Al Faisal Al Zubair, Jens Klingmann, and Ben Tack of Al Manar Racing by WRT claimed an exceptional victory in the Gold Cup class at Monza, which hosted the second round of the 2025 Fanatec GT World Challenge Powered by AWS Endurance Cup. The trio also finished fourth overall in the race.
The GT World Challenge is divided into Sprint Cup and Endurance Cup competitions, with Monza hosting the second Endurance round following the season opener at Paul Ricard.
Despite qualifying in seventh position at Monza, Al Zubair, Klingmann, and Tack executed a flawless pit stop strategy, skillfully advancing through the field during the three-hour race, which was interrupted multiple times by full-course yellow flags. They ultimately crossed the finish line in fourth overall, outperforming nine other competitors to take the Gold Cup win in their BMW M4 GT3 Evo.
The Verstappen.com Racing Team took second place in the Gold Cup aboard an Aston Martin, while Tresor Attempto Racing rounded out the class podium.
Al Faisal Al Zubair said:
“I’m thrilled to win the Gold Cup class. It’s a dream result, especially considering we started from seventh.”
“The strategy from Al Manar Racing by WRT was perfect, and our pace was strong throughout the race.”
“Finishing fourth overall and winning our class is an incredible achievement. I’m proud to raise the Omani flag high, and our goal now is to accomplish even more.”
Starting seventh in the Gold Cup class, Al Zubair ran eighth in the early stages before a full-course yellow was called 20 minutes into the race, with Garage 59 leading ahead of CSA Racing at that stage.
Once the green flags were waved again 30 minutes after the start, Al Zubair regained seventh and maintained focus, progressing to sixth before another full-course yellow was triggered with 1 hour and 50 minutes remaining.
Ben Tack then took over driving duties smoothly and skillfully assumed the class lead, pulling ahead of the Garage 59 McLaren and the Verstappen.com Racing Aston Martin. The gaps between the top six cars in the Gold Cup were tight, but Tack managed to lead for 48 laps with 68 minutes to go.
Less than an hour from the finish, another full-course yellow was declared while Tack was leading. Racing resumed with 54 minutes left, followed by a clean driver change as Klingmann took the wheel and extended the lead over the Aston Martin and Optimum Motorsport.
A seventh full-course yellow occurred with 31 minutes remaining, but Klingmann held the Gold Cup lead and fourth place overall. Another yellow was waved with just three minutes left in the 84-lap race.
Al Manar Racing by WRT had completed a brief unofficial testing session on Friday, where Al Zubair set a lap time of 1:46.840.
Saturday morning’s free practice featured 10 cars in the Gold Cup class. Nordic Racing topped the timesheets with a Mercedes driven by Japan’s Kotaka Kazuko. Ben Tack was fastest for Al Manar Racing by WRT, clocking 1:46.345 to place fifth.
In pre-qualifying, Al Manar Racing placed eighth with a lap of 1:46.694. Pole position was secured by Verstappen.com Racing in their Aston Martin.
In the first qualifying session, Klingmann set a time of 1:46.101 to rank sixth in the Gold Cup class. Tack followed with a 1:45.826 in session two, and Al Zubair closed session three with a 1:46.848. Combining the three times placed Al Manar Racing by WRT seventh overall, while Garage 59 claimed pole position.
The 2025 Fanatec GT World Challenge Powered by AWS Endurance Cup now moves to the legendary Spa-Francorchamps Circuit for the 24 Hours of Spa, taking place from June 25 to 29.
