MOTORSPORT – BAHRAINI-British GT team 2 Seas Motorsport celebrated a sensational victory in class yesterday while placing their other car in the top eight in the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa 2025, held at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps in Belgium.
The event was the biggest day-long GT race in the world and it marked the third round of the 2025 GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup.
2 Seas were running the #33 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 Evo, driven by the trio of Harry King, Chris Lulham, and Thierry Vermeulen for Verstappen.com Racing. They powered to the win in the Gold Cup category following some late drama in an exciting battle with the #58 McLaren 720S GT3 EVO of Garage 59 team.
Meanwhile, 2 Seas’ #222 Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO, driven by the quartet of Charles Dawson, Kiern Jewiss, Parker Thompson, and Lewis Williamson, claimed an impressive seventh place in the race’s Bronze Cup classification.
The two cars’ performances wrapped up a fantastic outing in Belgium for the team, co-owned by Bahrain’s Shaikh Isa bin Abdulla bin Hamad Al Khalifa.
“We had a really strong race,” said Vermeulen after bringing the #33 car home at the chequered flag. “The team did an absolutely amazing job.”
Added Lulham: “It was a tough race for all of us, Harry struggled in the last stint but pulled us through it. I’m at a loss for words, it is unbelievable.”
The #33 crew started second amongst the Gold Cup runners and had a strong showing at the start on Saturday, which they carried over through the night to yesterday.
With King in the cockpit, they were in the lead heading into the race’s final two hours, with a gap of nearly nine seconds ahead of Garage 59’s Adam Smalley. King then pitted with only the final 60 minutes remaining, allowing Frederik Schandorff to steer the #58 McLaren ahead.
But with just under eight minutes to go, the Garage 59 car had a puncture with Dean Macdonald behind the wheel, giving Vermeulen the opportunity to go to the front.
They then held on until the end to take the Gold Cup victory with 548 laps completed, while also placing in the top 10 overall amongst the 75-car grid in ninth.
The #33 crew had made 24 pit stops over the course of the race, which was won by Grasser Racing Team in their #63 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2. They completed 549 laps and along with their overall triumph also took the race’s Pro Cup.
King, Lulham, and Vermeulen were joined on the Gold Cup podium by Garage 59’s #58 crew and CSA Racing’s #111 McLaren 720S GT3 EVO.
In the Bronze Cup, 2 Seas’ #222 contenders qualified 11th in class and moved up to as high as sixth before taking their final finishing position in seventh yesterday, which also saw them in 26th overall.
Williamson brought their Mercedes home with 544 laps registered. Winning the Bronze Cup were Kessel Racing’s #74 Ferrari 296 GT3, while also on the podium in class were Winward Racing’s #81 Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO and Sainteloc Racing’s #25 Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO II.
The CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa featured a record grid that included machinery from 10 of the world’s leading automotive manufacturers, all of whom compete full-time in the GT World Challenge.
This season’s calendar in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup features five rounds. Round one was held at Circuit Paul Ricard in France and round two took place in Monza, Italy.
Following Spa, the season now heads to its penultimate endurance meeting from August 29 to 31 at the Nurburgring in Germany, and then the championship finale will be held from October 10 to 12 in Barcelona, Spain.
patrick@gdnmedia.bh
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