Porsche Sprint Challenge – Victor Blugeon crushes Le Mans

Le Porsche Sprint Challenge France offers gentlemen drivers the rare opportunity to race in Porsche on the circuit of 24 Hours of Le Mans. The races of the Porsche Sprint Challenge France were open to all racing Porsches, from the 911 GT3 R to the Cayman GT4 Clubsport, allowing around a hundred drivers to take part in the two 45-minute races held to open the 24 2025 Hours of Le Mans.

Some competed in both races while others shared the wheel of the 71 cars entered, each running one event.

The festivities began on Wednesday morning with two 30-minute free practice sessions, allowing drivers to discover the track or to refresh their memories for those who participated in the 2021 or 2022 editions.

There were no track interruptions during these two sessions, with the exception of a tire burst entering the Indianapolis corner on the very last lap, which threw the car into the barrier, fortunately without any consequences for the driver.

On Thursday morning, rain arrived at Le Mans and it was on a soggy track that the drivers took their places on the pre-grid; their cars were naturally fitted with rain tires. Louis Meric (LM31 by Racetivity) was the fastest with a tenth of a second advantage over Victor Bluegeon (ABM), but being in the lead is not necessarily an advantage at Le Mans because the pole position is on the left like the first corner of the Dunlop chicane, while the long right-hand curve that precedes it allows the second on the grid to position himself advantageously under braking. The fastest of the 911 GT3 Rs, that of Charlie Bateman (Blackthorn) was tenth at 5 seconds and the best Cayman GT4 RS, that of Lucas Glinche (Glinche Racing) was thirty-fourth at 11 seconds. On the Le Mans circuit, the GT4 RS proved to be the fastest, reaching 302 km/h in a straight line, compared to 297 km/h for the 992 GT3 Cup, but they lost a lot of time in corners because of their narrower tires. Much less powerful with 385 hp compared to 500, the Cayman 981s were relegated to 30 seconds, the fastest being that of Gautier Ebel (Gautier Ebel Motorsport).

With the lines practically dry, some drivers opted for slick tires for the second qualifying session, a gamble that paid off for Enzo Joulie (Martinet by Almeras) who took pole position ahead of Victor Blugeon, with Karl Vandewoestyne (2B Autosport) finishing third in both qualifying sessions. Thirty-second, 11 seconds behind, Lucas Glinche retained his pole position in the GT4 RS, as did Charlie Bateman in the GT3 R. However, in GT4, Laurent Bellec (Driv'n Motorsport Events) was the fastest.

Early Thursday afternoon, the track was perfectly dry at the start of the first race, but track incidents delayed the start and the drivers stayed in the car for a long time in the sun, which would be felt at the end of the race.

The start was clear with a smooth passage through the Dunlop chicane, but on the third lap, Jonathon Beeson (Graves Motorsport) won under braking against Stéphane Perrin (Lajoux Motorsport). The latter resisted and the two cars ended up colliding, taking Alexandr Artemyev with them (Schumacher IMSA) who was hit as he was exiting the chicane. The safety car was deployed to clear the cars and the race resumed two laps later. In the lead, Victor Blugeon waited until the penultimate lap to take the advantage over Louis Meric. Between the stifling heat with more than 30° in the air and 50° on the track, the drivers suffered at the end of the race and some lost their concentration. With 7 minutes to go, several cars ended up in the gravel traps and the race director preferred to bring out the red flag rather than finish the race under safety car.

Victor Bluegeon took the victory ahead of Clément Loeul (Ancel Motorsport), with Karl Vandewoestyne receiving a 5-second penalty for abusing track limits. Thirty-first-place Lucas Glinche confirmed his pole position by winning in GT4 RS ahead of Frédéric Johais (Autovitesse) and Laurent Nuss (Rempp Racing). Gautier Ebel did the same in GT4 ahead of Jean Olive (CG Motorsport) and Francis Ebel (Gautier Ebel Motorsport).

Note the very good comebacks of Samer Shahin (GP Elite) and Axel Sartingen (HRT Performance) who gained 11 and 12 places respectively in the race.

The Porsche Sprint Challenge France drivers were the first to take to the track on Friday morning for their second race, which will be contested on a track that is once again perfectly dry.

From the first corner of this second race, Victor Blugeon took the lead and was not going to be dislodged, especially as Greg Gorski (HRT Performance) made a mistake at the first braking point and rubbed along the wall, which caused the safety car to come out for a lap, the time to push the car back into the safety lane. On the fifth lap, Dominique Bastien (Speed ​​Lover) was forced to retire following a slight contact, which led to the implementation of a slow zone to free the car. The rest of the race took place without any notable incident, which allowed Victor Blugeon to win ahead of Karl Vandewoestyne and Enzo Joulie. In GT4 RS, Lucas Glinche also scored a one-two ahead of Julien Piguet (Autovitesse) and Luc Remmy (Rempp Racing), who came from behind after having to change his engine during the night, a crack having been spotted in a crankcase.

Finally, Jean Olive won in GT4 ahead of Chloé Ebel (Gautier Ebel Motorsport), Gautier's little sister, and Laurent Bellec, with César Vandewoestyne (2B Autosport) achieving the feat of the race by gaining 13 places to finish twelfth after starting from twenty-fifth place on the grid.

Ranking Race 1

1. BLUGEON Victor (992 / ABM): 7 laps in 35:59.900

2. LOEUL Clément (992 / Ancel Motorsport) at 1.558

3. VANDEWOESTYNE Karl (992 / 2B Autosport) at 2.039

4. NOEL Sylvain (992 / Racing Technology) at 5.436

5. JOULIE Enzo (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 5.860

6. MERIC Louis (992 / LM31 by Racetivity) at 6.428

7. BATEMAN Charlie (R/Blackthorn) at 7.252

8. GIACOMAZZI Riley (992 / Huber Racing) at 7.811

9. JANE Rodney (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 14.127

10. GAMBARO Jean Philippe (992 / ABM) at 14.569

11. KING Graham (992 / NGT Racing BV) at 15.676

12. TAN David (992 / HRT Performance) at 17.574

13. SHAHIN Samer (992 / GP Elite) at 27.230

14. GAMBRELL Steve (992 / HRT Performance) at 27.522

15. by WILDE John (992 / Speed ​​Lover) at 28.357

16. MONEGRO Joel (992 / Porsche Track Experience operated by Manthey) at 28.859

17. GERIS Ziad (992 / GP Elite) at 31.512

18. SARTINGEN Axel (992 / HRT Performance) at 33.238

19. VANDEWOESTYNE César (992 / 2B Autosport) at 33.690

20. TOMASONI Marcelo (992 / Huber Racing) at 34.896

21. VINCE Anthony (992 / Mougins Autosport Racing) at 35.174

22. REINHOLD Krahn (992 / Laptime Performance) at 36.600

23. COLOMBANI Gilles (992 / ABM) at 37.035

24. ROSSI Louis (992 / Cudennec D&P) at 59.985

25. BASTIEN Dominique (992 / Speed ​​Lover) at 1:00.841

26. LACORE Frédéric (992 / Racing Technology) at 1:02.708

27. VANWYNSBERGHE Marc (992 / 911 Impact) at 1:02.894

28. TREMBLAYE Hervé (992 / Ancel Motorsport) at 1:04.258

29. MONTAGNESE Antonio Maximiliano (992 / PS Performance srl) at 1:05.352

30. D'SILVA Marc (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 1:07.028

31. GLINCHE Lucas (GT4 RS / Glinche Racing) at 1:10.541

32. MEZARD Cedric (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 1:10.800

33. COCHARD Laurent (992 / Racing Technology) at 1:12.422

34. BOITHIOT Marc (991 / BMR) at 1:13.363

35. JOHAIS Frédéric (GT4 RS / Autovitesse) at 1:13.974

36. NUSS Laurent (GT4 RS / Rempp Racing) at 1:14.831

37. D SILVA Adrian (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 1:15.532

38. DUBELLY Elie (GT4 RS / Autovitesse) at 1:16.076

39. LEHERPEUR Franck (GT4 RS / Autovitesse) at 1:16.597

40. CARMINATI Jean Charles (GT4 RS / Riviera Motorsport) at 1:20.426

41. GIRARDOT Stéphane (GT4 RS / CG Motorsport) at 1:21.508

42. MURER Pierre (992 / RSR PMZ) at 1:23.576

43. HUET Nathan (GT4 RS / CG Motorsport) at 1:23.893

44. TARI Tiger (992 / Speed ​​Lover) at 1:24.185

45. COISNE Bernard (GT4 RS / Team Tinseau) at 1:29.845

46. ​​HIRSCHI Pierre (GT4 RS / GEMO Motorsport) at 1:36.542

47. VON ROMPUY Dirk (992 / NGT Racing BV) at 1:56.141

48. EBEL Gautier (981 / Gautier Ebel Motorsport) at 2:10.632

49. CARDIA Jean Pierre (GT4 RS / Glinche Racing) at 2:19.258

50. OLIVE Jean (718 / CG Motorsport) at 2:20.285

51. ARONSON Peter (992 / Speed ​​Lover) at 2:22.406

52. MICHAELIAN Jim (992 / GDL Racing) at 2:27.516

53. EBEL Francis (981 / Gautier Ebel Motorsport) at 3:07.114

54. AUCH-HISIGER Claude (GT4 RS / Gautier Ebel Motorsport) at 3:07.892

55. CIBIEN Béatrice (981 / Gautier Ebel Motorsport) at 3:08.847

56. DURAND Mathias (GT4 RS / Racing Technology) at 3:12.735

57. BOURDIN François-Xavier (981 / Driv'n Motorsport Events) at 3:36.752

58. KELLY Kayden (992 / Laptime Performance) 1 lap down

59. GORSKI Gregg (992 / HRT Performance) 1 lap down

60. REMMY Luc (GT4 RS / Rempp Racing) 1 lap behind

61. RAYNAUD Guillaume (992 / Driv'n Motorsport Events) 1 lap behind

62. BLANCHEMAIN Michael (992 / Lajoux Racing) 2 laps behind

63. MARDINI Bashar (992 / GDL Racing) 2 laps down

NC. ARTEMYEV Alexandr (992 / Schumacher IMSA)

NC. BEESON Jonathon (992 / Graves Motorsport)

NC. ETTOUATI Michel (R / Schumacher IMSA)

NC. MALERBA Bruno (GT4 RS / PV Tech)

EXC. PERRIN Stéphane (992 / Lajoux Racing)

Ranking Race 2

1. BLUGEON Victor (992 / ABM): 10 laps in 45:27.867

2. VANDEWOESTYNE Karl (992 / 2B Autosport) at 6.337

3. JOULIE Enzo (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 7.282

4. NOEL Sylvain (992 / Racing Technology) at 8.454

5. BATEMAN Charlie (R/Blackthorn) at 8.803

6. MERIC Louis (992 / LM31 by Racetivity) at 12.766

7. GIACOMAZZI Riley (992 / Huber Racing) at 13.644

8. JANE Rodney (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 34.714

9. DIDRY Yann (992 / ABM) at 36.484

10. SHAHIN Samer (992 / GP Elite) at 49.195

11. HAUSCHILD Kim André (992 / HRT Performance) at 49.301

12. VANDEWOESTYNE César (992 / 2B Autosport) at 50.353

13. TAN David (992 / HRT Performance) at 51.892

14. KING Graham (992 / NGT Racing BV) at 53.754

15. GERIS Ziad (992 / GP Elite) at 55.027

16. MONEGRO Joel (992 / Porsche Track Experience operated by Manthey) at 58.741

17. by WILDE John (992 / Speed ​​Lover) at 58.747

18. COLOMBANI Gilles (992 / ABM) at 58.829

19. KELLY Kayden (992 / Laptime Performance) at 59.068

20. VINCE Anthony (992 / Mougins Autosport Racing) at 1:00.557

21. ANCEL Frédéric (992 / Ancel Motorsport) at 1:03.787

22. DAYRAUT Xavier (992 / Driv'n Motorsport Events) at 1:07.276

23. SARTINGEN Axel (992 / HRT Performance) at 1:09.312

24. MARDINI Bashar (992 / GDL Racing) at 1:11.787

25. RICCI Romano (992 / Schumacher IMSA) at 1:17.776

26. CINI Marc (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 1:18.252

27. REINHOLD Krahn (992 / Laptime Performance) at 1:22.311

28. VANWYNSBERGHE Marc (992 / 911 Impact) at 1:28.263

29. GLINCHE Lucas (GT4 RS / Glinche Racing) at 1:33.891

30. D'SILVA Adrian (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 1:35.344

31. DA COSTA Jérôme (992 / Lajoux Racing) at 1:35.908

32. MEZARD Cedric (992 / Martinet by Almeras) at 1:42.252

33. PIGUET Julien (GT4 RS / Autovitesse) at 1:49.853

34. LOEUL Clément (992 / Ancel Motorsport) at 1:58.147

35. BOITHIOT Marc (991 / BMR) at 2:04.025

36. REMMY Luc (GT4 RS / Rempp Racing) at 2:07.341

37. RENAULT Richard (992 / Racing Technology) at 2:30.915

38. ZIEGLER Michael (992 / RSR PMZ) at 2:39.104

39. RAMOS Arthur (992 / Huber Racing) at 2:42.414

40. MONTAGNESE Antonio Maximiliano (992 / PS Performance srl) at 2:46.186

41. NUSS Laurent (GT4 RS / Rempp Racing) at 2:56.359

42. DUBELLY Elie (GT4 RS / Autovitesse) at 2:57.944

43. PROUST Thierry (GT4 RS / CG Motorsport) at 3:13.677

44. TARI Tiger (992 / Speed ​​Lover) at 3:25.057

45. PLESSIS Anthony (GT4 RS / Autovitesse) at 3:36.681

46. ​​HIRSCHI Pierre (GT4 RS / GEMO Motorsport) at 3:38.569

47. COLLIN Laurent (992 / Cudennec D&P) at 3:50.734

48. MALERBA Fabio (GT4 RS / PV Tech) at 3:51.499

49. VON ROMPUY Dirk (992 / NGT Racing BV) at 4:01.155

50. ARONSON Peter (992 / Speed ​​Lover) at 4:01.971

51. CARDIA Jean Pierre (GT4 RS / Glinche Racing) 1 lap behind

52. AUCH-HISIGER Claude (GT4 RS / Gautier Ebel Motorsport) at 1 lap

53. NOURRY Michel (GT4 RS / CG Motorsport) 1 lap behind

54. MICHAELIAN Jim (992 / GDL Racing) 1 lap down

55. OLIVE Jean (718 / CG Motorsport) 1 lap behind

56. EBEL Chloé (981 / Gautier Ebel Motorsport) 1 lap behind

57. BELLEC Laurent (981 / Driv'n Motorsport Events) 1 lap behind

58. DURAND Mathias (GT4 RS / Racing Technology) at 1 lap

59. CIBIEN Béatrice (981 / Gautier Ebel Motorsport) 1 lap behind

60. ETTOUATI Michel (R / Schumacher IMSA) at 1 lap

61. EBEL Francis (981 / Gautier Ebel Motorsport) 1 lap behind

62. COCHARD Laurent (992 / Racing Technology) 1 lap behind

NC. BASTIEN Dominique (992 / Speed ​​Lover)

NC. GORSKI Gregg (992 / HRT Performance)

NC. GOUJAT Julien (GT4 RS / Riviera Motorsport)

NC. COISNE Bernard (GT4 RS / Team Tinseau)