• Team RaceArt continues successful Carrera Cup Benelux season at Assen
• Sam Jongejan takes first Carrera Cup career pole and wins Rookie class on Saturday
• Jules Grouwels captures third Pro-Am win of the season on Sunday

Maastricht, 4 August 2024 - Team RaceArt continued its already successful season in the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux during JACK's Racing Day by taking victory. Sam Jongejan and Jules Grouwels secured a class win each, racing in front of packed grandstands at at TT Circuit Assen.

After a hot but successful outing at Imola, the fourth round of Carrera Cup Benelux saw the team return to home soil at TT Circuit Assen. The always popular JACK’s Racing Day event celebrated its 25th anniversary, with the Porsche one-make series forming part of a schedule that also included a Red Bull Racing F1 demonstration with David Coulthard. Even on its own, this weekend was always due to be a special one for Jongejan. Just a year ago, the Dutchman took a big step towards the title in the BetCity Mazda MX-5 Cup at this very event by sweeping the weekend. Just twelve months later he returned to compete at the No. 65 Porsche 992 GT3 Cup.

Both drivers made good progress during the pair of Free Practice sessions on Friday, with that hard work cemented when the two cars showed strong pace during qualifying on Saturday morning. Jongejan caught everyone’s attention when he took his first overall pole position in the championship, setting a 1:37.695 to just beat renowned Porsche specialist Larry ten Voorde. His second-quickest time was also good enough to secure a second-place start for Race 2 on Sunday. Grouwels also showed himself well, conceding just 0.366 seconds to former Dutch rally champion Hans Weijs, who competed in Assen as a guest driver in the Pro-Am class. Grouwels would go on to start both races second in class.

The opening race of the weekend, held on Saturday afternoon, started with Jongejan’s RaceArt Porsche rolling off from pole position. Although he initially beat Ten Voorde off the line, a slight braking error into Turn 2 meant he was forced to concede the position to the three-time Porsche Supercup champion. In the remainder of the race, Jongejan showcased his defensive capabilities by holding off Wouter Boerekamps in a thrilling duel, allowing Jongejan to finish second overall. He also took his third Rookie class victory of the season. In the Pro-Am ranks, Grouwels unfortunately failed to finish after he hit a tire stack placed just beyond the apex of Turn 9. The impact caused damage to the radiator, after which the team decided to park the Porsche in the pits as a precautionary measure.

On Sunday, a packed grandstand watched on as Jongejan once again started the race from the front row. The Dutchman captured the lead of the race In the opening lap scramble, although he made contact with polesitter Paul Meijer. Race control deemed Jongejan was predominantly at fault for the incident and gave him a five-second time penalty. He continued to lead the race despite the penalty and remained out front even as he faced considerable pressure from Boerekamps. When Boerekamps in turn then was pulled into a battle with Ten Voorde and Dirk Schouten, Jongejan was able to pull a gap at the front. Just as he was getting close to securing the crucial five-second lead, the safety car was deployed after Robin Knutsson ended up in the gravel. This obliterated Jongejan’s lead and he was passed by Ten Voorde at the restart. Although Jongejan crossed the finish line in second place, he was classified fifth overall and second in the Rookie category after the penalty was applied.

In the Pro-Am class, Grouwels bounced back from his Saturday setback in the best way possible. After starting second behind Weijs, he moved into the lead after a few laps when Weijs was tagged into a spin by Thomas Kangro in the Geert Timmerbocht. After that, Grouwels held on to first place, secured  his third win of the season and gained important points in the battle for the Pro-Am title.

Both Grouwels and Jongejan gained ground in the championship battles in their respective classes.

 Jongejan reduced the gap in the Rookie standings to 21 points, while Grouwels closed up on the Pro-Am lead to just four points. Jongejan also jumped up the order in the overall standings, climbing from eighth to fourth place.

After a short summer break, the Porsche Carrera Cup Benelux will continue in Austria, competing at the Red Bull Ring on September 13-15.

Driver comments:

Sam Jongejan

The first Free Practice session was fairly unremarkable. We made some good improvements, but nothing really stood out. Then, in the second Free Practice, things just clicked with the car straight away. I was able to convert that to pole in qualifying. I really didn't expect that, a bizarre feeling. I drove a stable race in Race 1 and only had to let Larry through. The pace was good in Race 2. Sadly because of the penalty we didn't get the result we were hoping for. But overall, I leave this weekend with a positive feeling. We made good progress.

Jules Grouwels

We were able to build off the lessons we learned at Imola. Strong pace all weekend, qualifying went well. I feel we left a stronger result on the table, but it was a strong position in Pro-Am nevertheless. Unfortunately, the first race was disappointing due to a small touch with the tire stack, which punctured the radiator. I sadly had to park the car in the pits after that. For Race 2, In Race 2, the plan was to stay out of the trouble and cross the finish line without damage. That worked out. First place in Pro-Am is very nice for the championship, but it was also mainly a damage-free race with lots of great battles.