Gounon, Juncadella Take Dominant Win for 2 Seas

Jules Gounon and Dani Juncadella took victory in the first GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Sprint Cup race at Magny-Cours after the 2 Seas Mercedes-AMG dominated from pole.

Gounon maintained the lead at the start of the race aboard the No. 3 Verstappen Racing-badged Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo and soon began to build an advantage over the sister 2 Seas machine of Kiern Jewiss in the Bronze Cup No. 222 entry.

Lucas Auer and Fabian Schiller both made good launches from fourth and fifth respectively to jump the No. 46 WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO of Max Hesse but both were then boxed in behind the 2 Seas cars and unable to make any further progress.

Gounon, who was again deputizing for Chris Lulham as the Briton recovers from having his appendix removed, then pulled clear stretching his advantage to over seven seconds in the opening stint as Auer began to put the pressure on Jewiss but was unable to find a way through.

Further back, Thomas Neubauer was flying at the wheel of the No. 50 AF Corse Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo that was victorious at the Brands Hatch opener as he jumped up from ninth on the grid to fifth on the first lap but was then unable to make any further impression on the lead Mercedes-AMG quartet.

Things remained static at the front until the pit stops with Gounon the last of the Pro cars to stop and Juncadella rejoined with a comfortable six-second lead as darkness descended.

However, that was over Arthur Leclerc in the Ferrari, which had vaulted further up the order during the stops — aided by a slow service for the No. 48 Winward Mercedes-AMG with Maro Engel taking over from Auer down in fourth having also fallen behind the No. 7 Comtoyou Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo of Nicki Thiim.

Leclerc then began to close the gap to Juncadella before a lengthy 11-minute full-course yellow was required after Christopher Haase’s Eastalent Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II was stranded following contact with the guesting No. 26 Sainteloc Audi of Michael Blanchemain and the No. 52 Ferrari of Jef Machiels.

Leclerc would have been hoping this FCY would convert into a safety car but there was no such boost to his progress as green flags flew again with just over ten minutes left on the clock.

The Ferrari initially began slicing into Juncadella’s lead, getting it down to two seconds at one stage, before Juncadella stabilized the gap once more to take the checkered flag by 2.597 seconds.

Behind the Ferrari, Thiim and Kobe Pauwels completed the podium while Auer and Engel had to make do with fourth.

The No. 59 Garage 59 McLaren 720S GT3 Evo of Dean Macdonald and Marvin Kirchhoefer was another to make significant progress during the race as it rose from 13th to fifth, while the BMW Hesse shared with Valentino Rossi completed the top-six.

They were just ahead of the sister No. 32 machine that arrived at Magny-Cours as the points leader Charles Weerts could only qualify 17th.

But a divebomb move from Kelvin van der Linde on Dorian Boccolacci in the No. 10 Boutsen VDS Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo netted the reigning champions seventh.

Boccolacci and stand-in Alessio Picariello fell to ninth, behind the sister car of Gilles Magnus and Robin Knutsson that netted Gold Cup glory.

Jewiss and Charles Dawson ensured it was a double success for 2 Seas as they took the Bronze Cup honors in 11th overall, while there was a third win of the season in the Silver Cup for the No. 30 WRT BMW of Matisse Lismont and Ignacio Montenegro.

The Magny-Cours event continues on Sunday with qualifying for Race 2 due to begin at 10:50 a.m CEST (4:50 a.m. EST).

RESULTS: Race 1