Emil Frey Racing Take Double Win At Zandvoort
Race 1
Mick Wishofer and Konsta Lappalainen, at the wheel of the #14 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo, took the win in Saturday’s race at Circuit Zandvoort.
Starting from pole position, the duo produced a flawless performance in difficult conditions to give Emil Frey Racing their maiden victory in the team’s debut season in the German GT Championship. “This is a great success and the first win for me and our new team. We had no issues with the difficult conditions and were able to manage the race from the front,” said the young Finn after the perfect performance.
Behind them, Kim-Luis Schramm and Dennis Marschall from the Rutronik Racing team launched an impressive fightback, battling their way from eighth to second place in the #27 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II. They were followed home by the fellow Audi pairing of Simon Reicher and Norbert Siedler, who guided the #54 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II to third place to claim the first podium in the ADAC GT Masters for the Eastalent Racing team.
Unfortunately, light drizzle started to fall shortly before Saturday’s race. Despite this, most teams opted to start on slicks. This proved the downfall of Jan Marschalkowski. Having qualified second, he lost control of the #8 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo on the wet track during the formation lap and crashed into the crash barriers. That was the end of the race for Marschalkowski and his partner Daniel Juncadella. The restart took place without any incident. Pole-sitter Mick Wishofer made a cautious start, but consistently pulled away from the chasing pack over the course of his stint, before handing the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo over to his team-mate with a lead of eight seconds at the mandatory pit stop. Konsta Lappalainen controlled the pace at the head of the field, looked after his tyres, and eventually took the chequered flag in first place, with a lead of 1.3 seconds. Runner-up Dennis Marschall and third-placed Norbert Siedler never managed to close to within striking distance of the eventual winner.
Behind them, the duo of Jusuf Owega and Ricardo Feller finished fourth for the Montaplast by Land-Motorsport team in the #29 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II. That was enough to return Owega to the top of the Drivers’ Championship.
Jannes Fittje and Jaxon Evans achieved a notable success for the ID Racing team, finishing fifth in the #44 Porsche 911 GT3 R. They were followed in sixth place by fellow Porsche drivers Christian Engelhart and Ayhancan Güven in the #91 Porsche 911 of Team Joos Sportwagentechnik. Maximilian Paul and Marco Mapelli climbed two places to finish seventh in the #71 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo. Another Emil Frey Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo came home eighth with Franck Perera and Arthur Rougier at the wheel. Defending champion Christopher Mies set a new lap record in an Audi R8 LMS Evo II, which is running on a sustainable fuel made of 50% renewable components this year. He and partner Tim Zimmermann were ninth for Montaplast by Land-Motorsport. Rounding out the top ten were fellow Audi men Patric Niederhauser and Luca Engstler from the Rutronik Racing team.
Mick Wishofer: “I am very happy with my second success in the ADAC GT Masters. Leading the field on slicks, it was difficult to find the right braking and turning points at the start. As the track dried out quickly, I was able to build a lead, which Konsta brought home comfortably.”
Konsta Lappalainen: “Mick did a great job and handed the car over to me with a big lead. That allowed me to manage the pace from the front and to look after the tyres. It was a perfect race for us.”
Race 2
A second win for the team saw a perfect weekend for Emil Frey Racing in Zandvoort.
After Wishofer and Lappalainen took the win on Saturday, Jack Aitken and Albert Costa Balboa repeated that success on Sunday.
The fastest duo in qualifying controlled the race in the #63 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo, and ultimately took a comfortable lights-to-flag victory. “That was a mega success and a really great weekend for our team Emil Frey Racing. Victory yesterday, the top step of the podium again today – it doesn’t get any better,” said former Formula 1 driver Aitken, whose lap time of 1:34.715 minutes was not only the fastest of the race, but also a new lap record in Zandvoort in the ADAC GT Masters. Local favourite Thierry Vermeulen also had cause for celebration. The friend of Formula 1 world champion Max Verstappen finished runner-up with Car Collection Motorsport to claim his first podium in the ADAC GT Masters. Two-time Formula 1 world champion Emerson Fittipaldi from Brazil presented the trophies to the successful drivers. Another record was broken at the circuit in the Dutch dunes: With 14,500 spectators, the German GT Championship recorded its third crowd record in a row.
Pole-sitter Jack Aitken carried on at the start of Sunday’s race where he left off in the morning’s qualifying session. The Brit defended his lead emphatically and handed the Lamborghini over to his partner Albert Costa Balboa with a lead of 2.5 seconds.
The Spaniard completed the race in relative comfort and took the chequered flag after 38 laps. He was followed over the finish line by Thierry Vermeulen, who had taken over from Mattia Drudi at the wheel of the #33 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II. Second place, in front of his home fans, was Vermeulen’s biggest success so far in the German GT Championship.
The closing stages were a dramatic affair. Christian Engelhart was running in a comfortable third place, which would have meant the lead in the overall standings, when the #91 Porsche 911 GT3 R started coasting with just a few metres remaining. Having looked guaranteed to take third place, Engelhart and his partner Ayhancan Güven had to settle for eighth.
The beneficiaries of this incident were Franck Perera and Arthur Rougier in the #19 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo of Emil Frey Racing, who came home third to snatch a last-gasp podium. Christopher Mies and Tim Zimmermann finished fourth in the #1 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II, which is the best result of the season so far for the Montaplast by Land-Motorsport pairing. There then followed a big gap before the best-placed Porsche 911 GT3 R, with Joel Sturm and Sven Müller taking fifth place for Allied-Racing.
Kim-Luis Schramm and Dennis Marschall ended Sunday’s race in sixth place in the #27 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II for Rutronik Racing. Fabian Schiller and Jules Gounon produced a great fightback, making up ten places in the #4 Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo to take seventh place for Drago Racing Team ZVO. Elias Seppänen and Frank Bird of Mann-Filter Team Landgraf also battled hard. The youngsters came home ninth behind Christian Engelhart and Ayhancan Güven having climbed nine places. The top ten was completed by Simon Reicher and Norbert Siedler in the #54 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II run by the Eastalent Racing team.
Albert Costa Balboa: “It went fantastically. We have pushed all season, and have finally been rewarded for our efforts. Jack handed me the car with a lead, which I was able to maintain through to the finish. The tyres started to wear at the end, but I was already home and dry by then. I am very happy.”
Jack Aitken: “The car was very good, I was able to push from the start. Albert then did a good job and brought the success home. The fact that a second Emil Frey Racing Lamborghini finished third rounds off the success nicely.”
Jos Verstappen: “I have coached Thierry Vermeulen a lot over the past two years, and he did a very good job today. I am very happy. As a young driver, it is important for him to gain a lot of experience. We are in exactly the right championship for him. He has a good car, a strong team, and an experienced team-mate.”
The ADAC GT Masters now enters a six-week summer break. Next stop is the Nürburgring from 5th to 7th August.
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