PSCNA: Hard-charging Therese Lahlouh battles to top-5 finish at VIR

Therese Lahlouh battled back from a challenging qualifying session to charge through the field to finish in fifth position in the 992 Pro/Am class in the latest round of Porsche Sprint Challenge NA at VIR, where she gained 11 positions in race one.

Photo credits: Colin McCarthy

Therese Lahlouh battled back from a challenging qualifying session to charge through the field to finish in fifth position in the 992 Pro/Am class in the latest round of Porsche Sprint Challenge North America. Competing at the challenging Virginia International Raceway, Lahlouh gained 11 positions on her way to an eighth-place overall finish in race one. Lahlouh’s progress in race two was halted by a spin, however she banked vital experience in a character-building weekend for the JDX Racing driver.

Lahlouh arrived at Virginia International Raceway looking to continue the momentum she had built up during the first half of the season. The JDX Racing driver sat third in 992 Pro/Am class standings prior to the weekend and stood on the podium at both Sonoma Raceway and Circuit of the Americas. Lahlouh’s improvements in both qualifying and the races have been extremely impressive as she embarks on her second season in the championship.

Therefore, Lahlouh was aiming to improve upon her results from last season at Virginia International Raceway. It was a consistent event for Therese in 2024 as she banked solid championship points after two sixth-place results, however she was now looking to push towards the class podium with her additional experience.

On-track action for Lahlouh began on Wednesday as she participated in a series of additional test sessions. This was valuable experience with hot and humid temperatures at Virginia International Raceway meaning car setup for the two races was set to be crucial. Testing continued on Thursday and Therese was able to complete over 70 laps of the challenging circuit across the two days ahead of the first official free practice on Friday morning.

Lahlouh made a fast start to Friday’s running as her best time of a 1:50.886 placed her fifth overall, fourth in the 992 Pro/Am class and just over a second away from pacesetter Cole Kleck. In the hotter conditions of free practice two, Lahlouh’s running was limited however she was still able set the sixth fastest time in class with her quickest tour coming on the final lap of the session.

Qualifying took place on Saturday morning and the session was once again split into two groups. Lahlouh was on track for Group B and it was a consistent run for the JDX Racing driver. Lahlouh was the quickest 992 Pro/Am driver through the middle sector in Group B while setting the eighth fastest time in her group, third among the 992 Pro/Am drivers. When both qualifying groups were merged, this resulted in a 19^th place starting position for Lahlouh, ninth within class.

Photo credits: Colin McCarthy

After a challenging qualifying session, Lahlouh was aiming for a typically hard-charging drive through the field in race one of the weekend. Lining up from the tenth row of the grid in 19^th position, the JDX Racing driver made an excellent start and gained four overall positions through the opening turns, while moving up to fifth in the 992 Pro/Am class. The race was then quickly neutralised after a first lap incident involving Chris Hutter and Jon Manship required the intervention of the safety car.

The full course yellow period was extensive due to ongoing barrier repairs with the race resuming on lap six. Lahlouh was quickly on the move and at turn one, she overtook Grady Willingham for 14^th position overall. The JDX Racing driver also passed Laura Ely on the restart lap, before closing onto the rear of Tim Kezman. After overtaking the Fall-Line Motorsports racer, Lahlouh set a personal best time and she was now faster than the next eight drivers.

This superb mid-race speed saw Lahlouh catch the next group of drivers and she was soon into 11^th position overall after John Gilliland spun at turn one. Two successive personal best times followed and Lahlouh had now opened up a margin of five seconds behind her. On lap 12, Therese overtook Todd Treffert and on the next lap she passed Reinhold Krahn.

Lahlouh was extremely efficient in her overtaking manoeuvres and despite the long neutralisation period earlier in the race, she was the biggest mover in the field. With two laps remaining, Therese passed Joel Johnson and she was now up to eighth position overall, while remaining fifth in class. Lahlouh held this position to the chequered flag to complete an excellent recovery drive with the JDX Racing driver gaining 11 spots in race one.

Photo credits: Colin McCarthy

After her excellent performance in Saturday’s first race, Lahlouh was aiming to replicate this in race two on Sunday. The JDX Racing driver again lined up from 19^th on the overall grid, ninth in the 992 Pro/Am class. It was a confident start for Lahlouh who was briefly four-wide as the drivers entered turn one. Following a nice move around the outside, Therese gained four overall places while moving into seventh position within class.

The race was then neutralised at the end of lap one after a multi-car incident led to a number of vehicles stranded out on track. When the race resumed, Lahlouh was on the attack and she passed Ross Poole at turn one. This elevated Therese to 14^th overall, sixth in class, and she now had fellow female driver Laura Ely ahead.

After a spell of pressure applied to the Black Sheep Racing driver, Ely out-braked herself into turn one and therefore Lahlouh moved ahead to start lap seven. The JDX Racing driver was now faster than the next seven cars ahead with Tim Kezman her next target. After running in the wheel tracks of her rival, Lahlouh shaped for a move on Kezman on lap ten, however Reinhold Krahn was able to benefit and he overtook Therese.

On lap 13, Krahn and Kezman were battling for position at turn one and as Kezman ran wide at the apex of the corner, Lahlouh looked up the inside. As she showed her nose in an attempt to make a move, the cars made contact and Lahlouh spun at the apex. She was able to rejoin the race with minimal damage, however the JDX Racing driver was now in 18^th position overall, ninth in the 992 Pro/Am class.

Lahlouh was showing great determination in the closing stages and during the first flying lap after her spin, she was sixth fastest driver on track. This brought her back in contention with fellow 992 Pro/Am class rivals Javier Ripoll Jr and Muzaffar Gafurov. On the penultimate lap, Lahlouh and Ripoll ran side-by-side with Therese able to move herself ahead.

Lahlouh held 17^th position, eighth in class, to the chequered flag to complete a character-building race two at Virginia International Raceway. Following a post-race penalty awarded to the JDX Racing driver, Lahlouh was classified in 19^th position, while remaining eighth in class.

Lahlouh displayed her fighting spirit throughout the event as she battled back from a difficult qualifying session to score a top-5 finish within class in race one. Although it was a more challenging race two, Lahlouh still developed her racecraft and banked vital experience at technical circuit.

Lahlouh will now be hoping to bounce back when the Porsche Sprint Challenge North America drivers visit Road America on the weekend of August 9^th/10^th.