The final qualifying session for the 2025 NASCAR Euro Series season is one to remember! More track records were broken apart in qualifying for the NASCAR Euro Series Finals as PRO and OPEN saw a new official lap record being set in qualifying. Vittorio Ghirelli continued his dominance in Circuit Zolder following his free practice performance, while Thomas Toffel led the OPEN division for the start of the first final races.
PRO: Vittorio Ghirelli Destroys Qualifying Lap Record
After breaking the track record in Friday’s practice session, the Italian set the benchmark even higher in qualifying. A blistering lap time of 1:36.454 shattered the previous qualifying lap record of 1:36.855, set by Stienes Longin in 2021. Such was the speed that it was also almost eighth tenths quicker than Paul Jouffreau in second position! Therefore, Ghirelli secured his second Strom Watches Pole Award of 2025 and the 19th pole position of his PRO career.
Ghirelli entered the Finals as the PRO championship leader and is seeking to defend the PRO crown that he won in 2024. With a clear road ahead for the start of PRO Final 1, will this be the weekend where the Italian triumphs once again?
“We did a 36.7 yesterday and 36.4 today,” said Ghirelli after his amazing performance. “I think the others were a little off at the moment, but the #24 PK Carsport Chevrolet Camaro was just incredible! There was so much grip, and I was able to drive it very well. I stayed focused and managed two very good laps. The first half of the battle is done, but now it’s the long war ahead and I’m ready for it. Let’s do it!”
Jouffreau led the Junior Trophy classifications in second ahead of the fast Dutchman Bruno Mulders. The 17-year-old Mulders continued his rapid rise with a new best qualifying result, beating his previous high of fourth in the previous round at Germany. Garrett Lowe completed the top-3 Junior Trophy rankings in fourth ahead of Thomas Toffel, who had the lead in Challenger Trophy.
Thomas Krasonis and Liam Hezemans just missed out on the top-5. Title contender Gianmarco Ercoli has a tough road to climb from eighth on the grid. Fabrizio Armetta and Julien Rehberg rounded out the Superpole contenders. Davit Kajaia and Max Lanza lined up behind Toffel in the Challenger Trophy rankings in 13th and 19th positions.
OPEN: Last lap Sprint Paid Off for Thomas Toffel
OPEN witnessed an exciting conclusion to their qualifying session. A late stoppage brought by Claudio Cappelli’s spin resulted in a three-minute dash to set their final lap times. Quick adaptation therefore became an important factor: Drivers need to warm up their Hoosier tires as quickly as possible and in the end, no one did it better than Thomas Toffel from THT by Race Art Technology.
Toffel’s sprint to the line resulted in a new qualifying lap record of 1:37.041, more than a second faster than Paul Jouffreau’s previous benchmark! The Swiss therefore claimed his first Strom Watches Pole Award of 2025 and extended his Circuit Zolder pole position streak that began in 2024. The driver of the #34 Chevrolet Camaro aims to get the victory and close his season on a high note.
“I knew the track was cooler this morning, so there was more time to warm the tires,” said Toffel on his key to success. “I think we have had a good pace since the beginning of the weekend and we found a little thing in the morning that helped me. I’m not in the battle for the championship, so the plan is clear: To win the races. We need a little bit of luck and we’ll see what happens!”
Thomas Krasonis did not maintain his lead from free practice, but the Greek secured second position – an important result for his OPEN championship bid. Master Trophy’s top contenders Bruno Mulders and Thomas Dombrowski topped their special classification and lined up on the second row of the grid. Reigning champion Martin Doubek completed the top-5 ahead of Sandro Tavartkiladze, who rounded out the top-3 positions in the Master Trophy.
Strong efforts from Gil Linster and Patrick Schober were rewarded with seventh and eighth qualifying results. Melvin de Groot was the fastest in Legend Trophy in ninth, beating Cappelli and Michael Bleekemolen who qualified in 11th and 18th respectively. Andres Beers rounded out the top-10 on the young Belgian’s home NASCAR GP. Happiness topped Lady Trophy in 20th overall.
With qualifying concluded, the focus now shifts to the first of two double points paying races for PRO and OPEN. The broadcast for PRO’s Final 1 begins at 13:25 CEST with OPEN Final 1 starting its action at 16:35 CEST. Don’t miss out the broadcast from the official EuroNASCAR YouTube channel and TV channels around the world, as the races will determine the champions of the official European NASCAR championship!
NASCAR Euro Series PR