Race
In recent years, Larry ten Voorde has celebrated victories in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup and the national Carrera Cups in Germany and Italy, among others. The 27-year-old Dutchman once again demonstrated his winning ways in his 200th one-make cup race with a Porsche. “I’m a racer, I want to win every race,” he warned his rivals ahead of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season opener in Imola.
True to his word, the competition only posed a threat to his black and gold Cup nine-eleven from the French team Schumacher CLRT in the first few metres of the 14-lap race. “My start wasn’t ideal,” admitted ten Voorde. “That meant I had to work hard to fend off Harry King for the first few corners.” A safety car phase shortly after the start of the race ended this duel. The collision that caused the deployment of the safety car also cut Porsche Junior Alessandro Ghiretti’s race short. Despite damage to his suspension, the Frenchman managed to crawl back to his team Schumacher CLRT’s pits but ultimately had to retire.
After the restart, Larry ten Voorde controlled the race. “I want to thank my new team, Schumacher CLRT, which has become like a family to me. I’m proud of this success in our first race together. I think, I haven’t started a Supercup season this well in a long time.”
Harry King was also satisfied with second place. “Unfortunately, I couldn’t overtake Larry at the start. After that, I had my hands full defending myself against Marvin Klein’s attacks. That cost me the tenths of a second that I would have needed to attack Larry,” reflected the 23-year-old Englishman. Piloting the BWT Lechner Racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, he crossed the finish line just under two seconds behind ten Voorde.
Marvin Klein rounded off the strong debut performance for the newly-established Schumacher CLRT team with third place. “My start was great and I could overtake Robert de Haan on the second corner. Trying to find a gap to pass Harry was a different story. But, third place in the season opener is great and I’ve secured my first championship points,” said the 24-year-old Supercup returnee from France.
“Of course, I would have preferred third place but at least I won the Rookie classification,” said Robert de Haan, reflecting on losing the duel with Klein. The 17-year-old Dutchman, who drives for BWT Lechner Racing, is the youngest driver in the current Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season. Fifth and sixth place went to two rookies as well: German Theo Oeverhaus (BWT Lechner Racing) and Dutchman Kas Haverkort (Uniserver by Team GP Elite) underlined the fighting spirit of the Supercup rookies.
“I’m particularly pleased with the strong performances from the rookies: five newcomers in the top 10 in the first race – that’s quite a statement,” praised Oliver Schwab, Project Manager Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup. “Congratulations to Schumacher CLRT for the first victory and to Larry ten Voorde, who once again showcased his prowess at his 200th race. This season opener was definitely a great start to the 32nd Supercup season.”
The next race in Monaco this coming weekend
From Imola, the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup teams will travel directly to Monaco, where the second race of the season is set to take place next Sunday. The 3.337-kilometre street circuit in the Monte-Carlo and La Condamine districts has been a regular fixture on the Formula 1 calendar and one of the world’s most historic racetracks since 1950. The international one-make cup with the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup raced as part of the Monaco Grand Prix in its 1993 inaugural season.
Exactly one year ago, Harry King (BWT Lechner Racing) won the Monaco event ahead of Larry ten Voorde (Team GP Elite) and last year’s Porsche Junior Bastian Buus (BWT Lechner Racing) from Denmark. “You can only win in Monaco if everything goes perfectly in qualifying and you can start the race from the front row. You also need a bit of luck,” says King, looking forward to the highlight of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season.
The second race of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup on TV and the internet
The Monaco race of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup will run over 17 laps next Sunday (26 May 2024) from noon CEST. TV channel Eurosport will broadcast the race live. The streaming service f1tv.formula1.com will also provide a broadcast. Independently of the race weekends, fans and media representatives can also follow the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup on the social networks Instagram (@PorscheSupercup), Facebook (@PorscheSupercup) and X/Twitter (@PorscheSupercup and @PorscheRaces).
Schedule Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, Monte-Carlo/Monaco (all times CEST)
Thursday, 23 May
16:30 – 17:15 hrs: Free practice
Friday, 24 May
18:45 – 19:15 hrs: Qualifying
Sunday, 26 May
Noon: Race (17 laps)
Results round 1 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup in Imola (Italy)
1. Larry ten Voorde (NL/Schumacher CLRT), 14 laps
2. Harry King (UK/BWT Lechner Racing), +1.871 seconds
3. Marvin Klein (F/Schumacher CLRT), +2.436 seconds
4. Robert de Haan (NL/BWT Lechner Racing), +3.625 seconds
5. Theo Oeverhaus (D/BWT Lechner Racing), +9.082 seconds
6. Kas Haverkort (NL/Uniserver by Team GP Elite), +10.532 seconds
Full results and championship standings on the Porsche Motorsport Hub:
https://motorsports.porsche.com/international/en/category/mobil1supercup/
Qualifying
The top drivers achieved their fastest laps in the 30-minute qualifying session on the second set of tyres. “The track offered more grip at the end of qualifying than at the beginning because there was more rubber on the track,” explained Larry ten Voorde, who joined the Schumacher CLRT team at the start of the season. “I was a little surprised myself that I was the fastest. Even my best lap wasn’t quite perfect,” admitted the Dutchman. Nevertheless, his best time was around three-tenths of a second better than the fastest lap in qualifying two years ago, when the international one-make cup with the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup last made a guest appearance in Imola.
Harry King, the second fastest of the 30 drivers, was also not entirely satisfied. “Maybe I should’ve been a bit more aggressive with the track limits,” mused the Briton from the BWT Lechner Racing team, alluding to the strict monitoring and, if necessary, penalties imposed by the race organisers for disregarding the track limits. “But with second place and a starting position on the front row, my spot on the grid for the race is obviously still very good,” added King, who won two rounds of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland at the same venue four weeks ago.
A total of five Supercup rookies made it into the top 10 in qualifying; the fastest of which was Robert de Haan. At 17 years old, the Dutchman is the youngest driver on the grid. He had to miss free practice on Friday due to a technical issue. Twenty-four hours later, he set the third-fastest qualifying time at the wheel of the 375 kW (510 PS) Porsche 911 GT3 Cup from BWT Lechner Racing. “Fortunately, I managed to familiarise myself with the track very quickly,” reported de Haan. “Things went really well on the second set of tyres – third place almost feels like pole position.”
De Haan will share the second row of the grid with Larry ten Voorde’s French teammate Marvin Klein. German rookie Alexander Tauscher (Proton Huber Competition) and Huub van Eijndhoven from the Netherlands (Uniserver by Team GP Elite) will tackle the race from the third row. Alessandro Ghiretti, the new Porsche Junior, qualified in seventh position. “I just couldn’t find my rhythm,” admitted the 22-year-old Frenchman from Team Schumacher CLRT.
Ex-Formula 1 driver as team manager for the local heroes
The opening race of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup in Imola is virtually a home race for Dinamic Motorsport. The team, based around 100 kilometres away in Reggio Emilia, has a new team manager for the season: ex-Formula 1 driver Gianni Morbidelli. The 56-year-old Italian contested 67 Grands Prix in the 1990s. He is pursuing long-term plans with Dinamic Motorsport: “We want to continue to develop as a team and improve every season. The aim must be to achieve victories in the near future and to compete for the title in the medium term.”
For the 2024 Supercup season, Dinamic Motorsport relies on Italian rookies Aldo Festante and Francesco Braschi as well as veteran Jaap van Lagen from the Netherlands. The team is also involved in the Porsche Carrera Cup Italia and the Porsche Sports Cup Suisse. In the past, the team has yielded success fielding Porsche racing cars in endurance races.
Qualifying results
Results qualifying, Round 1 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup in Imola (I)
1. Larry ten Voorde (NL/Schumacher CLRT), 1:42.447 minutes
2. Harry King (UK/BWT Lechner Racing), +0.138 seconds
3. Robert de Haan (NL/BWT Lechner Racing), +0.169 seconds
4. Marvin Klein (F/Schumacher CLRT), +0.218 seconds
5. Alexander Tauscher (D/Proton Huber Competition), +0.476 seconds
6. Huub van Eijndhoven (NL/Uniserver by Team GP Elite), +0.518 seconds
Complete results on the Porsche Motorsport Hub:
https://motorsports.porsche.com/international/en/category/mobil1supercup/
Preview
The Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup kicks off the new season coming weekend at the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix. Once again, the calendar includes eight races as part of the Formula 1 support programme. At the season opener in Imola, Italy, the flat-six engine of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars will run on predominantly fully synthetic fuel for the first time. By using so-called eFuels, Porsche’s international one-make cup takes the next step towards making motor racing as CO₂-neutral as possible. Thirty drivers have submitted their entries for the season opener, including new Porsche Junior Alessandro Ghiretti.
The 2024 season gets underway in Emilia-Romagna: This Sunday (19 May), the lights turn green for the first round of the 2024 Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup in Imola, Italy. The calendar once again features eight races as part of the European Grands Prix. Twenty-four drivers have signed up to tackle the 32nd Supercup season. They represent eleven nations, including Australia, South Africa and North Macedonia. Germany, the Netherlands and France are represented by the highest contingent with five drivers each.
New Porsche Junior Alessandro Ghiretti returns to the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup as the 2023 rookie champion. The 22-year-old Frenchman’s teammate at the France-based Schumacher CLRT team is Larry ten Voorde; two-time title winner from the Netherlands. Britain’s Harry King is another seasoned Supercup specialist who will line up on the grid. The BWT Lechner Racing driver concluded last season in third place overall.
In contrast, a dozen young drivers will be competing in Porsche’s top one-make cup for the first time. These rookies include 17-year-old Dutchman Robert de Haan, overall winner of the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux in 2023, and Theo Oeverhaus. The 19-year-old German secured the championship crown in the Porsche Carrera Cup Middle East in the winter and also holds the title of reigning Rookie Champion of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland. Both will line up for the 2023 champion team BWT Lechner Racing from Austria. Proton Huber Competition from Germany, the Italian teams Dinamic Motorsport and Ombra, GP Elite from the Netherlands and Alméras from France will also chase the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup team title. The squads will field up to five Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars.
At the season opener in Imola, six guest drivers will pit themselves against the registered Supercup contenders. A total of 30 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars will tackle a sprint race over 14 laps or 68.726 kilometres on the Formula 1 circuit in Emilia-Romagna.
“We’re starting a very special season in Imola. By using eFuels, the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup emphasises its role as a flagship project within Porsche’s motorsport commitment. This also includes the fact that we are once again running all races exclusively alongside Formula 1, which has been the perfect partner for us since 1993. In addition, the participation of twelve newcomers shows once again how important our international one-make cup is as a launching platform for young drivers,” comments Oliver Schwab, Project Manager Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup.
Flagship eFuels project with partner HIF Global
In 2024, the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup will run exclusively on largely fully synthetic fuel for the first time. The raw fuel comes from the Haru Oni pilot plant in Chile, which is operated by HIF Global. This feedstock is produced ready-for-racing through a process known as blending. The final product enables the 911 GT3 Cup cars to run almost CO₂-neutral. A second-generation bio-based, semi-synthetic fuel mixture has already been used in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup for the last three years. Together with HIF Global, Porsche’s top one-make cup is taking the next step.
Eight races as part of Formula 1 support program
The Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup will continue to race exclusively as part of the Formula 1 support programme in the 2024 season, with eight European Grand Prix races on the calendar. The season kicks off with the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix in Imola, Italy, next weekend. The finale will take place in the Royal Park of Monza, also in Italy, from 30 August to 1 September. In between, the teams will head to the season highlight in Monaco as well as in Spielberg (Austria), Silverstone (Great Britain), Budapest (Hungary), Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium) and Zandvoort (Netherlands).
Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, Imola (Italy)
Opened in 1953, the racetrack on the outskirts of Imola is one of the most traditional circuits in Formula 1, which returned here 2020 after a 13-year hiatus. The 4.909-kilometre rollercoaster track follows the natural contours of the hills in the area of Emilia-Romagna. On 25 April 1993, the Porsche Supercup celebrated its world debut on the racetrack named after the Ferrari founder and his son. Until 2006, the then San Marino Grand Prix was a regular fixture on the Supercup calendar. Since 2022, Imola is once again part of Porsche’s international one-make cup with the Emilia-Romagna Grand Prix.
TV and internet coverage of the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup season opener
Round one of 2024 will be contested over 14 laps on Sunday (19 May) from 11:45 CEST. The streaming service f1tv.formula1.com televises the race live. Fans and media representatives can also follow the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup on the social networks X/Twitter (@PorscheSupercup and @PorscheRaces), Instagram (@PorscheSupercup) and Facebook (@PorscheSupercup).
Schedule Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup Imola/Italy (all times CEST)
Friday, 17 May
18:30 – 19:15 hrs: Practice
Saturday, 18 May
11:20 – 11:50 hrs: Qualifying
Sunday, 19 May
11:45 hrs: Race (14 laps)
Complete list of competitors and all information on the Porsche Motorsport Hub.
Calendar Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup 2024
17 – 19 May: GP Emilia-Romagna, Imola (Italy)
23 – 26 May: GP Monaco, Monte-Carlo
28 – 30 June: GP Austria, Spielberg
5 – 7 July: GP Great Britain, Silverstone
19 – 21 July: GP Hungary, Budapest
26 – 28 July: GP Belgium, Spa-Francorchamps
23 – 25 August: GP Netherlands, Zandvoort
29 August – 1 September: GP Italy, Monza
Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup 2024, season registered participants
1 Harry King (UK/BWT Lechner Racing)
2 Robert de Haan (NL/BWT Lechner Racing)
3 Theo Oeverhaus (D/BWT Lechner Racing)
4 Alexander Tauscher (D/Proton Huber Competition)
5 Sebastian Freymuth (D/Proton Huber Competition)
6 Roar Lindland (N/Proton Huber Competition)
7 Aldo Festante (I/Dinamic Motorsport)
8 Francesco Braschi (I/Dinamic Motorsport)
9 Jaap van Lagen (NL/Dinamic Motorsport)
10 Marvin Klein (F/Schumacher CLRT)
11 Porsche Junior Alessandro Ghiretti (F/Schumacher CLRT)
12 Larry ten Voorde (NL/Schumacher CLRT)
13 Louis Rosset (F/Martinet – Forestier Racing)
14 Fernando Monje (E/Martinet – Forestier Racing)
16 Mathys Jaubert (F/Pierre Martinet by Alméras)
17 Victor Bernier (F/Pierre Martinet by Alméras)
18 Keagan Masters (ZA/Ombra)
19 Lirim Zendeli (D/Ombra)
20 Risto Vukov (NMK/Ombra)
21 Sören Spreng (D/GP Elite)
22 Samer Shahin (AUS/GP Elite)
23 Huub van Eijndhoven (NL/Uniserver by Team GP Elite)
24 Kas Haverkort (NL/Uniserver by Team GP Elite)
25 Ariel Levi (IL/Uniserver by Team GP Elite)