Porsche takes its 22nd overall victory at Circuit Zolder as NGT Racing triumphs after a fiercely contested endurance classic
The 48th running of the Belisol 24 Hours of Zolder delivered everything expected from one of Belgium's great endurance races: outright pace, changing weather, strategic battles, mechanical drama, overnight attrition and, ultimately, a dramatic conclusion.
After 24 hours of competition were due to culminate in a final sprint to the chequered flag, the race instead ended prematurely with just over half an hour remaining following a heavy accident at the Lucien Bianchi corner.
By then, however, NGT Racing's #92 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup had established itself as the car to beat. Laurens Vanthoor, Tom Van Rompuy, Jonny Edgar, Glenn Van Parijs and Bertrand Baguette guided the Porsche to victory, securing NGT Racing's fourth overall win at Zolder and Porsche's 22nd victory in the event.
A weekend built around endurance
The 2026 edition brought together a competitive field of more than 40 cars, with Porsche once again heavily represented in the battle for overall honours. Eight Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars were entered in the top GT Cup class, ensuring that the fight for victory would be decided as much by reliability and strategy as outright speed.
Belgium Racing arrived as the championship leader and one of the favourites for victory, while ART Racing and the experienced NGT Racing squad were expected to challenge for the top step of the podium.
NGT Racing entered four cars for the event, building on previous victories in 2008, 2023 and 2024. The team had narrowly missed out on victory in 2025, finishing second, and returned to Zolder determined to reclaim the crown.
Thursday: Pereira puts Ajith-RedAnt on pole
The competitive weekend began to take shape during qualifying, where Belgium Racing's #99 Porsche initially topped the classification.
With the Superpole deciding the final starting order, attention shifted to a single flying lap from each of the leading contenders.
It was Dylan Pereira who produced the decisive performance.
Driving the #1 Ajith-RedAnt Racing Porsche, the Luxembourg driver recorded a stunning 1:29.733, putting his Porsche on pole position for the 48th running of the race.
Paul Meijer placed the #99 Belgium Racing Porsche second, just 0.523 seconds away, while Glenn Van Parijs put the #92 NGT Racing Porsche third. ART Racing completed the top four.
The stage was set for a Porsche-dominated battle.
Thursday night: rain adds another variable
The teams were given an important opportunity to prepare for the conditions that would ultimately define much of the race during the night practice session.
Rain arrived at Circuit Zolder, producing a mixture of wet and drying conditions and forcing teams to deal with changing grip levels.
NGT Racing's #92 Porsche emerged fastest, setting a 1:44.749 during the wet night session. Ajith-RedAnt Racing was second, with NGT's #15 Porsche third.
The session provided an early indication that the race would not simply be a battle of pace. Weather, tyre management and driver consistency were likely to play an equally important role.
Saturday afternoon: the 24-hour battle begins
At 16:00 on Saturday, the field finally took the green flag.
Pereira's #1 Porsche started from pole, with the Belgium Racing and NGT Racing machines immediately behind.
The opening stages were fast and competitive, with ART Racing initially establishing itself at the front. Belgium Racing then moved into the lead as the first major strategic phase of the race began.
But one of the biggest stories of the opening hours was unfolding behind the leaders.
The pole sitter's race begins to unravel
The #1 Ajith-RedAnt Racing Porsche, winner of the previous year's event, encountered serious technical problems.
Dylan Pereira suffered significant power loss and the team brought the car into the pits in an attempt to recover the situation. The Porsche briefly returned to the circuit after losing several laps, but the problem ultimately proved terminal.
After only around three and a half hours of racing, the defending winners were forced to retire.
For a team that had started from pole position, it was a brutal reminder of the fundamental rule of endurance racing: the fastest car is irrelevant if it cannot survive.
Four hours: Belgium Racing takes control
As the opening phase settled down, the #99 Belgium Racing Porsche moved into the lead.
The Porsche shared by Dylan Derdaele, Nicolas Saelens, Paul Meijer, Xavier Maassen and Niels Lagrange took command in increasingly difficult conditions, with ART Racing and NGT Racing remaining firmly in contention.
The race was now developing into the expected three-way Porsche battle.
But with another 20 hours still remaining, nobody could afford to look too far ahead.
Into the darkness
As Saturday evening became night, the character of the race changed.
The bright afternoon atmosphere of Circuit Zolder disappeared beneath the floodlights, replaced by headlights, illuminated pit garages and the constant rhythm of cars circulating through the darkness.
Rain added another layer of difficulty.
Drivers had to adapt to changing grip while teams worked through fuel strategies, tyre changes and driver rotations. The night became a test of concentration and endurance as much as outright pace.
Halfway: Belgium Racing leads the way
As the race reached its halfway point, the #99 Belgium Racing Porsche remained one of the central protagonists.
The team had already demonstrated impressive consistency, but the second half of the race would bring a new challenge as NGT Racing and ART Racing continued to apply pressure.
The battle remained remarkably close.
After sixteen hours, ART Racing's #2 Porsche was leading, with the #99 Belgium Racing Porsche and #92 NGT Racing Porsche both less than half a minute away.
Three Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars were effectively locked into the fight for overall victory.
The final six hours
With the sun returning over Circuit Zolder, the race entered its final phase.
The overnight survivors had become the genuine contenders.
Every pit stop now carried increased significance. Every second lost could mean positions surrendered. Every mechanical issue had the potential to end an entire team's campaign.
With three hours remaining, the #92 NGT Racing Porsche had moved into the lead.
Vanthoor, Van Rompuy, Edgar, Van Parijs and Baguette had completed 681 laps, just one more than ART Racing. Belgium Racing's #99 was still within striking distance, almost two laps behind.
The race was entering its decisive phase.
Thirty-two minutes from the end: everything changes
For 23 hours and 28 minutes, the teams had fought through an extraordinary endurance contest.
Then, with approximately 32 minutes remaining, the race was brought to an abrupt halt.
A heavy accident involving the #79 One Life Projects BMW M240i occurred at the Lucien Bianchi corner. The crash caused substantial damage to the tyre barrier and required medical attention for the driver and a track marshal.
With the circuit no longer considered safe for racing, race control deployed the red flag. Repairs to the damaged barrier were expected to take considerably longer than the remaining race time.
The decision was therefore made to end the event prematurely.
The dramatic accident meant that the final half hour — which could have produced another round of pit stops, strategy changes and a last-gasp fight for victory — would never take place.
Safety, however, took priority.
NGT Racing takes the victory
With the race officially concluded under red flag conditions, the #92 NGT Racing Porsche was declared the winner.
The car completed 778 laps in the final classification, taking victory ahead of ART Racing's #2 Porsche and the #99 Belgium Racing Porsche.
Final top three
1. #92 NGT Racing — Porsche 911 GT3 Cup
Laurens Vanthoor / Tom Van Rompuy / Jonny Edgar / Glenn Van Parijs / Bertrand Baguette
778 laps
2. #2 ART Racing — Porsche 911 GT3 Cup
Benjamin Paque / Kaï Rillaerts / Christoff Corten / Lorenzo Donniacuo / Enzo Joulié
777 laps
3. #99 Belgium Racing — Porsche 911 GT3 Cup
Dylan Derdaele / Nicolas Saelens / Paul Meijer / Xavier Maassen / Niels Lagrange
776 laps
Just three laps separated the top three at the conclusion of the race.
A fourth Zolder victory for NGT Racing
For NGT Racing, the result represented another chapter in an already impressive Zolder record.
The team had previously won the event in 2008, 2023 and 2024. The 2026 victory therefore becomes its fourth overall success at the Limburg circuit.
For Porsche, the result was even more significant.
The German manufacturer claimed its 22nd overall victory in the 24 Hours of Zolder, further extending its position at the top of the event's roll of honour.
A special victory for Tom Van Rompuy
The result carried additional significance for Tom Van Rompuy.
The Belgian driver secured his first overall victory in the 24 Hours of Zolder — 44 years after his father, Dirk Van Rompuy, had won the event.
Dirk was also competing at the 2026 edition, making his 40th participation in the race, and added another remarkable chapter to the family story with a podium in GT Sport.
More than one race winner
While NGT Racing took the overall honours, the event produced victories across several classes.
Selleslagh Racing Team secured its second consecutive GT Sport victory with its Mercedes-AMG GT4, finishing eight laps ahead of VR Racing by NGT.
In Super Sport, Team Van Osta-Wauters emerged victorious, while Convents Racing Team topped Club Challenge.
A race decided by endurance, strategy and survival
The 2026 Belisol 24 Hours of Zolder will ultimately be remembered for its contrasting storylines.
There was the brilliance of Pereira's pole lap.
There was the disappointment of the defending winners retiring with technical problems.
There was Belgium Racing's strong early and mid-race performance.
There was the relentless challenge from ART Racing.
There was NGT Racing's steady progression towards the front.
And finally, there was the dramatic red flag that brought the race to an unexpected conclusion.
The final statistics tell only part of the story: 778 laps for the winning NGT Porsche, 777 for ART Racing and 776 for Belgium Racing, with thousands of kilometres covered across a race that demanded almost everything from drivers, mechanics and machines.
But endurance racing is rarely about a single moment.
It is about surviving every moment that comes before it.
At Zolder in 2026, NGT Racing did exactly that.
And when the race was finally stopped, the #92 Porsche was standing at the top of the classification — securing another historic victory for the team, its drivers and Porsche at one of Belgium's most demanding endurance races.
