Latest news with #JordanPepper
IOL News
07-07-2025
- Automotive
- IOL News
South African racing driver Jordan Pepper wins his first German DTM race
Jordan Pepper won his first DTM race, behind the wheel of a Lamborghini Huracan. Image: Jordan Pepper via Instagram South Africa has another rising star in the world of German Touring Car racing, with Jordan Pepper scooping his first DTM victory over the weekend. The 28-year-old became the second South African to achieve success in the German racing series in just three years, with compatriot Sheldon van der Linde having won the DTM series in 2022. Pepper, who competes in a TGI Team Lamborghini Huracan Evo2, currently lies third in the 2025 DTM Championship, following his flag-to-flag victory at the Norisring on Saturday, which was the seventh race of the season. He was also the fastest in practice and qualifying. Jordan Pepper: a rising DTM star. Image: Supplied "What an unbelievably emotional moment for me. I am incredibly proud and still cannot really believe it. The final laps seemed to last forever. However, I gave it my all and remained focussed right through to the finish," a delighted Pepper said after the event. He surged ahead of the field, while Thomas Preining (Porsche 911) and Maro Engel (Mercedes AMG GT) fought for their eventual second and third places, aided by a collision that put second-placed Nicki Thiim (Lamborghini) out of contention. Pepper is no stranger to international racing success behind the wheel of some prestigious machinery. In 2020, he won the Bathurst 12-hour as a Bentley works driver, playing a pivotal role in the British marque's success in the GT3 era, which sadly ended with the pandemic. However, after joining Lamborghini in 2021, Pepper went on to dominate the GTWC America championship, alongside fellow factory driver Andrea Caldarelli. Jordan Pepper is the son of South African touring car driver Iain Pepper and brother of Tasmin Pepper, who competed in the former W-Series, a global championship for female drivers. He started karting at a young age, and after joining the VW Polo Cup in 2012, Pepper won the 'Rookie of the Year' award after finishing third in the championship. But there were bigger things ahead, and in 2015, Pepper moved overseas to race for the ABT Sportsline Audi team in the ADAC GT Series. IOL Motoring
The Citizen
07-07-2025
- Automotive
- The Citizen
South Africa's Jordan Pepper claims 1st Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters win
The son of former South African Touring Car driver Iain, Edenvale-born Jordan Pepper, is enjoying a purple patch in his racing career. A former winner of the Bathurst 12 Hour with Bentley and the GTWC America Championship, Pepper's current contract with TGI Lamborghini Team by GRT sees him competing in both the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters (DTM) and selected endurance-racing events, in a Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2. Sharing a car with Luca Engstler and Mirko Bortolotti, Pepper's impressive current form saw him claim victory at the 2025 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps on June 29. Buoyed by this success, the former VW Polo Cup and 2014 VW Scirocco Cup champion arrived at the fourth round of this year's DTM Championship, held at the Norisring street circuit in Nuremberg, Germany, filled with confidence. Starting Race 1 from pole position, Pepper's impressive early-race pace came in handy after a slow mandatory pit stop threatened to scupper the team's efforts. With his proud father in attendance and family, including his sister, Tasmin, herself an accomplished racing driver, watching from home, Jordan held off Thomas Preining and Maro Engel to claim his maiden DTM victory. 'What an unbelievably emotional moment for me,' Pepper said. 'I am incredibly proud and still cannot really believe it. The final laps seemed to last forever. However, I gave it my all and remained focused right through to the finish.' Significantly, the win vaulted Pepper into second place in the 2025 DTM Driver's Championship, behind Lucas Auer, who drives for Mercedes-AMG Team Landgraf. As a reminder, Pepper's compatriot and fellow former VW Polo Cup driver, Sheldon van der Merwe, became the first South African to win the DTM Driver's title, claiming the 2012 title with BMW. Click here to browse thousands of new and used vehicles here with CARmag! The post South Africa's Jordan Pepper Claims His First DTM Win appeared first on CAR Magazine. Breaking news at your fingertips… Follow Caxton Network News on Facebook and join our WhatsApp channel. Nuus wat saakmaak. Volg Caxton Netwerk-nuus op Facebook en sluit aan by ons WhatsApp-kanaal.
The South African
01-07-2025
- Automotive
- The South African
No DNA, just RSA: Jordan Pepper wins Spa 24 Hour
Jordan Pepper racked up another incredible endurance-race victory for South Africa this past weekend. Sharing the #63 GRT Grasser Lamborghini Huracan GT3 at the fearsome Spa 24 Hour, the trio were fast and clinical to clinch one of the toughest 24-hour races on the calendar. Unusually for the Spa-Francorchamps Circuit near the Ardennes Forest in Belgium, the entirety of the 24-hour race was dry. The race is typically interrupted by heavy rain, fog and sometimes both. In fact, extraordinarily hot conditions over the weekend had their own unique challenges for Jordan Pepper and his teammates … The Spa 24 Hour is more than an endurance race, it's a spectacle from beginning to end. Image: Newsmakers Better still, victory for Jordan Pepper in Spa is the second big win for South African GT racers in two weeks. Kelvin van der Linde took home the Nurburgring 24 Hour win in a BMW just one-week prior. Moreover, the Spa 24 Hour saw all four top South African race drivers compete: including Sheldon and Kelvin van der Linde in BMWs and David Perel in a Ferrari. However, it was the #63 GRT Grasser Lamborghini Huracan GT3 of Jordan Pepper, Mirko Bortolotti and Luca Engstler that crossed the line first. There were crashes a plenty in the 2025 edition of the Spa 24 Hour. Video: GT World on YouTube Unlike the 24 Hours of Le Mans that features top-class prototypes, the Spa 24 is for GT3 cars only. And while there are multiple classes of drivers – rated from Bronze to Platinum (like Jordan Pepper) – all compete in the same spec machinery, which keeps the racing very close. Likewise, the Nurburgring 24 Hour is unique in that it has no safety cars to bunch up the field. Meanwhile the Spa 24 does, which adds a totally different dimension to surviving and winning the race. As the #63 GRT Grasser team found out, to win you have to be brutally fast, stay out of trouble, make zero mistakes and have reliability on your side. No mistakes or mechanical maladies troubled the #63 GRT Grasser Lamborghini Huracan, which made it a straight fight for the overall win. Image: Newsmakers Bortolotti drove the final two-and-a-half-hour stint in stifling heat to cross the line. But Jordan Pepper arguably drove the most important stints that edged the Lamborghini ahead of its closest rival, the #96 Rutronik Porsche 911, on an offset pit strategy. The brutal 24-hour race ebbed and flowed and finally boiled down to a tense final pitstop for the top teams. Having made zero mistakes to that point, with just 45 minutes to go, the team used clever pit strategy to come out ahead on track by a few seconds. From left to right: Luca Engstler (GER), Mirko Bortolotti (ITA) and Jordan Pepper (RSA). Image: Newsmakers The Spa 24 Hour victory is the second major endurance win for South African Jordan Pepper. He took an emotional win at the iconic Bathurst 24 Hour for Bentley back in 2020. Is there are any stopping South Africa's current crop of super-fast racing drivers? Of course not, it's not DNA, it's RSA! Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Yahoo
29-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Spa 24 Hours: Lamborghini takes maiden victory
Grasser Lamborghini claimed a hard-fought maiden win at the 2025 24 Hours of Spa, as Mirko Bortolotti, Luca Engstler, and Jordan Pepper took their Huracan GT3 to the top step of the podium. The race ran uninterrupted for the final eight hours, with the last safety car disappearing after 16 hour. Instead, the closing stages were shaped by three Full Course Yellow (FCY) periods, two of which proved decisive in the battle for the win. Advertisement The pivotal moment came in the 13th FCY of the race, nearly 18 and a half hours in, as both the #63 Grasser Lamborghini and Rowe Racing's #98 BMW of Augusto Farfus, Jesse Krohn, Raffaele Marciello pitted. While BMW's pace wasn't enough to mount a real challenge, the Lamborghini emerged in the lead. Another FCY shortly after the 20-hour mark handed the top spot to the #96 Rutronik Racing Porsche Sven Muller, Patric Niederhauser and Alessio Picariello with a lucky pitstop under the caution period to set up a duel with Grasser's Lambo for victory. The Porsche held the lead for nearly two hours until disaster struck: Muller suffered a puncture in the fearsome Blanchimont section. Fortunately, he kept the car under control and was able to limp to the pits - but it was just enough for Grasser to regain the lead. But Grasser's final pitstop nearly unraveled it all, as Bortolotti lost precious seconds as his Lamborghini struggled to fire back up. Bortolotti lost six seconds in total, and the margin over the chasing Porsche was down to less than one second. #63 GRT - Grasser Racing Team Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2: Mirko Bortolotti, Jordan Pepper, Luca Engstler #63 GRT - Grasser Racing Team Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2: Mirko Bortolotti, Jordan Pepper, Luca Engstler But once back on track, Bortolotti controlled the lead and kept Niederhauser firmly at bay to win by 8.703s. Advertisement Lamborghini becomes the 20th different manufacturer to win the Spa 24 Hours, while it is also the first win of the event for all three drivers. Third place went to #51 AF Corse's Ferrari Alessio Rovera, Vincent Abril, and Alessandro Pier Guidi, thanks to a post-race time penalty against #98 Rowe BMW for exceeding track limits. The Ferrari had overcome an early brake issue and even went a lap down before staging a strong comeback, aided by good FCY timing. Just behind was the sister #50 Ferrari #50 Antonio Fuoco, Eliseo Donno and Arthur Leclerc, which delivered a clean race but missed the decisive FCY luck. In the Gold Cup, the #58 McLaren of Adam Smalley, Frederik Schandorff, Dean MacDonald, Louis Prette Jr was on course for class victory, until a late-race puncture struck with just eight minutes remaining. That handed the class win to the #33 Racing Aston Martin Thierry Vermeulen, Chris Lulham, and Harry King, which also emerged as the best-placed Aston overall after both Pro entries retired. Advertisement The race was marred by a terrifying high-speed accident: Laurin Heinrich, driving the #22 Schumacher-CLRT Porsche, plowed into the slowing #112 CSA McLaren with nearly 200kph speed difference. Miraculously, both drivers walked away unscathed. Read Also: How Verstappen has created an ambitious GT team ahead of new era in 2025 To read more articles visit our website.
Yahoo
08-06-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
DTM Zandvoort: Rene Rast takes lights-to-flag win
Team Schubert driver Rene Rast took a commanding lights-to-flag victory in the second DTM race of the Zandvoort round. The polesitter was challenged by his team-mate Marco Wittmann in the final stages of the race but held on to secure the win, with the BMW drivers consistently faster than their rivals. Advertisement 'We made up for yesterday's blunder and I'm super happy,' Rast told ran jubilantly. 'It wasn't easy, not even for me – mentally and physically, it was a tough race inside the car.' 'I was clearly faster towards the end, I could attack, but it just wasn't enough,' Wittmann grinned, having taken second place from Jack Aitken at the start. 'We all know that among drivers from the same brand, you may not always go for that final one percent. I believe today the team result was really important, and with that, we can certainly be very satisfied.' Marco Wittmann, Schubert Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 Marco Wittmann, Schubert Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 Alexander Trienitz Alexander Trienitz Advertisement Unlike Saturday, the weather remained dry, and there were very few incidents of note in the race. Grasser Lamborghini driver Jordan Pepper suffered a puncture in a first-lap scramble and eventually retired. Thomas Preining and Aitken battled for the final spot on the podium, with the Porsche driver prevailing. Maro Engel finished fifth, leading Luca Engstler, Lucas Auer, Jules Gounon, Mirko Bortolotti and Arjun Maini. Landgraf Mercedes racer Auer has maintained his lead in the drivers' championship, with Rast up to second with a 16-point deficit. Saturday race winner Ayhancan Guven now shares third position with Jules Gounon. The next DTM round will take place on 4-6 July at the only street circuit on the calendar – the Norisring, in Nuremberg. To read more articles visit our website.
