Bulgarian racer Alexandra Vateva made a sensational debut in the Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux at Spa-Francorchamps, winning both races in class and claiming the overall victory in race two after an intense battle.
Bulgarian racer Alexandra Vateva enjoyed a sensational debut in Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux at Spa-Francorchamps. The Laptime-Performance driver claimed 992 class victory in both races, while prevailing in a fantastic three-way battle for the overall win in race two. Showcasing frontrunning speed in both wet and dry conditions, Vateva was a consistent front-runner in the multi-class series.
Vateva arrived at Spa-Francorchamps looking to gain valuable experience at one of the world’s most prestigious circuits. Nominated as part of the Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland Talent Pool Program, the Bulgarian racer has stepped up from driving a Porsche Cayman GT4 in 2023, to driving a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992) machine this season. Vateva enjoyed considerable success in her debut campaign of car racing last year, stepping onto the podium on multiple occasions with Overdrive Racing.
Continuing her development in 2024, Vateva joined Laptime-Perfomance for a return to Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland. It has been a character-building season so far for Alexandra, who has showed encouraging performance while learning the characteristics of a car with limited driver aids. Joining the Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux grid for the Spa-Francorchamps round, Vateva was aiming to challenge towards the front of the field.
The race weekend began with initial testing on Thursday, ahead of a schedule which featured two qualifying sessions and a pair of races on Friday. After predominantly dry running on Thursday, a change in conditions brought rain and cooler ambient temperatures for Friday’s qualifying.
The two qualifying sessions were held back-to-back and conditions remained challenging throughout. Nonetheless, Vateva was quickly on pace and jumped to the top of the overall standings and remained there for the majority of the session. Her best lap time of 2:42.417 was only usurped by Nicolas Vandierendonck on his final lap of the session, with the 992 Am class driver claiming pole position by just half a tenth of a second.
In the second session which directly followed, Vateva was again one of the drivers to beat. The Laptime-Performance racer was showing excellent speed in the final sector especially and this pace saw her qualify third overall for race two, second in the 992 class behind Begium Racing driver Michael Cool.
Conditions were dry for the opening race of the day which took place late on Friday afternoon. Lining up from the front row of the overall grid, Vateva made a clean start and although dropped to fourth overall, she had retained the 992 class lead. The safety car was deployed at the end of the first lap, with this stoppage leading to a red flag period shortly after.
The race resumed under the safety car, with the green flag displayed after just one lap of neutralisation. Vateva made a good restart and held her position nicely while ensuring the GT4 RS Am driver Menno van de Grijspaarde remained behind. Although she had lost touch with the leading three drivers, Vateva’s speed in the final sector was especially impressive as she continued this speed from qualifying.
Into the middle portion of the race, 992 Am competitor Michel Arfman was making inroads on Vateva, however the Laptime-Performance driver responded with a series of personal best times. On lap eight, a full course yellow period prevented any further progress with the race ending under these conditions as a competitor had gone off-track as light rain began to fall. Nonetheless, Vateva claimed a victory in the 992 class while finishing in fourth position in the overall classification.
Vateva was due to line up third overall for the second race of the day, however she was elevated to second following the withdrawal of Michael Cool following his race one incident. Conditions were challenging with the sun setting and some light rain in the air, however all cars were fitted with slick tyres and the track was dry. Alexandra made an excellent start as she held second position at the end of the opening lap while successfully holding off Vandierendonck.
A strong early part of the race saw Vateva hold second position as Vandierendonck began to close in on the Laptime-Performance driver. The gap between Vateva and Vandierendonck shrunk further on lap four as the safety car was deployed to retrieve the stricken car of Lennard Hiemstra who was on a strong recovery drive. This was fortunate for Vateva’s overall podium chances as the Triple & Crown Racing driver was showing good performance from the back of the grid.
When the race restarted, Vateva was targeting the overall race lead held by Philippe Wils and was just two tenths behind her rival when the green flag was displayed. After defending from Vandierendonck into Les Combes, Vateva took the overall lead following an issue for Wils in the final sector. Vateva’s speed in the final part of the lap was the fastest of any driver on lap seven and this allowed her to build a small gap as race reached an early conclusion.
On lap eight, Vateva once again defended stoutly however Vandierendonck was able to move ahead once more as the leading three drivers battled hard for position. Reclaiming the lead in the final sector once again, Vateva moved to the head of the field with just one lap remaining.
Setting her personal best time of the event, Alexandra held on to claim the overall race win on her Porsche Sprint Challenge Benelux debut while claiming honours in the 992 class for the second race running.
"I competed in the Sprint Challenge Benelux at Spa Francorchamps to prepare for the penultimate Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland race next weekend", Vateva told us. "It was my first time on the track, and I secured Pole Position in Race 1 and P2 in Race 2 during wet qualifying."
It was a productive event for Vateva who displayed superb speed in both wet and dry conditions. Narrowly missing out on pole position in a wet qualifying session, Alexandra built up her confidence during the opening race which allowed her to challenge for the overall win in race two.
"Race 1 was red-flagged after T1, and I finished P2 (P1 in Pro class). In Race 2, I started P2 and won after overtaking P1 in the dark."
"Overall, it was a great experience—first time on this track, first Pole position, first overall win, two class wins and first time driving at night", she summarized. "Now, I’m more than ready for my next race."
Displaying excellent racecraft, the Laptime-Performance driver claimed victory against experience opposition which will fill her with confidence heading into the final part of the season. Vateva’s next event will also be at Spa-Francorchamps as Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland make a trip to Belgium for their penultimate event of the season in less than one week.
Comments