SPORTSCAR

Ultimately, fourth place in the final round at Oschersleben was enough for Porsche drivers Michael Ammermüller (34, GER) and Christian Engelhart (33, GER, both SSR Performance) to clinch their first ever ADAC GT Masters title. The race itself was won from pole position by Philip Ellis (28, GB) and Raffaele Marciello (25, ITA, both Knaus-Team HTP-Winward) in a Mercedes-AMG GT3. Second place went to the Audi duo of Rolf Ineichen (42, CH) and Mirko Bortolotti (30, ITA, both Team WRT) ahead of Robert Renauer (35, GER) and Mathieu Jaminet (26, FRA, both Precote Herberth Motorsport) in a Porsche 911. “Winning the title is a tremendously emotional experience for me,” said newly crowned champion Christian Engelhart. “I wept tears of joy when Michael crossed the finish line, because I’ve always dreamed of winning the ADAC GT Masters. It’s unbelievable that we’ve actually done it.”

With a Pole position, a lights-to-flag victory and a fastest race lap Michael Ammermüller (34, GER) and Christian Engelhart (33, GER, both SSR Performance) underscored their title aspirations in the ADAC GT Masters – a dominant performance in the penultimate race of the season at Oschersleben. Win number three of the season for the Porsche duo was enough to take them to the top of the Super Sports Car League standings ahead of Sunday’s final round. Luca Stolz (25, GER) and Maro Engel (35, Monte Carlo, both Toksport WRT) in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 secured the runner-up spot to keep their own title ambitions alive. P3 went to Philip Ellis (28, GB) and Raffaele Marciello (25, ITA, both Knaus-Team HTP-Winward) also in a Mercedes-AMG. Three more contestants – defending champions Patric Niederhauser (29, CH) and Kelvin van der Linde (24, ZA) in a Rutronik Racing Audi and Porsche driver Robert Renauer (35, GER, Precote Herberth Motorsport) – are also still in with a chance of lifting the 2020 championship trophy on Sunday (live on SPORT1 from 13:00 CET onwards). Just twelve points separate the title rivals. “We managed to have a perfect race today,” said delighted race winner Ammermüller. “Our Porsche ran just great this Saturday. We can go into tomorrow’s race with confidence thanks to our performance today.”

Will championship leaders Patric Niederhauser (29, CH) and Kelvin van der Linde (24, ZA, both Rutronik Racing) become the first drivers ever to mount a successful defence of their ADAC GT Masters title, or can strong competition take the championship away from the Audi drivers during this weekend’s grand finale at Oschersleben (6th-8th November)? There are 50 points still to be won, so anything is possible in the fight for the title in the Super Sports Car League.

The ADAC GT Masters title contenders have no time to relax. Less than one week after the races at the Lausitzring, the Super Sports Car League will be staging its grand finale in the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben, 6th – 8th November. It will definitely be a very exciting affair, since no less than ten drivers from Audi, Mercedes-AMG and Porsche still have a chance of securing the drivers’ title. Last year’s champions Patric Niederhauser (29, CH) and Kelvin van der Linde (24, ZA, both Rutronik Racing) are the ones to beat again at Oschersleben. However, the competition led by Porsche drivers Robert Renauer (35, GER, Precote Herberth Motorsport) and Christian Engelhart (33, GER)/Michael Ammermüller (34, GER, both SSR Performance) intend to stop the Audi drivers in their bid to mount a successful title defence. The races will take place in the absence of spectators and in accordance with the latest biosecurity guidelines while following measures developed by the ADAC GT Masters and approved by the authorities to prevent the spread of infection and promote good hygiene.