De Pauw Replaces Christodoulou in Boutsen VDS 24H Spa Lineup

Boutsen VDS has enlisted Ulysse De Pauw to its Pro lineup for the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa, replacing Adam Christodoulou.

The Belgian racer will share the No. 9 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo with Thomas Drouet and Mercedes-AMG factory driver Maximilian Goetz for the third round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge.

Although De Pauw has competed with various manufacturers since transitioning to GT3 racing, he has most recently been aligned to Ferrari after a breakthrough campaign in Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Sprint Cup in 2022.

He subsequently raced for the Prancing Horse in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship, European Le Mans Series and FIA World Endurance Championship.

However, after the opening round of this season’s ELMS campaign he was replaced in the lineup for the No. 51 Ferrari 296 GT3 by Nico Varrone.

De Pauw and Varrone were notably teammates during last year’s 24H Spa, sharing a Bronze Cup-entered AF Corse Ferrari with Simon Mann and Julien Piguet.

“I’m delighted to be joining the Boutsen VDS team for the centenary of the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa,” De Pauw said.

“It’s a fantastic opportunity for me to race in the Pro class, and all the more so with a Belgian team!

“I’d like to thank the whole team for their confidence in me, and I’m looking forward to being there at the end of June!”

De Pauw has experience in Mercedes-AMG machinery from a partial campaign in the British GT Championship in 2022, taking a Silver-Am class win at RAM Racing alongside John Ferguson at Snetterton.

Sebastien Baud, meanwhile, has been added to the lineup for Boutsen VDS’s No. 10 car, which competes in Silver Cup.

The Frenchman, who also races for TF Sport in the FIA WEC LMGT3 class, teams up with Aurelien Panis, Cesar Gazeau and Roee Meyuhas.