Larry ten Voorde reclaims championship lead with his 25th win in the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland
Home win for Larry ten Voorde and his Amsterdam-based team GP Elite: the Dutchman secured victory at race five of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland. Porsche Junior Bastian Buus from Denmark crossed the finish line second ahead of his British Allied-Racing teammate Harry King. Another Dutchman caused a sensation at the race: Just two days after his 16th birthday, Robert de Haan achieved fourth place at his debut in the one-make cup with the 375 kW (510 PS) Porsche 911 GT3 Cup.
“Admittedly, I had a bit of luck,” acknowledged Larry ten Voorde after adding to his record with his 25th victory in the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland. Taking up the race from pole position, the Dutchman actually lost the lead to Porsche Junior Bastian Buus after just a few corners. However, the race was red-flagged seconds later to allow several vehicles to be salvaged after a collision.
Bad luck for Buus: After the race restarted, according to the rules, the 20-year-old Dane had to line up right behind ten Voorde again. And this time, the two-time champion of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland was not going to be taken by surprise. “Bastian made another attempt but this time I was ready for it,” said ten Voorde after the race on the Formula 1 circuit on the North Sea coast. “It’s a great feeling to win my home race in front of so many Dutch fans – and for GP Elite too.” With his victory, Larry ten Voorde takes the series lead from his teammate Loek Hartog, who finished fifth.
“The interruption of the race was understandable but obviously unfortunate for me – but that’s how it goes in motor racing and I can live with that. I start tomorrow’s race on the front grid row next to Larry again so I get another chance,” states Buus as he focuses on the second race of the weekend which gets underway on Sunday at 11.25 am.
A gripping duel similar to ten Voorde and Buus’s battle for victory unfolded between Harry King and Robert de Haan for third place. “Because of the fight with Robert, I initially lost contact with Larry and Bastian. By the time I managed to shake him off, the two were already out of reach. But I’m okay with third place, it’s at least one position better than my grid position,” commented King. The UK driver competes for the German team Allied-Racing.
Despite finishing behind King, Robert de Haan was the hero of the day. At barely 16 years old, this is the first race in the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland for the Dutchman, who usually contests the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux. Stepping in for the German Kai Pfister in the 911 fielded by the HRT Performance squad, de Haan was already the fastest rookie in qualifying. Clinching fourth place in the race, he won the category for cup newcomers ahead of Belgium’s Ghislain Cordeel (GP Elite) and Janne Stiak (ID Racing) from Germany.
Crossing the finish line in sixth place overall, Alexander Fach (FACH AUTO TECH) from Switzerland was the best-placed driver from the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland Talent Pool. Victory in the ProAm category went to Sören Spreng, who also competes for GP Elite. The German finished just ahead of Ahmad Alshehab from Kuwait (CarTech Motorsport Bonk). His German teammate Michael Essmann occupied the third step of the ProAm podium.
TV and internet coverage of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland
Race six of the season will be broadcast live with English commentary on Sunday (from 11:10 am) on the one-make cup’s YouTube channel as well as on the Porsche Motorsport Hub (https://motorsports.porsche.com/germany/de/category/carreracup).
Result race 5, Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland, Zandvoort (NL)
1. Larry ten Voorde (NL/Team GP Elite), 21:25.877 minutes
2. Porsche-Junior Bastian Buus (DK/Allied-Racing), +0.678 seconds
3. Harry King (UK/Allied-Racing), +3.166 seconds
4. Robert de Haan (NL/HRT Performance), +4.506 seconds
5. Loek Hartog (NL/Team GP Elite), +6.411 seconds
6. Alexander Fach (CH/Fach Auto Tech), +11.386 seconds
Standings Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland Drivers (after 5 races)
1. Larry ten Voorde (NL/Team GP Elite), 106 points
2. Loek Hartog (NL/Team GP Elite), 97 points
3. Harry King (UK/Allied-Racing), 90 points
4. Porsche-Junior Bastian Buus (DK/Allied-Racing), 57 points
5. Morris Schuring (NL/FACH AUTO TECH), 39 points
6. Theo Oeverhaus (D/CarTech Motorsport Bonk), 39 points
Full results and standings:
https://motorsports.porsche.com/germany/de/category/carreracup/pccd-2023-results