Laurin Heinrich (SSR Huber Racing) started the new Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland season with a win. The Porsche Junior from Germany won the first race of the 2022 season at the Belgian Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, ahead of Dylan Pereira (Luxembourg/IronForce Racing by Phoenix).
“My start wasn’t great, but I managed to defend my position and keep my rivals at bay. I will also start Saturday’s race from pole position and I want to make this weekend perfect with a double win,” says Heinrich. Defending champion Larry ten Voorde (Netherlands/Team GP Elite) finished third in the race that is part of the FIA World Endurance Championship support program.
Under a blue sky and at temperatures of 18 degrees Celsius, pole sitter Heinrich started at the wheel of his 375 kW (510 hp) Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. The 20-year-old from the Würzburg region of Germany jumped off the line and promptly put several car lengths between him and his closest pursuers to finally take an emphatic victory after 14 laps. At the start, Pereira attracted attention with a spirited attack on the 7.04 kilometer race track. The 24-year-old took the race from fifth on the grid and had worked his way up to second by lap two. “I got a flat tire in qualifying, so I started the race on the fresh set of slicks. That gave me an advantage in the early laps, so I made the most of it. At one point I managed to close the gap with Laurin Heinrich, but I couldn’t really catch him,” admits Pereira.
Ten Voorde initially captured one position after the start with an overtaking maneuver in the La Source hairpin, only to lose it to Pereira shortly afterwards. “I am satisfied with the result. Towards the end I was really fast and if I had done a few more laps I might have been able to overtake Dylan Pereira”, says ten Voorde. As the best driver from the Talent Pool – the youth development initiative of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland – Loek Hartog (Netherlands/Black Falcon) finished in fourth place. His compatriot Morris Schuring (SSR Huber Racing) also secured a place in the top five.
Michael Ammermüller (SSR Huber Racing) finished his first Carrera Cup race since 2019 in sixth place. The German followed over the finish line Bastian Buus (Denmark/Allied-Racing) and Max van Splunteren (Netherlands/Team GP Elite). Carlos Rivas (Luxembourg/Black Falcon) took the win in the ProAm standings. The reigning ProAm champion took the flag for Jan-Erik Slooten (Germany/IronForce Racing by Phoenix). Ahmad Alshehab (CarTech Motorsport by Nigrin) celebrated a premiere with third place in the ProAm class: this is the first time a driver from Kuwait has taken the podium in the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland.
Race 1, Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland
- Laurin Heinrich (Germany/SSR Huber Racing)
- Dylan Pereira (Luxembourg/IronForce Racing by Phoenix)
- Larry ten Voorde (Netherlands/Team GP Elite)
- Loek Hartog (Netherlands/Black Falcon)
- Morris Schuring (Netherlands/SSR Huber Racing)
- Michael Ammermüller (Germany/SSR Huber Racing)
- Bastian Buus (Denmark/Allied-Racing)
- Max van Splunteren (Netherlands/Team GP Elite)
- Rudy van Buren (Netherlands/Huber Racing)