Qualifying: Birdsall and Barton set the tone
The Supercar Challenge season opened at Circuit Zandvoort during the V‑Max Spring Races, where 19‑year‑old Marlon Birdsall made an immediate impression in his Koopman Racing BMW M6 GT3 — strikingly wrapped in the colours of the Chinese flag. From the first laps he was on the pace. Birdsall and teammate Harry Barton shared the sprint‑race poles: Barton snatched the first session in the dying seconds, while Birdsall responded with a commanding 1:37.968 in Q2.
Behind them, the remaining Koopman Racing BMW M6 GT3s of Daan Meijer, Gilles van Houtum and Ted van Vliet filled the sharp end of the GT field. In the other divisions, Patrick Grootscholten (Mercedes AMG GT4), Lorenzo van Riet (Audi A3 TCR) and Maarten Baggermans (BMW E46 M3) claimed the first poles of the weekend.
One‑hour qualifying: Birdsall in a class of his own
Birdsall carried that form into qualifying for the one‑hour race. His 1:38.004 put him on pole by 1.7 seconds over the Radical SR3 of Mitchell van Dijk and Alain Berg. Cor Euser impressed with third in the Marcos Mantara LM600 evo despite a trip through the Gerlachbocht gravel. Meijer, Van Houtum and Cees Wijsman followed in the remaining Koopman BMWs.
In GT4, Berry van Elk topped the times in his BMW M4 GT4 Evo, while Dennis and Steff de Borst put the Hyundai Elantra N TCR on top in Supersport 1, and Baggermans again led the Sport division.
Race 1: Birdsall opens with a wet‑weather masterclass
The opening race, held in torrential rain, immediately confirmed Birdsall’s potential. A brief mistake at Tarzan, outbraking himself and running wide, didn’t unsettle him. He regrouped, pulled clear and never looked back. Meijer recovered from two spins to finish second, with Barton completing a dominant 1‑2‑3 for Koopman Racing.
Race 2: Radical shock victory for Mitchell van Dijk
The second sprint race produced a surprise. Birdsall was forced into the pits with gearbox issues just moments after Mitchell van Dijk had overtaken Barton in his Radical SR3. Birdsall’s retirement instantly turned that move into the pass for the win.
Van Dijk controlled the remainder of the race, finishing twelve seconds ahead of Barton, with Van Houtum third. Euser briefly joined the fight at the front in his Marcos Mantara LM600 evo but settled for fourth overall and third in GT.
Race 3: Birdsall crowns debut with dominant one‑hour victory
Sunday’s one‑hour race became the perfect conclusion to Birdsall’s debut. Only in the opening phase did he briefly lose the lead to Euser, who muscled ahead in the Marcos Mantara LM600 evo before a braking error dropped him back. Euser later retired with an exhaust issue.
Around the pit window, Birdsall began to feel the tyres going away.
With fading grip, Van Dijk closed in, and Zoet Racing’s longer first stint even put Alain Berg back on track in the lead after the stops. Birdsall, however, wasted no time and retook the position within the same lap. In the closing stages, Meijer passed Berg for second, giving Koopman Racing another 1‑2, with the Radical SR3 of Van Dijk and Berg completing the podium.
Behind them, Van Houtum looked set for fourth until a spin in Hugenholtz ended that hope. Ted van Vliet (JR Motorsport BMW M6 GT3) and Cees Wijsman (Koopman BMW M6 GT3) inherited the places, though both received time penalties that reshuffled the order.
Supersport Plus: GT4 fight to the flag
Supersport Plus delivered close battles all weekend between the BMW M4 GT4s and the Mercedes AMG GT4s. Ruud Olij dominated both sprint races in his BMW F80 M3, but in the long race it was Berry van Elk who initially controlled the pace in his BMW M4 GT4 Evo.
In the final laps, tyre wear caught up with him, allowing the CP Motorsport BMWs of Valentijn Greven and Thijs Wesseling to close in. Greven passed both Wesseling and Van Elk, with Wesseling following him through.
Supersport 1: De Borst capitalises after Gräper’s misfortune
Dennis de Borst led much of the race in the Hyundai Elantra N TCR, but Lorenzo van Riet and later Oscar Gräper took over in the Audi A3 TCR. A broken upright ended Gräper’s race, handing the advantage back to Dennis and Steff de Borst.
The BMW M2 Custom of Eric van den Munckhof and Maik Barten finished second, ahead of the BMW M4 GT3 of Emile and Tom Drummen.
Sport Division: Alpine breaks Baggermans’ streak
Maarten Baggermans dominated both sprint races in his BMW E46 M3, but the long race belonged to Traxx Racing Team. Chris Voet took the lead in the Alpine A110, and Bart Van Den Broeck extended it. Rob Nieman kept the pressure on in his Renault Clio Evo, finishing just five seconds behind the Alpine, with Baggermans third.
Birdsall: “It’s the coolest car I’ve ever driven”
“I’m super happy,” he told GT REPORT after the last race on sunday. “For my first weekend in GT3, I’m really pleased with how it went. I learned a lot — that’s the main thing for me this year.”
Birdsall’s debut weekend left a clear impression. “It’s the coolest car I’ve ever driven,” he said of the BMW M6 GT3. “It feels amazing, BMW built something really special. Even though it’s a few years old, it still performs incredibly well. And the Koopman team prepared it perfectly.”
Koopman Racing leaves Zandvoort with momentum, and Birdsall with confidence, heading into the next round at Spa‑Francorchamps from 29 to 31 May.
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