Porsche Junior Alessandro Ghiretti crossed the line in sixth, leaving the Frenchman just two points behind as he heads into Sunday’s season finale at the Hockenheimring, which starts at 11:15 am CEST.
De Haan had resigned himself to finishing second. But two laps before the end of the 15th race of the season, the then-leading Alexander Tauscher entered the so-called ‟Penalty Lap”: on the instructions of race control, he had to reduce his speed to 50 km/h in this 50 metre zone. His offence: repeatedly exceeding track limits. ‟Strangely, I hadn’t received any warning beforehand,” the Bavarian lamented.
This handed the lead to De Haan. ‟First of all, I have to thank Keagan Masters – that was perfect teamwork!” said the Dutchman. Indeed, the South African held second place for much of his debut in the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland. In the closing stages, he voluntarily handed the lead to his title-chasing teammate. ‟Robert and I had already discussed a potential position swap before the start,” Masters revealed. ‟When the situation actually arose, of course we went through with it.”
It came as little surprise to De Haan that his provisional second place ended in victory. ‟Alexander was frequently on the track limits so, I expected he’d be handed a penalty,” he explained. On the subject of penalties: due to an incorrectly executed overtaking manoeuvre, race stewards added five seconds to Masters’ finishing time, dropping the current overall leader of the Porsche Carrera Cup Italia to third place.
Title rival Ghiretti focused on minimising the damage. The Porsche Junior had qualified only eighth, and a penalty carried over from the previous Red Bull Ring race pushed him back another five positions. Although the Frenchman put in a strong performance and overtook several rivals during the race, the freshly crowned champion of the international Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup was unable to catch the leading group. ‟From 13th on the grid to sixth at the flag – that was all I could manage today,” he commented.
Just ahead of Ghiretti, Talent Pool driver Flynt Schuring (Schumacher CLRT) and Huub van Eijndhoven (Team GP Elite) crossed the line in fourth and fifth respectively. Schuring, however, was also retrospectively handed a five-second penalty by the stewards, promoting Ghiretti to fifth place.
Final race calculations
Heading into the final race of the season, Ghiretti holds a slight advantage: he qualified third on the grid, while De Haan starts from fifth. If the race finishes in this order, the Frenchman would claim the 2025 Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland title with a three-point lead. De Haan, on the other hand, basically must cross the finish line ahead of Ghiretti to defend his narrow advantage. His wildcard: if both drivers end the season with the same total points tally, the 19-year-old Dutchman would be crowned champion, thanks to his five wins this season – one more than Ghiretti.
Michael Schrey crowned ProAm champion
Finishing as the highest-ranked ProAm in the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup for Bonk Motorsport, Michael Schrey secured the class title. The 2006 Porsche Supercup Rookie champion from Osnabrück faced a few challenges at the penultimate race of the season. ‟I made things difficult for myself. A small mistake cost me a few positions at one point,” admitted the amusement park manager. ‟Fortunately, I was able to make up the lost ground. Now I’m looking forward to Sunday’s finale, which I can tackle without pressure.”
Schrey shared the ProAm podium with Germany’s Michael Essmann, who took second place for Team75 Bernhard, and seasoned specialist from Kuwait Ahmad Alshehab, racing for [a-workx] by Porsche Paderborn.
Sacha Norden secures Rookie title
The Rookie category also saw the championship decided with a win: Dutch driver Sacha Norden claimed his eighth victory of the season in the Carrera Cup newcomers’ class, making him untouchable ahead of Sunday’s finale. ‟Not exactly my best race, but the result is perfect,” laughed the 24-year-old from Team Proton Huber Competition. Second-best rookie was Nick Ho, also from the Netherlands, making his debut in the German Carrera Cup at the wheel of GP Elite’s Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. By finishing third, Brazilian Matheus Ferreira (Target) kept his chance alive for second place in the season standings. That position is currently held by Englishman Joseph Warhurst (Proton Huber Competition) heading into the finale.
Alexander Tauscher also starts the finale from pole position
The Hockenheimring hosts the final race of the 2025 Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland on Sunday, 5 October. Alexander Tauscher (Target) will again start from pole and will be joined on the front row by Talent Pool driver Flynt Schuring (Schumacher CLRT). The final 30-minute sprint begins at 11:15 am CEST.
Fans can follow the weekend’s second race live with English commentary on the internet, including on the Porsche Motorsport Hub and the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland channels on YouTube and Facebook Facebook.
Results race 15, Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland, Hockenheim (DEU)
1. Robert de Haan (NLD/Proton Huber Competition), 18 laps
2. Alexander Tauscher (DEU/Target), +2.735 seconds
3. Keagan Masters (ZAF/Proton Huber Competition), +7.022 seconds
4. Huub van Eijndhoven (NLD/Team GP Elite), +11.257 seconds
5. Porsche Junior Alessandro Ghiretti (FRA/Schumacher CLRT), +11.355 seconds
6. Senna van Soelen (NLD/Team75 Bernhard), +11.604 seconds
Standings Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland (after 15 of 16 races)
1. Robert de Haan (NLD/Proton Huber Competition), 244 points
2. Porsche Junior Alessandro Ghiretti (FRA/Schumacher CLRT), 242 points
3. Huub van Eijndhoven (NLD/Team GP Elite), 179 points
Full results and championship standings on the Porsche Motorsport Hub.
