The 2026 season of the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux, the Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux and the Porsche Endurance Trophy Benelux has started in spectacular fashion, with packed grids, new winners, emerging talents and strong crowds across Belgium and the Netherlands. From Spa-Francorchamps to Zandvoort and Circuit Zolder, Porsche racing in the Benelux once again confirmed its vitality and diversity.

The opening round of the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux during the FIA WEC weekend at Spa-Francorchamps immediately delivered a clear message: the level of competition in 2026 is exceptionally high. In front of more than 100 000 spectators, six different winners across the overall, Rookie and PRO-AM categories underlined the competitiveness of the championship.

Germany’s Alex Hardt (A-workx by KATANA Tools) became one of the revelations of the weekend. The German guest driver claimed pole position and victory during his first appearance in the championship, while Estonia’s Alexander Reimann (Quanloop EST1 Racing) secured his maiden win one day later and left Spa as the first championship leader. Defending champion Jaap van Lagen (Team RaceArt) immediately positioned himself as a title contender once again, while young talents such as Milan Marczak (Ajith - RedAnt Racing), Frank Porté Ruiz (NGT Racing) and Hjelte Hoffner (MDM Motorsport) also impressed throughout the Belgian weekend.

The Rookie category once again proved why the Porsche Talent Pool concept has become one of the strongest development programmes in regional GT racing. Henry Wheeler (A-workx by KATANA Tools), David Dziwok (Team GP Elite), Arthur Peters (Team RaceArt) and Joep Breedveld (Team RaceArt) all showed strong pace and racecraft during the opening races of the season.

Marczak and van Lagen in Zandvoort

Only two weeks later, the championship travelled to Circuit Zandvoort alongside the DTM for again a huge crowd of 40 000 spectators. Home hero Jaap van Lagen (Team RaceArt) delighted the Dutch fans with pole positions for both races and a commanding victory on Sunday. The reigning champion is heading to Imola as championship leader after another highly competitive weekend.

But saturday’s race belonged to Milan Marczak (Ajith - RedAnt Racing). The former Rookie champion took his first overall victory in the series. Behind the leading duo, the battles throughout the field once again highlighted the depth of the 2026 grid, while the Rookie category continued to produce exciting racing with victories for David Dziwok (Team GP Elite) and Joep Breedveld (Team RaceArt).

Both in Spa and Zandvoort victories in PRO-AM went to Jani Käkelä (39 Racing)

Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux and Porsche Endurance Trophy start at Circuit Zolder

The season also started strongly for the Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux at Circuit Zolder. The compact one-day format, featuring two sprint races and a longer 45-minute race with pit stop, produced intense action throughout the event. French driver Tristan Pierre Jonathan Clay (NGT Racing) became the main protagonist in the ‘992’ category, taking two victories from three races. Ziad Geris (Team GP Elite) also claimed an important win, while Lex Quintens (NGT Racing), Ivan Dobik (HADECA Racing) and Mathias Beke (NGT Racing) consistently fought at the front.

In the Clubsport division, Mauro Polderman (NGT Racing) and FIA WEC driver Tom Van Rompuy (NGT Racing) formed one of the standout pairings of the weekend. Together, they secured multiple victories, although Belle Rapange (Team GP Elite) and Philipp Thomas (Team GP Elite) kept the pressure high throughout the meeting.

Endurance racing also returned in style at Circuit Zolder, where the Porsche Endurance Trophy Benelux opened its campaign under difficult wet conditions with a 3 hour-race. Porsche dominated the event, claiming not only the overall victory but also a complete overall top five. Dylan Derdaele, Nicolas Saelens and Paul Meijer (Belgium Racing Team) won the three-hour race after a tense battle against ART Racing and the sister Belgium Racing entry. Porsche also prevailed in the Grand Touring Sport category thanks to VR Racing by NGT and its Porsche Cayman GT4 RS CS shared by Dirk Van Rompuy, Mauro Polderman and Glenn Van Parijs.

The race highlighted the renewed popularity of endurance racing in Belgium, with longer races and strong Porsche representation once again attracting teams and drivers to the national scene.