Successful dress rehearsal for the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Germany 2026: At the official pre-season test in Imola, Italy, drivers and teams prepared for the new season on Wednesday and Thursday. In addition to many hours of driving time, the programme also included numerous media activities.
This year, the new Porsche 911 Cup will take centre stage, celebrating its premiere and heralding a new era in the German one-make cup. Fans can look forward to a full field of participants: 31 drivers and nine teams will be competing, in some cases with two separate teams. The season opener will take place from 17 to 19 April together with the FIA World Endurance Championship WEC in Imola. The calendar also includes six further stops with the DTM and a stop at the International GT Open.
New Porsche 911 Cup
The new Porsche 911 Cup impresses with even stronger performance: the latest generation of the racing car combines extensive modifications with the design of the 992.2 generation 911 and is powered by a 4.0-litre six-cylinder boxer engine. In addition to increased performance, the further development also focussed on simplified handling for teams and drivers. In Imola, the Cup car will be used in the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Germany for the first time under competitive conditions.
The cards will be completely reshuffled in the battle for the title: 18 drivers will contest their first full season in the German Carrera Cup. Among the top drivers are the two Porsche juniors Flynt Schuring (NL/Schumacher CLRT) and Marcus Amand (FIN/Proton Competition). South African Keagan Masters (Proton Competition), two-time champion of the Porsche Carrera Cup Italia, will be in contention. Daniel Ros (SE/Team Proton Competition), the current overall winner of the Porsche Carrera Cup Scandinavia, will also be joining the German one-make cup. Dylan Yip (Team Proton Competition) from the Porsche Carrera Cup Asia will strengthen the driver line-up. The 22-year-old from Hong Kong has already gained experience in GT3 racing in the ADAC GT Masters. Bulgarian driver Alexandra Vateva (Target Competition), who is the only woman in the field, will be looking to give her male rivals a run for their money.
Targeted talent development will also play a central role in the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland in 2026. This year's talent pool squad includes the eight youngsters Matheus Ferreira (BR/Team GP Elite), Nick Ho (NL/Team GP Elite), Sam Jongejan, Chester Kieffer (L/Schumacher CLRT), Max Mutschlechner (I/Target Competition), Alexandra Vateva, Caleb Sumich (AUS/Target) and Joseph Warhurst (UK/Target). The young drivers will be coached by former Porsche works driver Wolf Henzler on all eight race weekends. In addition, the drivers receive extensive support in the areas of fitness, nutrition, sports psychology and media.
The participants in the German Carrera Cup also compete for victories in the ProAm classification. This class is aimed at racing drivers who are at least 30 years old and have no professional motorsport background. Ahmad Alshehab (KWT/ID Racing), Michael Essmann (D/Team75 Bernhard), "Rey King" (UK/ID Racing), Samer Shahin (AUS) and Sören Spreng (D/both GP Elite) make up the ProAm field this year.
"With 31 drivers, the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland is set for an exciting season. In addition, the race premiere of the new Porsche 911 Cup provides additional anticipation," says Thorsten Rückert, Project Manager of the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Germany. "A full and international starting field with a number of newcomers impressively demonstrates that our one-make cup is a highly attractive platform in its 37th season as well. Perfect conditions for a successful 75th anniversary year for Porsche Motorsport."
After the season opener in Imola, races at three Formula 1 circuits are on the programme: Between the two DTM events at the Red Bull Ring in Austria and in Zandvoort in the Netherlands, the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Germany will make a guest appearance with the International GT Open at the Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium). Four stops in Germany as part of the DTM make up the second half of the season. After the Dekra Lausitzring, the one-make cup heads to the Norisring street circuit in Nuremberg. The Nürburgring heralds the hot final phase before the finale at the Hockenheimring Baden-Württemberg.
Starting list Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Germany 2026
#3 Keagan Masters (ZA/Proton Competition) #4 Jonas Greif (D/GP Elite) #5 Sören Spreng (D/GP Elite) #6 Dylan Yip (HK/Team Proton) #10 Niels Langeveld (NL/Laptime-Performance) #11 Chester Kieffer (L/Schumacher CLRT) #12 Flynt Schuring (NL/Schumacher CLRT) #13 Alexander Tauscher (D/Target) #14 Caleb Sumich (AUS/Target) #16 Max Mutschlechner (D/Target Competition) #17 Gustav Bergström (SE/Team Proton) #22 „Rey King“ (UK/ID Racing) #23 Samer Shahin (AUS/GP Elite) #25 Wouter Boerekamps (NL/Team GP Elite) #27 Matheus Ferreira (BR/Team GP Elite) #31 Sebastian Freymuth (D/Laptime-Performance) #32 Tim Reiter (D/Looping by CarTech) #34 Dirk Schouten (NL/Looping by CarTech) #44 Theo Oeverhaus (D/ID Racing) #54 Michael Essmann (D/Team75 Bernhard) #56 Alexandra Vateva (BG/Target Competition) #57 Gus Burton (UK/Forch Racing by Atlas Ward) #65 Sam Jongejan (NL/Team75 Bernhard) #66 Montego Maassen (D/Forch Racing by Atlas Ward) #77 Louis Perrot (F/Forch Racing by Atlas Ward) #84 Ahmad Alshehab (KWT/ID Racing) #88 Daniel Ros (S/Team Proton Competition) #91 Gian Tüccaroglu (D/Team75 Bernhard) #95 Joseph Warhurst (UK/Target) #98 Nick Ho (NL/Team GP Elite) #99 Marcus Amand (FIN/Proton Competition)
Race calendar of the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Germany
17.04.–19.04.2026 Imola (FIA WEC), Races 1+2 24.04.–26.04.2026 Red Bull Ring (DTM), Races 3+4 15.05.–17.05.2026 Spa-Francorchamps (International GT Open), Races 5+6 22.05.–24.05.2026 Zandvoort (DTM), Races 7+8 19.06.–21.06.2026 Dekra Lausitzring (DTM), Races 9+10 03.07.–05.07.2026 Norisring (DTM), Races 11+12 14.08.–16.08.2026 Nürburgring (DTM), Races 13+14 09.10.–11.10.2026 Hockenheimring (DTM), Races 15+16
