A combative Anthony Kumpen (Delahaye) heads off for the Zolder endurance race!Anthony Kumpen is presently enjoying a golden season. Together with Dutchman Mike Hezemans the 30 year old started off cautiously. For a moment it looked as though the Hezemans - Kumpen duo would only be able to compete for half a season with the Corvette C6.R, however following several glowing performances the uncertainty fell by the wayside. A fourth place in Silverstone was not really what the PK Carsport-driver was hoping for, but since Adria the Limburg based driver has soared to new heights. A second place clinched in Italy accelerated matters, because one month later Hezemans and Kumpen were once again on the podium, but this time around on the top tread! The first victory of the season was a fact, a major battle won in front of the almighty Vitaphone Racing Team. But something nobody dared predict was that Kumpen and cohort would be leaving the Spa-Francorchamps circuit as championship leaders. PK Carsport enjoyed a perfect race, and the Kumpen-Hezemans duo together with occasional drivers Menten and Mollekens took victory for their account!
"First and foremost I want to heartily thank my team for everything they have done this year. We are the first Belgian team to have won the 24 Hours of Spa since the latter switched over to GTs. With that they made it possible for me to be the first Belgian ever to be at the top of FIA GT championship rankings. And we achieved all this with limited budgets as compared everything else that is going on in this championship. Our secret? All highly motivated individuals, all passionate about our team. I'm really proud of this group of friends, because this is also one of our strong points, we do more together than merely race ", Anthony Kumpen commented.
"On top of that I should also add that both Kurt Mollekens and Jos Menten did a perfect job in those 24 hours ", Kumpen approvingly remarked about his team mates. "I have known Kurt for quite a while and I didn't expect anything else from him. This was the first time I had worked with Jos, and in all honesty I was somewhat worried. I knew that he was fast, but this guy also has a team spirit and is sensible, which is definitely of major importance in order to win a 24 hours event. He really proved that he belongs amongst the top in the GT world and I hope that we can work together again in the future."
However the following event on Anthony Kumpen's programme is the 24 Hours of Zolder. Kumpen is presently joint record holder in the number of overall victories of this Zolder endurance race, but by the end of the month he's looking to make it a fifth victory: "Regarding the 24 Hours of Zolder it is clear-cut that we only have one target, namely to win! The Goose (Marc Goossens.) was always one of the drivers with whom I spent time. I'm truly pleased to finally be able to compete with him in an important race. The two other drivers, as also the team, have a good reputation, so we have to go all out for it. I haven't followed the Belgian GT and BTCS that closely to be able to assess our closest rivals. But I reckon that we must definitely be amongst the favourites for this race. For the qualifying sessions I believe our car to be somewhat too light to be running up front."
After the 24Hours of Zolder Kumpen will once again be concentrating on the FIA GT championship: "After Zolder we're heading off for the Hungaroring. This will definitely be a difficult race with our 100 kg of success ballast. It's going to be a pretty tense season, but we're going to do everything in our power as small Belgians to clinch that FIA GT title ", a courageous Anthony Kumpen added. We should also mention that the final end of season round of the FIA GT championship will also take place at Circuit Zolder, at the end of October. A definite must for all aficionados of the present generation of GT1 cars, in what will be the final race of the FIA GT in its present format!  VZW 24u.be - Gordon McKay on Friday 7 August 2009 at 18:05. | 
