2018 GT Series Sprint Cup explained

The 2018 GT Series Sprint Cup (known for sponsorship reasons as the 2018 Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup) was the sixth season of the GT Series Sprint Cup following on from the demise of the SRO Motorsports Group's FIA GT1 World Championship (an auto racing series for grand tourer cars), the fifth with the seasons sponsored by Blancpain. The season began on 7 April at Zolder and ended on 16 September at the Nürburgring.

Calendar

At the annual press conference during the 2017 24 Hours of Spa on 28 July, the Stéphane Ratel Organisation announced the first draft of the 2018 calendar. Zolder became the season opener instead of Misano.^[1] On 9 October 2017, the finalised calendar was announced, confirming the dates of the races at the Hungaroring.^[2]

Race formatIn previous years a race weekend consisted of one Qualifying session, one Qualifying Race - of which the results set up the grid for the Main Race - and one Main Race. On 2 October 2017, changes to the format of race weekends were announced. In 2018 a race weekend consisted of two races scoring equal points and featuring separate Qualifying sessions for each race.^[3]

Round	Circuit	Date
1	Circuit Zolder, Heusden-Zolder, Belgium	8 April
2	Brands Hatch, Kent, Great Britain	6 May
3	Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli, Misano Adriatico, Italy	24 June
4	Hungaroring, Mogyoród, Hungary	2 September
5	Nürburgring, Nürburg, Germany	16 September

Entry list

Team Car Drivers Class Rounds Belgian Audi Club Team WRT^[4] Audi R8 LMS 1 Christopher Mies^[5] P All Alex Riberas 2 Will Stevens P All Dries Vanthoor 3 Gilles Magnus^[6] S 1 Alessio Picariello Ricardo Feller^[7] 3–5 Adrien De Leener 17 Stuart Leonard P 1–2, 4–5 Robin Frijns 1, 4–5 Frédéric Vervisch^[8] 2 Stuart Leonard S 3 Sheldon van der Linde Black Falcon^[9] Mercedes-AMG GT3 6 Hubert Haupt S 4–5 Luca Stolz Kessel Racing^[10] TP 12 - Kessel Racing^[11] Ferrari 488 GT3 11 Michał Broniszewski PA 1 Giacomo Piccini 39 Piti Bhirombhakdi PA All Carlo van Dam Emil Frey Lexus Racing^[12] Emil Frey Jaguar Racing^[13] Lexus RC F GT3 14 Albert Costa^[14] P All Christian Klien Emil Frey GT3 Jaguar 54 Alex Fontana^[15] S 3 Mikaël Grenier Lexus RC F GT3 114 Norbert Siedler P All Stéphane Ortelli 1–3 Markus Palttala 4–5 Boutsen Ginion Racing Lamborghini Gallardo R-EX 15 Pierre Feligioni Am 1 Claude-Yves Gosselin GRT Grasser Racing Team^[16] Lamborghini Huracán GT3 19 Andrea Caldarelli P All Ezequiel Pérez Companc 63 Mirko Bortolotti P All Christian Engelhart 82 Loris Hezemans P 1–4 Franck Perera Audi Sport Slovakia^[17] Audi R8 LMS 21 Christian Malchárek PA 3–4 Jirko Malchárek Saintéloc Racing^[18] Audi R8 LMS 25 Simon Gachet^[19] P All Christopher Haase 26 Nyls Stievenart PA All Markus Winkelhock Team Parker Racing^[20] Bentley Continental GT3 31 Josh Caygill S 1–3 Árón Taylor-Smith 32 Ian Loggie PA 2 Callum MacLeod^[21] SMP Racing by AKKA ASP^[22] AKKA ASP Team^[23] SunEnergy1 Racing^[24] Mercedes-AMG GT3 35 Vladimir Atoev S All Aleksey Korneev 87 Nico Jamin P 1–2, 5 Félix Serrallés 1–2 Adam Christodoulou^[25] 5 Denis Bulatov^[26] S 3–4 Nico Jamin 88 Raffaele Marciello P All Michael Meadows 90 Nico Bastian S All Jack Manchester 751 Kenny Habul PA 4 Tristan Vautier 3Y Technology BMW M6 GT3 37 Lukas Moraes S All Andrew Watson 1–4 Denis Dupont 5 Attempto Racing^[27] Audi R8 LMS 55 Pierre Kaffer P All Pieter Schothorst 66 Kelvin van der Linde P All Steijn Schothorst Rinaldi Racing^[28] Ferrari 488 GT3 333 David Perel PA 5 Rinat Salikhov

Icon Class P Pro Cup S Silver Cup PA Pro-Am Cup Am Am Cup

Race results

Bold indicates overall winner.

Round		Circuit	Pole position	Pro Winners	Silver Winners	Pro-Am Winners	Am Winners
1	1	Zolder	No. 2 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 63 GRT Grasser Racing Team	No. 3 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 39 TP 12 - Kessel Racing	No. 15 Boutsen Ginion Racing
			Will Stevens Dries Vanthoor	Mirko Bortolotti Christian Engelhart	Gilles Magnus Alessio Picariello	Piti Bhirombhakdi Carlo van Dam	Pierre Feligioni Claude-Yves Gosselin
	R2		No. 63 GRT Grasser Racing Team	No. 66 Attempto Racing	No. 3 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 39 TP 12 - Kessel Racing	No. 15 Boutsen Ginion Racing
			Mirko Bortolotti Christian Engelhart	Kelvin van der Linde Steijn Schothorst	Gilles Magnus Alessio Picariello	Piti Bhirombhakdi Carlo van Dam	Pierre Feligioni Claude-Yves Gosselin
2	R1	Brands Hatch	No. 2 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 2 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 31 Team Parker Racing	No. 39 TP 12 - Kessel Racing	No entries
			Will Stevens Dries Vanthoor	Will Stevens Dries Vanthoor	Josh Caygill Árón Taylor-Smith	Piti Bhirombhakdi Carlo van Dam
	R2		No. 17 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 17 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 37 3Y Technology	No. 26 Saintéloc Racing
			Stuart Leonard Frédéric Vervisch	Stuart Leonard Frédéric Vervisch	Lukas Moraes Andrew Watson	Nyls Stievenart Markus Winkelhock
3	R1	Misano	No. 87 AKKA ASP Team	No. 1 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 90 AKKA ASP Team	No. 26 Saintéloc Racing
			Denis Bulatov Nico Jamin	Christopher Mies Alex Riberas	Nico Bastian Jack Manchester	Nyls Stievenart Markus Winkelhock
	R2		No. 88 AKKA ASP Team	No. 1 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 87 AKKA ASP Team	No. 26 Saintéloc Racing
			Raffaele Marciello Michael Meadows	Christopher Mies Alex Riberas	Denis Bulatov Nico Jamin	Nyls Stievenart Markus Winkelhock
4	R1	Hungaroring	No. 90 AKKA ASP Team	No. 63 GRT Grasser Racing Team	No. 87 AKKA ASP Team	No. 751 SunEnergy1 Racing
			Nico Bastian Jack Manchester	Mirko Bortolotti Christian Engelhart	Denis Bulatov Nico Jamin	Kenny Habul Tristan Vautier
	R2		No. 88 AKKA ASP Team	No. 88 AKKA ASP Team	No. 87 AKKA ASP Team	No. 26 Saintéloc Racing
			Raffaele Marciello Michael Meadows	Raffaele Marciello Michael Meadows	Denis Bulatov Nico Jamin	Nyls Stievenart Markus Winkelhock
5	R1	Nürburgring	No. 63 GRT Grasser Racing Team	No. 1 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 3 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	No. 26 Saintéloc Racing
			Mirko Bortolotti Christian Engelhart	Christopher Mies Alex Riberas	Ricardo Feller Adrien De Leener	Nyls Stievenart Markus Winkelhock
	R2		No. 6 Black Falcon	No. 88 AKKA ASP Team	No. 6 Black Falcon	No. 333 Rinaldi Racing
			Hubert Haupt Luca Stolz	Raffaele Marciello Michael Meadows	Hubert Haupt Luca Stolz	David Perel Rinat Salikhov

Championship standings

Scoring systemChampionship points were awarded for the first ten positions in each race. The pole-sitter also received one point and entries were required to complete 75% of the winning car's race distance in order to be classified and earn points. Individual drivers were required to participate for a minimum of 25 minutes in order to earn championship points in any race. A new points system was introduced this season. It takes the maximum points an entry could earn in the old 'Qualifying Race + Main Race'-format divided by two.^[29]

Position	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	6th	7th	8th	9th	10th	Pole
Points	16.5	12	9.5	7.5	6	4.5	3	2	1	0.5	1

Drivers' championships

Overall

Driver Team ZOL BRH MIS HUN NÜR Points 1 Raffaele Marciello Michael Meadows AKKA ASP Team 8 2 3 4 2 10 2 1 4 1 98 2 Christopher Mies Alex Riberas Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 3 Ret 2 2 1 1 Ret 4 1 16 90.5 3 Kelvin van der Linde Steijn Schothorst Attempto Racing 4 1 8 3 Ret 4 10 3 6 4 65 4 Will Stevens Dries Vanthoor Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 2 11 1 Ret Ret 2 5 7 2 Ret 63.5 5 Mirko Bortolotti Christian Engelhart GRT Grasser Racing Team 1 7 10 5 3 18 1 6 DSQ EX 6 Nico Jamin AKKA ASP Team 9 4 5 6 Ret 5 3 8 7 6 45 7 Stuart Leonard Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 5 5 4 1 8 6 Ret 16 11 9 44.5 8 Simon Gachet Christopher Haase Saintéloc Racing 10 12 7 8 Ret 3 4 2 10 3 44.5 9 Andrea Caldarelli Ezequiel Pérez Companc GRT Grasser Racing Team 6 3 12 Ret 4 20 16 11 3 5 37 10 Frédéric Vervisch Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 4 1 25 11 Félix Serrallés AKKA ASP Team 9 4 5 6 19 12 Denis Bulatov AKKA ASP Team Ret 5 3 8 18.5 13 Albert Costa Christian Klien Emil Frey Lexus Racing Ret 20 11 14 9 Ret 6 13 5 7 14 Hubert Haupt Luca Stolz Black Falcon 9 12 15 2 14 15 Robin Frijns Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 5 5 Ret 16 11 9 13 16 Norbert Siedler Emil Frey Lexus Racing 14 13 9 9 5 8 11 14 9 8 13 17 Loris Hezemans Franck Perera GRT Grasser Racing Team 20 Ret 13 7 17 7 13 5 12 18 Nico Bastian Jack Manchester AKKA ASP Team 11 9 19 15 6 15 7 9 16 17 10.5 19 Stéphane Ortelli Emil Frey Lexus Racing 14 13 9 9 5 8 10 20 Gilles Magnus Alessio Picariello Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 7 6 7.5 20 Adam Christodoulou AKKA ASP Team 7 6 7.5 21 Pierre Kaffer Pieter Schothorst Attempto Racing Ret 14 6 12 Ret 12 12 17 8 12 6.5 21 Sheldon van der Linde Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 8 6 6.5 22 Vladimir Atoev Aleksey Korneev SMP Racing by AKKA ASP 16 8 18 Ret 12 17 8 18 14 11 4 23 Alex Fontana Mikaël Grenier Emil Frey Jaguar Racing 7 11 3 24 Markus Palttala Emil Frey Lexus Racing 11 14 9 8 3 25 Nyls Stievenart Markus Winkelhock Saintéloc Racing 15 15 17 11 11 9 18 19 12 15 1 26 Ricardo Feller Adrien De Leener Belgian Audi Club Team WRT 10 13 14 10 13 Ret 1 27 Piti Bhirombhakdi Carlo van Dam TP 12 - Kessel Racing 12 10 14 13 13 14 17 21 Ret 13 0.5 27 Lukas Moraes 3Y Technology 17 17 DSQ 10 14 16 20 15 Ret 14 0.5 27 Andrew Watson 3Y Technology 17 17 DSQ 10 14 16 20 15 0.5 27 David Perel Rinat Salikhov Rinaldi Racing Ret 10 0.5 Michał Broniszewski Giacomo Piccini Kessel Racing 13 18 0 Denis Dupont 3Y Technology Ret 14 0 Josh Caygill Árón Taylor-Smith Team Parker Racing 18 16 15 Ret 15 Ret 0 Kenny Habul Tristan Vautier SunEnergy1 Racing 15 DNS 0 Christian Malchárek Jirko Malchárek Audi Sport Slovakia 16 19 19 20 0 Ian Loggie Callum MacLeod Team Parker Racing 16 Ret 0 Pierre Feligioni Claude-Yves Gosselin Boutsen Ginion Racing 19 19 0 valign=middle valign=middle Driver valign=middle Team ZOL BRH MIS HUN NÜR valign=middle Points

Bold – Pole Italics – Fastest Lap

Silver Cup

	Driver	Team	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		Points
1	Nico Bastian Jack Manchester	AKKA ASP Team	11	9	19	15	6	15	7	9	16	17	108.5
2	Vladimir Atoev Aleksey Korneev	SMP Racing by AKKA ASP	16	8	18	Ret	12	17	8	18	14	11	80.5
3	Lukas Moraes	3Y Technology	17	17	DSQ	10	14	16	20	15	Ret	14	59
4	Denis Bulatov Nico Jamin	AKKA ASP Team					Ret	5	3	8			50.5
5	Andrew Watson	3Y Technology	17	17	DSQ	10	14	16	20	15			49.5
6	Ricardo Feller Adrien De Leener	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT					10	13	14	10	13	Ret	47
7	Hubert Haupt Luca Stolz	Black Falcon							9	12	15	2	43
8	Gilles Magnus Alessio Picariello	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	7	6									35
9	Josh Caygill Árón Taylor-Smith	Team Parker Racing	18	16	15	Ret	15	Ret					33
10	Stuart Leonard Sheldon van der Linde	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT					8	6					22.5
11	Alex Fontana Mikaël Grenier	Emil Frey Jaguar Racing					7	11					21.5
12	Denis Dupont	3Y Technology									Ret	14	9.5
valign=middle		valign=middle	Driver	valign=middle	Team	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		valign=middle	Points

Pro-Am Cup

	Driver	Team	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		Points
1	Nyls Stievenart Markus Winkelhock	Saintéloc Racing	15	15	17	11	11	9	18	19	12	15	134.5
2	Piti Bhirombhakdi Carlo van Dam	TP 12 - Kessel Racing	12	10	14	13	13	14	17	21	Ret	13	126
3	Christian Malchárek Jirko Malchárek	Audi Sport Slovakia					16	19	19	20			39.5
4	Michał Broniszewski Giacomo Piccini	Kessel Racing	13	18									21.5
5	David Perel Rinat Salikhov	Rinaldi Racing									Ret	10	16.5
5	Kenny Habul Tristan Vautier	SunEnergy1 Racing							15	DNS			16.5
6	Ian Loggie Callum MacLeod	Team Parker Racing			16	Ret							12
valign=middle		valign=middle	Driver	valign=middle	Team	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		valign=middle	Points

Am Cup

	Driver	Team	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		Points
1	Pierre Feligioni Claude-Yves Gosselin	Boutsen Ginion Racing	19	19									35
valign=middle		valign=middle	Driver	valign=middle	Team	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		valign=middle	Points

Teams' championships

Overall

	Team	Manufacturer	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		Points
1	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	Audi	2	5	1	1	1	1	5	4	1	9	123
2	AKKA ASP Team SMP Racing by AKKA ASP SunEnergy1 Racing	Mercedes-AMG	8	2	3	4	2	5	2	1	4	1	119
3	GRT Grasser Racing Team	Lamborghini	1	3	10	5	3	7	1	5	3	5
4	Attempto Racing	Audi	4	1	6	3	Ret	4	10	3	6	4	83
5	Saintéloc Racing	Audi	10	12	7	8	11	3	4	2	10	3	77.5
6	Emil Frey Jaguar/Lexus Racing	Jaguar Lexus	14	13	9	9	5	8	6	13	5	7
7	(TP 12 -) Kessel Racing	Ferrari	12	10	14	13	13	14	17	21	Ret	13	26.5
8	Black Falcon	Mercedes-AMG							9	12	15	2	25
9	3Y Technology	BMW	17	17	DSQ	10	14	16	20	15	Ret	14	14
10	Team Parker Racing	Bentley	18	16	15	Ret	16	Ret					7
11	Audi Sport Slovakia	Audi					16	19	19	20			4
12	Rinaldi Racing	Ferrari									Ret	10	2
13	Boutsen Ginion Racing	Lamborghini	19	19									1
valign=middle		valign=middle	Team	valign=middle	Manufacturer	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		valign=middle	Points

Pro-Am Cup

	Team	Manufacturer	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		Points
1	Saintéloc Racing	Audi	15	15	17	11	11	9	18	19	12	15	137
2	(TP 12 -) Kessel Racing	Ferrari	12	10	14	13	13	14	17	21	Ret	13	126
3	Audi Sport Slovakia	Audi					16	19	19	20			39.5
4	Rinaldi Racing	Ferrari									Ret	10	16.5
4	SunEnergy1 Racing	Mercedes-AMG							15	DNS			16.5
5	Team Parker Racing	Bentley			16	Ret							12
valign=middle		valign=middle	Team	valign=middle	Manufacturer	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		valign=middle	Points

Am Cup

	Team	Manufacturer	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		Points
1	Boutsen Ginion Racing	Lamborghini	19	19									35
valign=middle		valign=middle	Team	valign=middle	Manufacturer	ZOL		BRH		MIS		HUN		NÜR		valign=middle	Points

See also

• 2018 GT Series
• 2018 GT Series Endurance Cup
• 2018 GT Series Asia

Notes and References

1. News: Zolder to Open 2018 Blancpain GT Series Season. Kilshaw. Jake. 28 July 2017. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 2 January 2018.
2. News: Hungaroring Date Confirmed; Blancpain GT Schedule Finalized. Kilshaw. Jake. 9 October 2017. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 2 January 2018.
3. News: Blancpain GT to Limit Pro Entries; Equal Sprint Cup Races in 2018. Dagys. John. 2 October 2017. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 2 January 2018.
4. News: Audi squad WRT slims down line-up for Blancpain Endurance assault. Watkins. Gary. 22 January 2018. Autosport. Autosport Media UK. 22 January 2018.
5. News: Riberas, Sheldon van der Linde Join WRT. Kilshaw. Jake. 22 March 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 23 March 2018.
6. News: Zolder: Magnus/Picariello chez Team WRT. 5 April 2018. endurance-info.com. Endurance-Info. 5 April 2018.
7. News: Silver Cup Field Grows as Blancpain GT Heads to Misano. Kilshaw. Jake. 20 June 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 20 June 2018.
8. News: Sprint Cup Grid Remains at 22 Cars for Brands Hatch. Kilshaw. Jake. 26 April 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 27 April 2018.
9. News: Largest Sprint Cup Grid of Season Set for Hungaroring. Kilshaw. Jake. 28 August 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 28 August 2018.
10. News: Boutsen Ginion Lamborghini Boosts Zolder Field to 21 Cars. Kilshaw. Jake. 29 March 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 29 March 2018.
11. News: Un équipage confirmé chez Kessel Racing. 9 February 2018. endurance-info.com. 17 February 2018.
12. News: Emil Frey to Run Lexus GT3s in Blancpain GT. Kilshaw. Jake. 8 February 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 11 February 2018.
13. News: Emil Frey Confirms Jaguar Return; Reveals Lexus Lineup. Kilshaw. Jake. 15 February 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 15 February 2018.
14. News: Klien relishing first full-season Blancpain GT Series assault with Emil Frey Lexus Racing. 28 March 2018. blancpain-gt-series.com. SRO Motorsports Group. 28 March 2018.
15. News: Sprint Cup battle resumes as Blancpain GT Series heads for Misano. 13 June 2018. blancpain-gt-series.com. SRO Motorsports Group. 20 June 2018.
16. News: Bortolotti, Caldarelli, Engelhart to Defend Blancpain GT Titles. Dagys. John. 27 February 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 27 February 2018.
17. News: Audi Sport Team Slovakia Launched for Partial Blancpain GT Effort. Kilshaw. Jake. 16 January 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 16 January 2018.
18. News: Sainteloc Set for Full-Season Blancpain GT Program. Kilshaw. Jake. 14 February 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 15 February 2018.
19. News: Sainteloc Completes Blancpain GT Sprint Cup Lineups. Kilshaw. Jake. 6 March 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 6 March 2018.
20. News: Team Parker Racing Enters Bentley GT3 in Sprint Cup. Kilshaw. Jake. 27 February 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 27 February 2018.
21. News: Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup Brands Hatch Entry List. 4 May 2018. blancpain-gt-series.com. SRO Motorsports Group. 5 May 2018.
22. News: Blancpain GT - Une Mercedes SMP Racing by AKKA-ASP en Sprint Cup. Tassel. Pierre. 1 April 2018. autohebdo.fr. AUTOHebdo. 1 April 2018. 1 April 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180401213257/http://www.autohebdo.fr/tourisme-gt/blancpain/actualites/blancpain-gt-une-mercedes-smp-racing-akka-asp-en-sprint-cup-193460.html. dead.
23. News: Marciello to Lead AKKA ASP Pro Cup Entry. Kilshaw. Jake. 14 March 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 14 March 2018.
24. News: SunEnergy1 Mercedes Set for Hungaroring Sprint Cup Debut. Dagys. John. 23 August 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 23 August 2018.
25. News: Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup 2018 Nürburgring Free Practice 1. 14 September 2018. blancpain-gt-series.com. SRO Motorsports Group. 15 September 2018.
26. News: Final entry list confirmed for Misano Sprint Cup contest. 22 June 2018. blancpain-gt-series.com. SRO Motorsports Group. 23 June 2018.
27. News: Attempto Switches to Audi for Full-Season Blancpain GT Entry. Lloyd. Daniel. 7 March 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 7 March 2018.
28. News: Leaders Tied Ahead of Nürburgring Sprint Cup Finale. Kilshaw. Jake. 12 September 2018. sportscar365. John Dagys Media. 14 September 2018.
29. News: Blancpain GT Series 2018 Sporting Regulations. 17. 22 March 2018. blancpain-gt-series.com. SRO Motorsports Group. 11 April 2018.