A perfect strategy, skilfully implemented: Mick Wishofer (22/A) and Konsta Lappalainen (20/FIN), at the wheel of the #14 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo, won Saturday’s race at Circuit Zandvoort in the Netherlands. Starting from pole position, the duo produced a flawless performance in difficult conditions to present Emil Frey Racing with 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 (24/Meuspath) and Dennis Marschall (25/Eggenstein) 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 (22/A) and Norbert Siedler (39/A), 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.
Key facts, Circuit Zandvoort, Netherlands, race 5 of 14
- Circuit length: 4,259 metres
- Weather: 19 degrees, damp, overcast, dry later and sunny at times
- Pole position: Mick Wishofer (Emil Frey Racing, Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo #14), 1:34.039 minutes
- Winners: Wishofer/Lappalainen (Emil Frey Racing, Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo #14)
- Fastest lap: Christopher Mies (Montaplast by Land-Motorsport, Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II #1), 1:34.864 minutes
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 (19/Inning). 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 (31/E). 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 (20/Cologne) and Ricardo Feller (21/CH) 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 (22/Langenhain) and Jaxon Evans (25/NZ) 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 (35/Starnberg) and Ayhancan Güven (24/TUR) in the #91 Porsche 911 of Team Joos Sportwagentechnik. Maximilian Paul (22/Dresden) and Marco Mapelli (34/I) climbed two places to finish seventh in the number 71 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo. Another Emil Frey Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo came home eighth with Franck Perera (38/F) and Arthur Rougier (22/F) at the wheel. Defending champion Christopher Mies (32/Düsseldorf) 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 (25/Langenargen) were ninth for Montaplast by Land-Motorsport. Rounding out the top ten were fellow Audi men Patric Niederhauser (30/CH) and Luca Engstler (22/Wiggensbach) 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.”
Source. ADAC GT Masters
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