously secured the Sprint, Endurance, and Combined titles in the Silver Cup.
The team’s victory was bolstered by strong performances from its BMW M4 GT3 EVOs throughout the races. In addition to winning the Sprint Cup Teams’ classification, Team WRT also triumphed in the Pitstop Challenge, recognizing the efforts of its mechanics.
The first qualifying session presented challenges for the BMW teams, leading to a dramatic Race 1 marked by heavy rain and several incidents. The race had to be interrupted by a red flag midway through. However, the KPX Motorsport #77 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, driven by David Pittard and Jop Rappange, staged an impressive comeback from the back of the grid to finish eighth overall, securing second place on the Gold Cup podium.
Team WRT’s PRO Cup entries also faced trials but made progress from their starting positions. Kelvin van der Linde and Charles Weerts finished tenth in car #32, while Jordan Pepper and Amaury Cordeel came in eleventh in car #31. Valentino Rossi and Max Hesse, in car #46, concluded the race in sixteenth place.
Due to severe weather warnings predicting continued heavy rain, Saturday’s second qualifying session was canceled, and Race 2 was postponed until Sunday evening. The starting grid was determined by times from a prior practice session, placing the highest-ranked BMW M4 GT3 EVO in fifteenth position.
Race 2 took place in dry conditions, allowing for better racing. Van der Linde made significant gains, advancing 15 positions during the opening laps and ultimately finishing sixth. Pepper and Cordeel also made strides, completing the race in eighth place. Meanwhile, Rossi and Hesse, who were on track for a top-ten finish, faced an unscheduled pit stop due to a door issue and ended the race in thirty-eighth place.
In the Silver Cup, the #30 BMW M4 GT3 EVO driven by Matisse Lismont and Ignacio Montenegro finished seventh on Saturday, but Lismont had to retire from the race on Sunday after being involved in an early incident. In the Bronze Cup, Augusto Farfus and Darren Leung finished fourth in both races in their car.
The 2026 season of the GT World Challenge Europe will conclude in two weeks, ending with an endurance race at Portimão on October 17.
Vincent Vosse, Team Principal of Team WRT, expressed pride in the team’s achievements: “The Sprint Cup is a championship that is particularly close to our hearts. In our 14 participations, we have now won the title for the twelfth time. A big thank you to everyone who contributed to this achievement.”
Driver Kelvin van der Linde commented: “I am very happy for the team. They really deserved it, even though the past three weekends have been very difficult for us. It was a top race: top strategy, top pit stops – everything just came together.”
Jordan Pepper added, “I’m really proud… to reward [the team] is impressive. What we showed this weekend was that by executing all the other factors perfectly, we were able to move to the front.”
Max Hesse reflected: “Unfortunately, our Barcelona weekend was difficult… but we kept fighting and had good pace in the second race. We’ll take that with us to Portimão.”
