Emil Frey Racing endures turbulent Race Weekend in Zandvoort

📌 Fast Facts 📌

At the third round of the GT World Challenge powered by AWS Sprint Cup, Emil Frey Racing experienced a turbulent weekend in Zandvoort. After challenging qualifying session and an early DNF for car #14 in Saturday’s chaotic race, car #69 at least secured a podium finish in the Gold Cup. On Sunday, the team impressed with a front-row lockout, but time penalties pushed both cars down the order. Despite strong pace and a Gold Cup win, the team only managed P11 and P13 overall.

Race 1 – Saturday, 17th May 2025
Qualifying didn’t quite go to plan for Emil Frey Racing on Saturday, with the drivers struggling for pace. Konsta Lappalainen placed the #14 Ferrari 296 GT3 in P16, while Thierry Vermeulen, competing on home turf, secured third in the Gold Cup with the #69 Ferrari, starting 15th overall.

The race start turned out to be very chaotic: after just one lap, the Safety Car was deployed due to several incidents around the track. Particularly unfortunate was the #14’s involvement in an early collision. A car ahead swerved to avoid a braking vehicle, leaving Konsta Lappalainen with no time to react. He damaged the front and was forced to retire after only one lap.

The sister car, however, mounted an impressive recovery. Chris Lulham delivered a strong drive and impressed with a spectactular overtaking move, helping the #69 to another podium in the Gold Cup – a silver lining to an otherwise messy race.

Race 2 – Sunday, 18th May 2025 
In the second qualifying session, Emil Frey Racing took a gamble – and it paid off: Ben Green delivered a sensational lap in the #14 Ferrari to take Pole Position. Alongside him on the front row was team-mate Chris Lulham in the #69, locking out the front row for Emil Frey Racing.

Both drivers made strong starts, holding their positions confidently. However, the dream start was soon marred by two penalties: the #14 received a ten-second-penalty for jumping the start, and the #69 was penalized as well for another infringement.

Despite the setbacks, both cars showed impressive pace: the #14 posted the second-fastest lap of the race, while the #69 secured the Gold Cup win. Still, frustration remained: only P11 and P13 in the overall standings – a race that had promised so much more.

TEAM QUOTES – Emil Frey Racing
Lorenz Frey-Hilti, Team Principal
"We lacked a bit of performance in Saturday’s qualifying but showed strong fighting spirit in the race. That made it all the more disappointing that we couldn’t convert our front-row on Sunday into a top result. We took big risks in qualifying, and both drivers delivered outstanding laps. The penalties were very harsh from our point of view – we could have and probably should have been fighting for the win. Still, we take away important lessons, especially with the upcoming DTM weekend here in mind. Overall, it was a mixed weekend. We secured Pole Position but couldn’t capitalize on it whilst loosing valuable potential due to tough penalties. But we showed where we belong."

Jürg Flach, Technical Director
"Starting both cars from the front row doesn’t happen every day. We tried to optimize the tyre peak for qualifying, and that worked really well! Unfortunately, the penalties pushed us far back. We need to keep working hard and make sure to take advantage of such opportunities in the future."

DRIVER QUOTES – Emil Frey Racing
Thierry Vermeulen (Netherlands)
"Standing on the Gold Cup podium and grabbing a win is some consolation, but it wasn’t our goal. After such an impressive qualifying, we were aiming for more. We’re obviously very frustrated, but we’ll keep a positive outlook moving forward."

Ben Green (United Kingdom)
"Pole Position was hard-fought and showed that we had a strong car capable of running at the front. Our goal was to control the race, and we managed that from the start. But unfortunately, the penalty hit us. It's really frustrating when you think about what could have been."

Konsta Lappalainen (Finland)
"The start to Saturday’s race was a bit unlucky and very chaotic. All cars launched as expected – apart for the one right in front of me, and I hit the back of it. There wasn’t much I could’ve done to avoid it. It was a real shame, but overall, the weekend was very difficult."

Chris Lulham (United Kingdom)
"We had the tyres warmed-up to be ready from the first lap – that was key to maximizing the tyres and getting the most out of the car right out of the pits. The track was pretty dusty when I went for my flying lap. I didn’t really know what to expect, but I knew this was the lap that mattered. It’s a real pity that we couldn’t make the most of our strong starting position."