The 2025 GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS is a motor racing championship for GT3 cars, marking the 12th edition of the

GT World Challenge Europe GT World Challenge Europe (known as the Blancpain GT Series between 2014 and 2019) is a sports car racing series organised by SRO Motorsports Group. It features grand tourer racing cars modified from production road cars complying with the FIA's ...

. Organised by the

SRO Motorsports Group SRO Motorsports Group (formerly the Stéphane Ratel Organisation) is an international sporting organisation best known for promoting and running a variety of racing events and series, including the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, Intercontinental GT ...

, it forms the European part of the broader GT World Challenge, which also includes

GT World Challenge America The GT World Challenge America is a North American auto racing series launched in 1990 by the Sports Car Club of America. It has been managed by the SRO Motorsports Group since 2018, and has been sanctioned by the United States Auto Club since 20 ...

GT World Challenge Australia The GT World Challenge Australia, formerly known as the Australian GT Championship, is a Motorsport Australia-sanctioned national title for drivers of GT cars, held annually from 1960 to 1963, from 1982 to 1985 and from 2005. Each championship ...

and

GT World Challenge Asia The GT World Challenge Asia (formerly Blancpain GT Series Asia and Blancpain GT World Challenge Asia) is a Grand tourer, GT series motor racing competition promoted by the Stéphane Ratel Organisation and organized by Team Asia One GT Management. ...

. The championship splits into the Endurance Cup and the Sprint Cup, each with its respective titles, alongside the overall GT World Challenge Europe championship. The season will take place over ten rounds at various European circuits. The annual season prologue, which acts as the championship's pre-season testing, took place between 10 and 11 March 2025, with testing for the

24 Hours of Spa The 24 Hours of Spa is an endurance racing event for cars held annually since 1924 at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot, Belgium. It is currently sponsored by CrowdStrike. History The Spa 24 Hours was conceived by Jules de Their and ...

occurring between 13 and 14 May 2025. Racing commenced in April and will conclude in October. The championship divides into four classes: Pro, Gold, Silver, and Bronze. Pro cars have no driver restrictions and compete for the overall drivers' and teams' championships. Pro cars are limited to just three drivers at the

. Gold entries compete in the Gold Cup, consisting of Gold drivers and one Silver driver per car. Cars in the Silver Cup are made up entirely of Silver class drivers. Lastly, entries in the Bronze Cup have a maximum driver quality line-up of a Platinum and a Bronze driver at Sprint rounds, with additional Silver drivers eligible for entry at Endurance rounds.

Calendar

All Sprint Cup rounds consist of two one-hour races, totalling 15 races throughout the season, alongside the single 3-hour (Monza, Nürburgring and Barcelona), 6-hour (Paul Ricard), or 24-hour (Spa) races in the Endurance Cup rounds.

Calendar changes

The 2025 calendar sees Circuit Paul Ricard return to the popular weekend format of a 6-hour endurance race to open the season. The championship used this format between 2015 and 2023, and it will act as the season opener. Circuit Zandvoort and Circuit Ricardo Tormo also return to the calendar after a one-year absence. Notably, the

Jeddah Corniche Circuit The Jeddah Corniche Circuit () is a motor racing street circuit built in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah, in Saudi Arabia. The circuit staged the inaugural Saudi Arabian Grand Prix on 5 December 2021 as the penultimate race on the Formula One ...

will not return in 2025, being replaced by Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya as the season closer, which reverts to the Endurance Cup. Additionally, Hockenheim will not host a round in 2025.

Entries

Sprint Cup

Bronze Cup entries did not compete at the Brands Hatch round and instead began their Sprint Cup season at Misano World Circuit, the second round of the Sprint Cup and the third round of the season.

Endurance Cup

Driver and team changes

Mercedes-AMG makes a factory-supported push for the overall championship in 2025, with Team Mann-Filter's Maro Engel and Lucas Auer defending their title in the No. 48 car. Maxime Martin will join Mercedes-AMG, racing the No. 9 for Boutsen VDS throughout the season. AF Corse leads Ferrari’s full-season effort with two Pro cars, featuring Arthur Leclerc as the full-season driver of the No. 50. In the sister No. 51 car, Alessio Rovera and Vincent Abril will compete for the entire season. Rutronik Racing's Patric Niederhauser and Sven Müller return in 2025, leading Porsche's charge for the overall title in the No. 96. Team WRT is also back with Charles Weerts competing for the overall championship in the No. 32 alongside Kelvin van der Linde, who steps in for series veteran

Dries Vanthoor Dries Vanthoor (born 20 April 1998 in Heusden-Zolder) is a racing driver from Belgium who currently competes in the FIA World Endurance Championship with BMW M Team WRT. In his previous role as an Audi factory driver, Vanthoor amassed multiple a ...

. After sitting out 2024, Lamborghini returns with Grasser Racing for a full season Pro entry with Jordan Pepper and Luca Engstler piloting the whole season in the No. 63 car. For McLaren, Garage 59 fields Marvin Kirchöfer and Benjamin Goethe for the entire season in the No. 59. Lastly, Walkenhorst Motorsport's Henrique Chavez will race the whole season in the No. 34/35 (Endurance/Sprint) Aston Martin. In the Gold Cup, AlManer Racing by WRT features the No. 777 BMW, driven by Al Faisal Al Zubair and Jens Klingmann. Audi makes a comeback with the No. 88 Tresor Attempto Racing car, driven by Leonardo Moncini and Sebastian Øgaard, competing for the full-season Gold Cup. Garage 59 also fields a full-season Gold Cup entry with their No. 58, piloted by Adam Smalley and Louis Prette. In the Silver Cup, Barwell Motorsport returns with the No. 76 Lamborghini driven by Christian Bogle for the whole season. Paradine Competition (No. 992) and Team WRT (No. 30) also have full-season BMW entries, the latter fielding Gustav Bergström and Gilles Stadsbader at all races. Comtoyou Racing's No. 21 Aston Martin and Tresor Attempto Racing's No. 99 Audi are also entered as full-season Silver Cup entries. Additionally, Boutsen VDS' No. 10 and Grasser Racing's No. 19 join the Silver Cup alongside their overall Pro competitors. In the Bronze Cup, 2024 class champions Tempesta Racing return with Eddie Cheever III continuing as a full-season entry for his seventh consecutive year. Paradine Competition's No. 991, Kessel Racing's No. 74, and Tressor Attempto Racing's No. 66 are all entered as full-season Bronze entries. Finally, Winward Racing (No. 81) and Comtoyou Racing (No. 270) will also compete in the Bronze Cup alongside their overall Pro entries.

Regulation changes

Technical regulations

Tyre changes

SRO Motorsports Group will adopt Pirelli's new P Zero DHG tyres for GT World Challenge Europe in 2025. These slick racing tyres offer improved performance, faster warm-up, and greater consistency over long distances. They also feature FSC-certified natural rubber. The DHG replaces the DHF, which has been used globally for three years. Pirelli, SRO's exclusive tyre supplier since 2013, will continue its partnership until at least 2028.

Season summary

Pre-season

The 2025 GT World Challenge Europe includes strong entries for both the Sprint Cup and Endurance Cup, with 59 cars in the Endurance Cup expected to increase during the 24 Hours of Spa. The Sprint Cup anticipates a grid of 41 cars, but the Bronze Cup won't participate in the opening round at Brands Hatch, leading to a 32-car entry. Manufacturer participation has grown to ten brands, with

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returning for the first time since

2014 The year 2014 was marked by the surge of the Western African Ebola epidemic, West African Ebola epidemic, which began in 2013, becoming the List of Ebola outbreaks, most widespread outbreak of the Ebola, Ebola virus in human history, resul ...

. Stéphane Ratel, CEO of SRO Motorsports Group, noted the series’ growth and new team additions, showcasing the appeal of GT3 racing nearing its 20th anniversary.

Opening rounds

In the opening race, BMW won at Circuit Paul Ricard as Team WRT’s No. 32 car advanced from ninth on the grid to clinch the six-hour endurance event. Charles Weerts, Ugo De Wilde, and Kelvin van der Linde shared driving duties, with Van der Linde executing a crucial overtake on the leading No. 96 Rutronik Porsche to secure victory by 4.3 seconds. This marked a successful debut for the new M4 GT3 EVO model. Porsche also performed strongly, achieving a double podium with its No. 96 and No. 22 entries. The top seven included Mercedes-AMG, Aston Martin, another BMW, and McLaren. Class winners were CSA Racing’s No. 111 McLaren in the Gold Cup, Paradine Competition’s No. 992 BMW in the Silver Cup, and Kessel Racing’s No. 74 Ferrari in the Bronze Cup. The race had minimal incidents, with no safety car deployments and only four retirements from a competitive 59-car field. AF Corse – Francorchamps Motors won the first sprint race at Brands Hatch, where just eight seconds separated the top nine finishers. Alessio Rovera and Vincent Abril triumphed in the No. 51 Ferrari, narrowly beating the No. 59 Garage 59 McLaren by 0.658 seconds, thanks to a superb pit stop. Ferrari excelled throughout the weekend, capturing the Gold Cup with the No. 69 Emil Frey Racing Ferrari and the Silver Cup after the No. 52 AF Corse Ferrari was promoted post-race due to the No. 97 Rutronik Porsche's penalty. All 30 cars finished incident-free in a clean, safety car-free race. Maro Engel and Lucas Auer dominated the second sprint, leading from pole in the No. 48 Winward Racing Mercedes-AMG. They maintained their lead, fending off a strong challenge from Weerts in the No. 32 Team WRT BMW, to win by 1.3 seconds. Auer executed a clean restart after two full-course yellow periods. The No. 96 Rutronik Porsche finished third, attributed to a strong pit stop and solid driving from Patric Niederhauser and Sven Müller. The races showcased the intense competitiveness of the season, with various brands and crews on the podium. Gold Cup honours went to AlManar Racing’s No. 777 BMW, while Boutsen VDS’s No. 10 Mercedes-AMG won the Silver Cup. Niederhauser and Müller won the first Zandvoort race for Rutronik Racing, starting third and executing a flawless strategy. Bastian Buus in the No. 89 Lionspeed GP Porsche led until Niederhauser caught up. A safety car was deployed after collisions involving the No. 64 HRT Ford and No. 14 Emil Frey Ferrari. Niederhauser handed over to Müller early during the pit window, gaining track position as Engel struggled with a 5-second penalty for an unsafe release. Jordan Pepper in the No. 63 Lamborghini finished second after key overtakes, while Engel salvaged third. The No. 25 Saintéloc Audi finished fourth, winning the Gold Cup. The Silver Cup was claimed by the No. 99 Tresor Attempto Audi, which finished tenth overall after a strong drive from Ezequiel Perez Companc. In the Bronze Cup, Buus and Bashar Mardini claimed honors on Lionspeed’s Sprint Cup debut, fending off Darren Leung's late challenge. In Race 2, Team WRT’s Weerts and van der Linde secured victory thanks to a 48.2-second pit stop, propelling their No. 32 BMW from sixth to first. Emil Frey Racing led early with Ben Green (No. 14) and Chris Lulham (No. 69), but both received 10-second penalties for jump starts. Grasser Racing’s No. 63 Lamborghini, driven by Pepper and Luca Engstler, initially looked strong but faltered during the pit window. Van der Linde started ninth, making early progress before passing to Weerts, whose crew executed a game-changing stop. Weerts emerged ahead of the No. 26 Saintéloc Audi, which ran fourth with Lorens Lecertua. Teammate Ivan Klymenko secured second overall and a dominant Silver Cup win. The No. 63 Lamborghini finished third, marking its second podium of the weekend. In the Gold Cup, Thierry Vermeulen and Lulham won in the No. 69 Emil Frey Ferrari, overcoming their penalty with a strong early lead. In the Bronze Cup, Kessel Racing triumphed with Dustin Blattner and Dennis Marschall, starting from class pole, with Blattner leading before Marschall secured the win. Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter’s No. 48 crew of Matteo Cairoli, Maro Engel, and Lucas Auer claimed overall victory at the fourth round at Monza, marking the brand’s first-ever Endurance Cup win at the venue. A well-timed pit stop during a Full-Course Yellow proved decisive. The No. 59 Garage 59 entry secured second, earning their first Endurance Cup podium in seven years, while the No. 7 Comtoyou Racing Aston Martin completed the top three. BMW teams triumphed in the Gold Cup (No. 777 AlManar Racing by WRT) and Silver Cup (No. 42 Century Motorsport), while Rutronik Racing’s No. 97 Porsche took Bronze Cup honours.

Results and standings

Race results

Scoring system

Championship points are awarded for the first ten positions in each race. The pole-sitter in each class also receives one point and entries are required to complete 75% of the winning car's race distance in order to be classified and earn points. Individual drivers are required to participate for a minimum of 25 minutes in order to earn championship points in any race. In the teams' standings, only the best-placed car for each team is classified. ; Sprint Cup points ; Monza, Nürburgring and Barcelona points ; Paul Ricard points ; 24 Hours of Spa points Points are awarded after six hours, after twelve hours and at the finish.

Drivers' Championship standings

Drivers compete for their respective GT World Challenge Powered by AWS championships which are split into Overall, Gold, Silver and Bronze titles.

Overall Drivers' standings

Gold Drivers' standings

Silver Drivers' standings

Bronze Drivers' standings

Teams' Championship standings

Teams compete for their respective GT World Challenge Powered by AWS championships which are split into Overall, Gold, Silver and Bronze titles.