Charles Weerts

Charles Weerts (born 1 March 2001) is a Belgian racing driver who currently competes in the GT World Challenge Europe.^[1] On December 8 2022 Weerts was announced as a factory driver for BMW M Motorsport where he'll continue to drive for Team WRT.^[2]

Charles Weerts
Weerts in 2023
Nationality	Belgian
Born	(2001-03-01) 1 March 2001 (age 23) Verviers, Belgium
GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup career
Debut season	2020
Current team	Team WRT
Racing licence	FIA Platinum
Car number	32
Starts	42
Wins	12
Podiums	24
Poles	5
Previous series
ADAC Formula 4 Formula 4 UAE Championship	2017–2018 2016–2018
Championship titles
2017–18 2020-2022	Formula 4 UAE Championship GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup
GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup career
Debut season	2019
Current team	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT
Car number	32
Starts	21
Wins	1
Podiums	4
Poles	2
Last updated on: 8 June 2023.

Career

Junior formula

Weerts made his single-seater debut in 2017, joining Team Motopark for the 2017 ADAC Formula 4 season, alongside the final three races of the Formula 4 UAE Championship.^[3][4] During the 2017 ADAC F4 season, he would score 22nd in the overall classification and second in the Rookie Championship, scoring just three points towards the drivers' title. The following Formula 4 UAE season, Weerts was crowned series champion, sweeping the final quadruple-header round at Dubai Autodrome en route to a 50-point points lead over second-placed David Schumacher.^[5] However, the victory would mark Weerts' final season with Team Motopark, as he would switch to Van Amersfoort Racing for the 2018 ADAC Formula 4 season.^[6][7] After finishing 5th in points, securing one win and four podiums, Weerts would leave the team at the conclusion of the 2018 season.

Sports cars

Weerts' Audi at the Red Bull Ring in 2021

2019 saw Weerts explore a new discipline of motorsport, joining Belgian Audi Club Team WRT for the 2019 Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup campaign.^[8] After a lackluster 2019 season which saw Weerts' entries score a solitary point across five races, he was paired with Dries Vanthoor for full season campaigns in both series during 2020.^[9] After scoring two wins and six podiums in 10 races, Vanthoor and Weerts claimed the Sprint Cup title in the Pro category.^[10][11] Following his title, Weerts was promoted to Audi factory driver status for 2021.^[12] He began the team's title defense on a high note, taking pole for the opening race of the weekend at Magny-Cours,^[13] before going on to win Saturday's event, further adding a podium finish the following afternoon.^[14] Following the fourth round at Brands Hatch, Weerts and Vanthoor successfully defended their Sprint Cup title.^[15] In 2022 Weerts, together with Vanthoor were able to clinch a third consecutive Sprint Cup title.^[16] They finished the season with 5 wins and 9 podiums in 10 races.

BMW M Factory Driver

Weerts' #32 BMW M4 GT3 during the 2023 24 Hours of Spa

At the end of the 2022 season Weerts confirmed he would part ways with Audi Sport and was later announced as a factory BMW M driver from the 2023 season on.^[17] He was joined by his current teammate Dries Vanthoor and Team WRT, both making the switch from Audi as well. In his first race as an official BMW factory driver, the 2023 Kyalami 9 Hours, Weerts scored the overall victory alongside Vanthoor and Sheldon van der Linde.^[18] Weerts once again embarked on a full-season GT World Challenge Europe campaign. Weerts stated his ambitions to remain on top in the Sprint Cup, but argued that the change in machinery for 2023 ensured that the team's efforts to score a fourth consecutive title wouldn't be easy.^[19] Ultimately, the entry finished third in Sprint Cup points, tallying six total podium finishes and a sole race victory during the penultimate race weekend at Valencia.^[20] In Endurance Cup competition, Weerts, Vanthoor, and van der Linde registered a best race finish of sixth at Monza, finishing 11th in the final points classification.

Heading into their second BMW season, Weerts and Vanthoor remained in the Sprint Cup and once again partnered van der Linde in the Endurance events.^[21] The year began with two mistakes from Weerts, who first crashed with a lapped car at the Bathurst 12 Hours and then retired from the opening Endurance Cup event as a result of a collision with Alessio Rovera.^[22][23] He redeemed himself in the first pair of Sprint Cup rounds, winning at Brands Hatch due to a strong pit stop as well as taking pole and victory in race 2 of the Misano weekend.^[24][25]

Personal life

Weerts is heir to real estate and logistics company Weerts Group, with his father Yves having been its CEO since 1994.^[26] Yves Weerts is a member of the board of directors at W Racing Team.^[27]

Racing record

Career summary

Season	Series	Team	Races	Wins	Poles	F/Laps	Podiums	Points	Position
2016–17	Formula 4 UAE Championship	Team Motopark 2	11	0	0	0	1	84	7th
2017	ADAC Formula 4 Championship	Motopark	21	0	0	0	0	3	22nd
2017–18	Formula 4 UAE Championship	Dragon Motopark F4	23	8	3	8	16	377	1st
2018	ADAC Formula 4 Championship	Van Amersfoort Racing	21	1	0	2	4	195	5th
	Italian F4 Championship		3	0	0	0	0	15	18th
	FIA GT Nations Cup	Team Belgium	3	1	1	0	1	N/A	DNF
2019	Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	10	1	1	0	1	40.5	6th
	Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup		3	0	0	0	0	0	NC
	Italian GT Endurance Championship - GT3 Pro	Audi Sport Italia	2	0	0	0	2	?	?
2020	GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	10	2	0	0	6	89	1st
	GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup		4	0	0	0	0	39	8th
	ADAC GT Masters	Team WRT	12	1	0	0	3	82	10th
	Intercontinental GT Challenge	Audi Sport Team WRT	1	0	0	0	1	18	14th
2021	GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	10	4	2	1	7	103.5	1st
	GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup		5	0	0	0	3	79	3rd
	Intercontinental GT Challenge	Audi Sport Team WRT	3	0	0	0	1	40	5th
	ADAC GT Masters	Team WRT	12	1	1	0	1	66	14th
	Le Mans Cup - GT3		2	0	0	0	0	0	NC†
2022	GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	10	5	3	1	9	135.5	1st
	GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup		5	1	2	0	1	39	9th
	Intercontinental GT Challenge	Audi Sport Team WRT	1	0	0	0	0	0	NC
2023	GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup	Team WRT	5	0	0	0	0	26	11th
	GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup		10	1	1	0	6	86.5	3rd
	Intercontinental GT Challenge		5	1	0	1	1	44	9th
2024	GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup	Team WRT	5	0	0	0	2	48	7th
	GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup		10	3	1	4	7	105.5	2nd
	Intercontinental GT Challenge	BMW M Team WRT	3	2	0	0	2	68	1st
		BMW M Team RMG	1	0	0	0	1
	Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie - SP9	BMW M Team RMG	2	0	0	0	0	*	*
	24 Hours of Nürburgring - SP9		1	0	0	0	1	N/A	3rd

^† As Weerts was a guest driver, he was ineligible to score points.
^* Season still in progress.

Complete Formula 4 UAE Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	22	23	24	Pos	Points
2016-17	Team Motopark 2	DUB1 1	DUB1 2	DUB1 3	YMC1 1	YMC1 2	YMC1 3	YMC1 4	DUB2 1 6	DUB2 2 Ret	DUB2 3 4	YMC2 1 7	YMC2 2 5	YMC2 3 6	YMC2 4 8	YMC3 1 5	YMC3 2 2	YMC3 3 5	YMC3 4 6							7th	84
2017-18	Dragon Motopark F4	YMC1 1 1	YMC1 2 6	YMC1 3 2	YMC1 4 2	YMC2 1 2	YMC2 2 3	YMC2 3 1	YMC2 4 3	DUB1 1 Ret	DUB1 2 5	DUB1 3 7	DUB1 4 C	YMC3 1 1	YMC3 2 3	YMC3 3 Ret	YMC3 4 4	YMC4 1 1	YMC4 2 3	YMC4 3 3	YMC4 4 4	DUB2 1 1	DUB2 2 1	DUB2 3 1	DUB2 4 1	1st	377

Complete ADAC Formula 4 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	Pos	Points
2017	Motopark	OSC1 1 12	OSC1 2 15	OSC1 3 18	LAU 1 9	LAU 2 16	LAU 3 13	RBR 1 17	RBR 2 Ret	RBR 3 23	OSC2 1 18	OSC2 2 22	OSC2 3 18	NÜR 1 21	NÜR 2 23	NÜR 3 18	SAC 1 Ret	SAC 2 15	SAC 3 18	HOC 1 21	HOC 2 10	HOC 3 12	22nd	3
2018	Van Amersfoort Racing	OSC 1 Ret	OSC 2 4	OSC 3 3	HOC1 1 7	HOC1 2 4	HOC1 3 4	LAU 1 10	LAU 2 5	LAU 3 2	RBR 1 5	RBR 2 Ret	RBR 3 8	HOC2 1 8	HOC2 2 8	NÜR 1 7	NÜR 2 5	NÜR 3 4	HOC3 1 1	HOC3 2 4	HOC3 3 2		5th	195

Complete Italian F4 Championship results

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

Year	Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	11	12	13	14	15	16	17	18	19	20	21	Pos	Points
2018	Van Amersfoort Racing	ADR 1	ADR 2	ADR 3	LEC 1 10	LEC 2 5	LEC 3 8	MNZ 1	MNZ 2	MNZ 3	MIS 1	MIS 2	MIS 3	IMO 1	IMO 2	IMO 3	VLL 1	VLL 2	VLL 3	MUG 1	MUG 2	MUG 3	18th	15

Complete GT World Challenge Europe results

GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup

Year	Team	Car	Class	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	Pos.	Points
2019	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS Evo	Silver	MON 27	SIL Ret						25th	1
Pro			LEC 13	SPA 6H 30	SPA 12H 22	SPA 24H 12	CAT Ret	NC	0
2020	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS Evo	Pro	IMO 4	NÜR 5	SPA 6H 54	SPA 12H 54	SPA 24H Ret	LEC 4		8th	39
2021	Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS Evo	Pro	MON Ret	LEC 2	SPA 6H 5	SPA 12H 2	SPA 24H 2	NÜR 6	CAT 3	3rd	79
2022	Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS Evo II	Pro	IMO 1	LEC 41	SPA 6H 14	SPA 12H 14	SPA 24H Ret	HOC Ret	CAT 4	9th	39
2023	BMW M Team WRT	BMW M4 GT3	Pro	MNZ 6	LEC Ret	SPA 6H 1	SPA 12H 52†	SPA 24H Ret	NÜR 7	CAT 11	11th	26
2024	Team WRT	BMW M4 GT3	Pro	LEC Ret	SPA 6H 15	SPA 12H 16	SPA 24H 3	NÜR 44†	MNZ 2	JED	7th*	33*

^* Season still in progress.

GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup

Year	Team	Car	Class	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	Pos.	Points
2019	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS Evo	Pro	BRH 1 12	BRH 2 6	MIS 1 Ret	MIS 2 1	ZAN 1 13	ZAN 2 5	NÜR 1 4	NÜR 2 26	HUN 1 8	HUN 2 7	6th	40.5
2020	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS Evo	Pro	MIS 1 1	MIS 2 4	MIS 3 1	MAG 1 3	MAG 2 4	ZAN 1 12	ZAN 2 7	CAT 1 6	CAT 2 2	CAT 3 2	1st	89
2021	Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS Evo	Pro	MAG 1 1	MAG 2 2	ZAN 1 8	ZAN 2 3	MIS 1 1	MIS 2 1	BRH 1 1	BRH 2 2	VAL 1 16	VAL 2 Ret	1st	103.5
2022	Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS Evo II	Pro	BRH 1 2	BRH 2 2	MAG 1 1	MAG 2 6	ZAN 1 1	ZAN 2 2	MIS 1 1	MIS 2 1	VAL 1 3	VAL 2 1	1st	135.5
2023	BMW M Team WRT	BMW M4 GT3	Pro	BRH 1 3	BRH 2 3	MIS 1 3	MIS 2 9	HOC 1 3	HOC 2 5	VAL 1 5	VAL 2 1	ZAN 1 5	ZAN 2 2	3rd	86.5
2024	BMW M Team WRT	BMW M4 GT3	Pro	BRH 1 1	BRH 2 7	MIS 1 2	MIS 2 1	HOC 1 2	HOC 2 2	MAG 1 1	MAG 2 2	CAT 1 9	CAT 2 7	2nd	105.5

^* Season still in progress.

References

1. "Charles Weerts, 2021 - Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS". gt-world-challenge-europe.com. Retrieved 10 May 2021.
2. "BMW M Motorsport presents works drivers and race programme for the 2023 season". press.bmwgroup.com. Retrieved 10 December 2022.
3. "Charles Weerts Joins Team Motopark for 2017". drivetribe.com. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
4. "Charles Weerts to Drive for Motopark in ADAC F4". formularapida.net. 17 March 2017. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
5. "Charles Weerts Wins F4 UAE Championship Title for 2018". f4uae.com. 3 March 2018. Archived from the original on 11 August 2019. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
6. "Charles Weerts goes to VAR". racing24-7.net. 22 February 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
7. "F4 UAE leader Charles Weerts switches to VAR for second ADAC F4 season". formulascout.com. 23 February 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
8. "Belgian Audi Club Team WRT Confirm 2019 GT3 Line-Ups". dailysportscar.com. 22 March 2019. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
9. "WRT Reveal Full 2020 Lineups & Liveries". dailysportscar.com. 16 July 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
10. "Weerts & Vandoor Claim Sprint Cup Title, WRT Win Teams Crown". dailysportscar.com. 12 October 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
11. "Dries Vanthoor and Charles Weerts emerge as Champions in Barcelona". thecheckeredflag.co.uk. 11 October 2020. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
12. "Marschall, Weerts Promoted to Audi Factory Lineup". sportscar365.com. 14 January 2021. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
13. "Weerts Puts WRT Audi on Pole for Magny-Cours Race 1". sportscar365.com. 8 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
14. "The Weekend Roundup – Magny-Cours". gt-world-challenge-europe.com. 11 May 2021. Retrieved 12 May 2021.
15. Lloyd, Daniel (29 August 2021). "Vanthoor, Weerts Seal Sprint Cup Title with Round to Spare". sportscar365.com. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 4 September 2021.
16. Lloyd, Daniel (17 September 2022). "Vanthoor, Weerts Clinch Third Sprint Title With Valencia Podium". Sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
17. Goodwin, Graham (9 December 2022). "BMW Confirm 20 Factory Drivers For 2023 Season". Dailysportscar. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
18. Dagys, John (25 February 2023). "WRT BMWs Take Controlling 1-2 Result in Kyalami 9H". Sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 25 February 2023.
19. Lloyd, Daniel (13 May 2023). "Weerts: Fourth Sprint Title "Won't Be Easy" After BMW Switch". Sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 8 June 2023.
20. Euwema, Davey (17 September 2023). "Weerts Ends Sprint Cup Win Drought in Valencia Race 2". Sportscar365. John Dagys Media. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
21. "BMW M Team WRT ready for exciting Hypercar and GT challenges in 2024". Team WRT. 2 February 2024. Retrieved 2 February 2024.
22. Dagys, John (2024-02-18). "Bathurst Post-Race Notebook – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-05-19.
23. Euwema, Davey (2024-04-07). "ROWE BMW Wins Endurance Cup Opener at Paul Ricard – Sportscar365". sportscar365.com. Retrieved 2024-05-19.
24. "La Performance du week-end avec Debard Automobiles : Team WRT". Endurance Info (in French). Retrieved 2024-05-19.
25. "Vanthoor & Weerts Take Race 2 Win At Misano". www.dailysportscar.com. Retrieved 2024-05-19.
26. Brandworks.be. "WRT | Weerts Group". w-racingteam.com. Retrieved 2024-05-01.
27. Brandworks.be. "WRT | WEERTS GROUP". w-racingteam.com. Retrieved 2024-05-01.

External links

• Charles Weerts at W Racing Team

Sporting positions
Preceded by Jonathan Aberdein	Formula 4 UAE Championship Champion 2017–18	Succeeded by Matteo Nannini
Preceded by Andrea Caldarelli Marco Mapelli	GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup Pro Champion 2020, 2021, 2022 With: Dries Vanthoor	Succeeded by Mattia Drudi Ricardo Feller