Race 1
Otto Blank and Pierre Kaffer triumphed in Saturday’s GT2 European Series powered by Pirelli contest at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, putting the Audi R8 back on top for the first time in more than two years.
The LP Racing duo scored Pro-Am victory ahead of the new Ginetta G56, which enjoyed a sensational competitive debut at the Spanish venue, while Philippe Prette continued his domination of the Am class thanks to a ninth win of the year.
There was drama before the season’s penultimate race had even begun, with the pole-sitting #89 RTR Projects KTM unable to start due to a technical issue. This effectively promoted Prette to overall pole, though the #1 LP Racing Maserati would still need to start from the left-hand side of the grid.
Having qualified third, Alberto De Martin (#115 NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG) took advantage of the gap ahead of him to charge into first, while Prette slotted into second. The LP driver initially looked to have a pace advantage over the Mercedes-AMG, but De Martin held firm.
Prette was subsequently passed by the #7 DINAMIC Motorsport Maserati and the #294 RTR Projects Mercedes-AMG, though the latter was quickly eliminated from the lead battle by a drive-through penalty. Pampanini gradually closed the gap to De Martin, but the Italian misjudged his braking into Turn 1 and made contact with the rear of the #115 Mercedes-AMG. This caused significant cosmetic damage to the NM machine and allowed Prette to swoop past both and into the overall lead.
The pit window would shuffle the order even further. With extra time to serve following their success last time out at Valencia, the #1 Maserati and the #115 Mercedes-AMG both slipped back after their stops. The #7 Maserati was temporarily promoted to the lead, but its chances were scuppered by a drive-through for Pampanini’s contact with De Martin.
Once the penalty had been served the lead fell to Kaffer in the #88 Audi, which had been started by Blank and climbed to fifth overall during the first stint. With a clear track ahead of him, former Audi factory ace Kaffer was in a commanding position. He delivered an assured drive to give the R8 its first GT2 Europe win since the series visited Valencia in 2023.
Lawrence Tomlinson survived an opening-lap trip through the gravel in the CMR-run Ginetta to hand the car to son Freddie, who ran in P2 throughout the second stint. The youngster largely kept pace with Kaffer to secure a dream result for the new G56, which is set to launch a full attack next year. Nil Montserrat brought the #115 Mercedes-AMG home third to complete the Pro-Am podium.
Prette scored his ninth Am win of the year, though he did not control the entirety of the race. The Italian lost the lead to Petr Lisa’s #294 Mercedes-AMG early on and then slipped behind the sister #8 LP Racing Maserati after making his stop. Stéphane Ratel led several laps in the car he shares with Jean-Denis Delétraz, but Prette was able to catch and pass the Frenchman on his way to another triumph. Ratel retained P2 to complete a perfect day for LP Racing, with Ondrej Rokos third in the #294 Mercedes-AMG.
Race 2
A back-to-front performance secured RTR Projects the final Pro-Am win of the 2025 GT2 European Series powered by Pirelli season at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, while Philippe Prette completed another weekend sweep for LP Racing.
Denied by technical problems on Saturday, the #89 KTM X-BOW of Lennart Marioneck and Mato Homola charged from a pit lane start to win by more than 35 seconds, while Prette’s #1 Maserati was typically untroubled on the way to a remarkable 10th Am class victory.
There was immediate drama as the field thundered into Turn 1. Mauro Calamia (#7 DINAMIC Motorsport Maserati) made a solid start from pole but was challenged in the braking zone by Nil Montserrat (#115 NM Racing Mercedes-AMG). The pair made contact, sending both back to the pits for repairs. The Maserati was unable to rejoin, while the Mercedes-AMG fell a lap down and out of contention.
This paved the way for a three-car battle for the lead, which was headed by Pierre Kaffer in Saturday’s race-winning LP Racing Audi, with the Team MZR KTM of Reinhard Kofler and Freddie Tomlinson’s CMR Ginetta in hot pursuit. Kofler had the occasional look to the inside, but Kaffer was able to fend off the KTM driver.
Kaffer ran a lap longer than his rivals before handing over to teammate Otto Blank, who rejoined in fourth after serving extra time in the pits for yesterday’s win. This elevated the Team MZR entry now driven by Marius Aigner to the head of the order, with second spot occupied by the #89 KTM. Technical problems kept them out of Race 1, but the RTR squad was producing an exceptional comeback.
The German did not take long to make the decisive move, picking up the slipstream on the main straight and taking the lead from Aigner under braking for the first corner. It would prove the winning overtake as the #89 crew went on to capture its first win of the season; it also marked a KTM’s first victory since GT2 Europe visited Monza more than 12 months ago.
Aigner held on to confirm second for Team MZR on the Austrian squad’s return to the grid, keeping Lawrence Tomlinson’s chasing Ginetta at bay. The British manufacturer’s new machine rounded out the Pro-Am podium, earning a second piece of silverware from two races at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya.
Am class champion Prette was once again in imperious form, producing a controlled drive to secure an unprecedented 10th win of the season. The #294 RTR Projects Mercedes-AMG finished as the runner-up, with Ondrej Rokos holding back the #8 LP Racing Maserati during the opening stint before Petr Lisa enjoyed a clear run to the chequered flag. Oliver Freymuth completed the podium aboard his AKF Motorsport Lamborghini.
With the 2025 campaign complete, the GT2 Europe paddock can now begin to plan for the 2026 season, which launches at Monza on 30/31 May.
