April 28, 2025

 

After a disastrous Round 3 at Suzuka, THR delivered the perfect response at Jeddah with a dominant 1-2 finish, led by Jarl Teien ahead of teammate Tom Stevens.
Their emphatic result breathes new life into their Superleague campaign and sends a clear message: THR are firmly back in the title fight.

Qualifying: Valle on Top, Granqvist Sidelined
Qualifying saw Valle Esports dominate, with Alessandro Maggio claiming his first official pole position of the season, narrowly edging out Matthew Williams by just 0.039 seconds. Sergio Fletcher made it a near-perfect session for Valle by locking in third.

Meanwhile, points leader Jan Granqvist did not set a time at all. Serving a 10-place grid penalty for a track limits infraction at Suzuka and burdened with a worn engine, Granqvist elected to start from the very back of the field, his focus firmly on damage limitation.

Moritz Kropp replaced Matt Richards at Fraser Tartan Racing and lined up an impressive fifth, while David Fidock returned to Superleague action for Epic Racing, standing in for the absent Dan Brewer.

Redemption for THR
At lights out, Maggio held his advantage from Williams and Fletcher, but it became clear that Valle's early speed was fragile. As tyre degradation set in, Jarl Teien and Tom Stevens methodically carved through the top five, with THR showing the control and composure that had been so absent in their Suzuka nightmare.

Teien seized the lead in the second stint, executing clinical passes as Maggio and Williams faded slightly. Stevens soon followed, completing a dream scenario for THR. The pair crossed the line comfortably first and second, delivering the team's first 1-2 of 2025, and only their second in Superleague history, despite being two-time champions. This was also their first 1-2 over the line, their previous effort in Singapore 2024 only coming after Schlueter was awarded penalties post-race.

Behind them, Williams held on to secure third and valuable championship points for Edonis. Maggio settled for fourth after his early dominance slipped away, while Robin Pansar brought home fifth after a clean, measured race, somehow making the one-stop strategy work.

Loic Meunier minimized losses for Spark with a sixth-place finish, although his early momentum in the title chase took a small dent.

Geoffrey Fournier impressed for Epic Racing, climbing from 15th to seventh with a strong two-stop strategy, while Marc Schlueter and Szymon Frelik rounded out the top 10.

Behind them, Lehoux, Lalu, Fisher, Kropp, and Handgraaf rounded out the points scorers.

Despite starting 30th, Jan Granqvist made early progress but ultimately could not overcome the odds, classified in 18th and three laps down after crashing near the end. His championship lead, once commanding, now looks increasingly vulnerable.

Moritz Kropp, who had starred in qualifying, ran strongly in the early stages but fell backwards after a slightly alternative 2 stop strategy initially jumped him to the lead through the undercut, but caused him tyre life issues later on in his medium stint, and caused him to lose his front wing. Moritz eventually finished 14th, a frustrating result after so much early promise.

The Superleague title fight is officially wide open - and THR are back in business.