– Ricci’s Ferrari and Mitchell’s Aston Martin share overall and Am Gen II wins
– Beaubelique on cusp of Pro-Am title after another double victory for Ferrari driver
– Debard and Giauque sweep Am Gen I with Ford GT Matech
The GT3 Revival Series resumed its maiden season last weekend (4/5 July) with a pair of hotly contested races at Circuit de la Sarthe. The third round of the new-for-2026 championship was staged as part of Le Mans Classic Legend, organised by Peter Auto and the Automobile Club de l’Ouest, which brought hundreds of prototypes and GTs spanning 1976 through 2020 to the mecca of motor racing.
The GT3 Revival Series had the distinction staging the first competitive action of the weekend, with its opening 50-minute contest getting underway at 09:15 on Saturday morning. With a mighty entry of 28 cars the Am Gen II class dominated the front of the grid, led by Heikko Neumann (Team Motopark) who swept to both pole positions aboard his Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG.
The German driver began the Le Mans weekend with three podiums from four races but still chasing a maiden victory; he now had two opportunities to make the breakthrough. Neumann held the advantage at the start of Race 1 and kept his cool under heavy pressure from Pro-Am leader Alvaro Parente (Quinntech Racing), whose Audi R8 LMS Ultra was evidently very quick but did not have the top-end speed to complete a pass.
They were joined at the front by the Aston Martin V12 Vantage of Jonathan Mitchell (Scott Sport) and series newcomer Phil Quaife (Endless) at the wheel of a Porsche 997 GT3 R. This quartet ran in close company as they slipstreamed down the Mulsanne, until Quaife’s charge was ended by a technical problem.
At this moment the familiar scarlet Ferrari 458 of Benjamin Ricci (Storic and Race Cars) arrived on the scene – though not before passing three-time Indianapolis 500 winner Dario Franchitti (Pastorelli Classic Cars) who was making his maiden GT3 Revival Series start aboard another 458.
The trajectory of the race changed during the pit window. The leading pair of Neumann and Parente chose to stop at the same moment, but the Audi driver misjudged his entry speed and made contact with the rear of the Mercedes. Neumann’s car spun and lost considerable time, while Parente suffered race-ending damage.
Amid all of this, Ricci had jumped Mitchell and thus assumed the lead of the race, both overall and in Am Gen II. The Aston Martin driver initially applied pressure but could not make a move on the Ferrari. The result was effectively settled 10 minutes from the chequered flag when Mitchell looped his car at the final corner, allowing his class title rival to cruise to a commanding victory.
Mitchell looked to have second in the bag but a problem on the final tour caused him to slow significantly. The recovering Neumann snuck past and finished as runner-up, while Mitchell took third to ensure that Am Gen II cars locked out the top three overall. Peter Moulsdale (Barwell Motorsport) was fourth, matching his best result of the season aboard the British GT title-winning BMW Z4.
Fifth overall went to the Pro-Am winners. With his regular co-drier Jim Pla unavailable, Jean-Luc Beaubelique (Storic and Race Cars) called upon team boss and former driver Jérôme Policand to support his title bid. Having amassed 13 starts at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, Policand needed no introduction to Circuit de la Sarthe.
He made his experience count by taking overall pole for Race 1, and while the car initially fell into the pack Policand was able to climb back to fifth overall during the closing stages, giving Beaubelique has fourth Pro-Am win of the year. Sixth overall went to the Am Gen I winners, Éric Debard and Philippe Giauque, who were a long way clear of their class rivals aboard the Matech-built Ford GT.
Having missed out in Race 1, Neumann had a second shot at his maiden GT3 Revival Series victory on Sunday afternoon. Again, the Motopark-run Mercedes made a strong start and held the lead over Mitchell. Just as the Audi R8 had done in the opening contest, the Aston Martin V12 Vantage spent much of the first stint in the slipstream of the SLS, close but never quite close enough to attempt a pass.
Needing to try something different to take the lead, Mitchell and his team elected to stop one lap earlier than Neumann and attempt the undercut. A perfect stop from the Scott Sport outfit ensured that the plan paid off: when he made his stop, Neumann could only watch as the Vantage disappeared into the first chicane.
Neumann’s stop left him several seconds back, but the SLS still had the pace to close up on Mitchell and give the Englishman something to think about. Neumann was within just over a second of the leader, but ultimately it was too late; he could not make a move and Mitchell claimed the win.
Ricci finished third overall – a long way back from the leaders but under no pressure from behind – and ensured that, once again, a trio of Am Gen II class locked out the overall podium. The result also means that he and Mitchell scored the same number of points during the Le Mans Classic weekend, keeping the gap at the top of the standings stable at a slender 4.5 points in the Briton’s favour.
Moulsdale repeated his fourth-place finish, followed by Dr Afschin Fatemi (Britec Motorsports) who scored his best result yet aboard the Spiderman-liveried Aston Martin V12 Vantage. Following this sequence of five Am Gen II cars, Debard and Giauque completed an Am Gen I sweep in their Ford, again placing sixth overall. This was their first outing as a pair – Giauque drove solo at Paul Ricard, while Debard did the same at Spa Classic – and has elevated Giauque to the top of the class standings.
Pro-Am was also a clean sweep as Beaubelique and Policand combined to secure another class win in P7 overall. This result means that Beaubelique is on the cusp of winning the inaugural Pro-Am title and could seal the deal next time out at the Nürburgring. Their closest class rival was closer this time, with the Ferrari 458 of Stephan Joebstl and William Nutall (Michelotto) taking eighth overall, albeit not close enough to attempt a move.
Following a pair of Peter Auto events at Spa Classic and Le Mans Classic Legend, the GT3 Revival Series will complete its debut season with two rounds alongside GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS. The first takes place at the Nürburgring on 29/30 August, followed by the finale at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya on 3/4 October.