Solenn Amrouche claims second in GTX class at 24H of Barcelona
- RACERS
- 18 hours ago
- 5 min read
Young French racer Solenn Amrouche was the protagonist of a strong performance at the 24 Hours of Barcelona, where she and the #974 Vortex crew claimed second place in the GTX class at the final round of the Michelin 24H Series European season.
Young French racer Solenn Amrouche was the protagonist of a strong performance at the 24 Hours of Barcelona, where she and the #974 Vortex crew claimed second place in the GTX class at the final round of the Michelin 24H Series European season.
Returning to one of the most popular events on the Creventic calendar, Amrouche impressed at the wheel of the unique Vortex V8 machine, leading large portions of the first half of the race and showing her development after a season in single-seaters.
Amrouche entered the 2025 event with plenty of experience of Vortex machinery, having raced successfully with the team in the 24H Series, Ultimate Cup and Spanish GT Championship in previous years. In 2025, however, Solenn also tackled her first campaign in single-seaters, joining the Hoosier Formula Cup aboard the very demanding Tatuus Formula Regional car. Only weeks earlier she had celebrated her first overall podium in Aragon, and the added experience proved key in Barcelona, as she delivered some of her strongest long-run stints to date in endurance racing.
The Frenchwoman was also back at a track where she had already enjoyed success: in 2024 she took victory in the GTX class after a rollercoaster edition of the race that saw countless lead changes and a dramatic final hour. For 2025, she returned to Circuit de Catalunya alongside Olivier Gomez, Arnaud Tsamere and her father Lionel Amrouche, in a line-up that looked very strong from the outset.
The quartet topped testing and official practice sessions, then secured GTX pole position in Friday qualifying. Gomez set the early benchmark in Q1 with a 1:44.659, before Solenn delivered a strong 1:45.880 in Q2 – lighting up the first sector in purple. Tsamere added a 1:48.277 in Q3, which resulted in an average combined lap of 1:46.272 and class pole, also placing them 17th overall on the starting grid.
"I arrived in Barcelona confident and eager to deliver the perfect race", Solenn commented. "I had prepared myself both physically and mentally for this challenge."
"During practice, I spent a lot of time working on the car setup to ensure we had the best possible machine for the race", she explained. "I took part in Qualifying 2 and managed to set the second fastest lap with a time of 1:45.880, even lighting up Sector 1 in purple! It was a perfect qualifying session, while still taking care to preserve the car for the long race ahead."
Solenn was given the honor of starting the 24-hour race for her first time, lining up side by side with her father Lionel in the sister #701 Vortex. A penalty for one teammate not completing practice meant the car started P23 overall, but Solenn quickly made progress, moving up to 21st and retaining the GTX lead ahead of Lionel.
With consistent pace in the 1:47s, she pulled clear of the sister car and even mixed with faster 992-class Porsches. At the 45-minute mark, she pitted for fuel under Code 60 while still comfortably ahead, then handed over to Yoann Olivar with more than a minute in hand.
Olivar extended the advantage to 70 seconds before Tsamere took over at the two-hour mark, when the stricken TCR Cupra brought out another neutralization. Tsamere impressed with early laps in the 1:50.0s, almost putting the second GTX car a lap down and continuing to build a cushion. After a clean double stint, Lionel Amrouche climbed aboard for his first run, running consistent 1:50s and further extending the gap by the fourth hour.
Solenn returned to the cockpit in the fifth hour and delivered arguably her strongest run yet, consistently lapping in the high 1:49s and at times gaining over five seconds per lap on the closest GTX rival. She completed another flawless stint before pitting on lap 174, keeping the #974 a couple of laps ahead.
After solid stints from Olivar and Tsamere, the sun set over Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya with the car still holding the lead, though the #701 of Lionel, Gomez, Bonnel, Calmon and Courtois closed in between pit cycles.
At the halfway mark, the two Vortex entries were trading first place depending on strategy, with the #974 generally holding the upper hand. Solenn’s first night run came just past the 10th hour, where she again showed maturity in traffic and consistency, even as fatigue began to set in. She admitted later that she suffered some back and knee pain due to the seating position, but kept her pace strong through the darkness.
Unfortunately, in the early morning hours the #974 suffered gearbox issues that cost the team over 20 laps, handing the advantage firmly to the sister #701. While they attempted to recover, the gap proved insurmountable. Even when the #701 itself had a lengthy stop for repairs, the lead was preserved, and in the closing stages more technical gremlins for the #974 saw the deficit increase.
After a final push in the morning hours, Amrouche handed the car to Olivar for the run to the flag, with the crew eventually finishing second in GTXÂ and 21st overall.
Despite the heartbreak of losing the class lead after dominating the opening half of the race, it was a standout performance for the young Frenchwoman, who drove five stints across day and night, consistently running among the class quickest drivers.
"During the night, we faced gearbox issues that cost us the lead in our category, even though we had been in front for the entire first part of the race", Solenn summarized. "My first night stints went very well, but I began to feel pain in my back and left knee due to my seating position in the car, which caused some muscle inflammation."
"I finished my final stint at 10:30 a.m., and we crossed the line to take second place in our category and 21st overall."
"For me, it was the perfect race—not only in terms of lap times, but also consistency. I knew how to be efficient when it really mattered. I will keep building on this momentum. Driving single-seaters has definitely played a key role in my progress, and I know I’m still improving."
For Solenn Amrouche, the result is yet another important step in her career, confirming her versatility across both endurance and single-seaters, where she has been honing her skills - a strategy is already starting to pay off.
