Spectators and fans had to do without the racing action in the ADAC GT Masters for almost six weeks. The “summer break” in the German GT Championship comes to an end at the weekend.
The super sports cars continue the season at the fourth stop of the tour at the Nürburgring with races seven and eight. After Saturday’s race on the Eifel circuit, the half-time champion in the ADAC GT Masters has been determined.
Given the balance in the field, many drivers can have legitimate hopes for this unofficial title. The second half of the season will open on Sunday at the legendary Nürburgring with the eighth of a total of 14 races.
After six runs, three drivers are tied for first place with 70 points. Points leader is Jusuf Owega (20, GER) in the Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II #29 from the Land-Motorsport team. The decisive factor is that the young man from Cologne, in contrast to his two strongest competitors, already has a win to his credit together with Ricardo Feller (22/CH), who missed a race weekend.
Local hero Jusuf Owega travels to the track in the Eifel as the leader of the standings.
“It’s incredibly tight in the ADAC GT Masters, not just at the front, but across the field. Every point counts. Of course it would be a good basis to be the first to go into the second half of the season. But the decisive factor is who is in front in the end. After the half-time championship nobody asks anymore,” explains the Audi driver.
His pursuers Christian Engelhart (35, GER) and Ayhancan Güven (24, GER) were already leading the standings in the number 91 Porsche 911 GT3 R shortly before the end of the second race in Zandvoort before a technical defect threw them back. At the Nürburgring, the crew from Team Joos Sportwagentechnik not only want to take the lead, but also achieve their first win of the season.
The youngster duo Niklas Krütten (19, GER) and Ben Green (24, GB) with the #10 BMW M4 GT3 from the Schubert Motorsport team topped the podium twice this season and took third place overall. Niklas Krütten: “We have to avoid mistakes, especially in qualifying, because they are difficult to correct in the race when the field is balanced. If we can do everything perfectly, we can be among the front runners.”
The Emil Frey Racing team is lying in wait after the double success in Zandvoort. Sunday winners Jack Aitken (26/GB) and Albert Costa Balboa (32/E) have worked their way up to fourth place in the table with the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo #63, their brand colleagues Franck Perera (38/F) and Arthur Rougier ( 22/F) follow in sixth place. The combination of Mick Wishofer (22, AUT) and Konsta Lappalainen (20, FIN) moved up to second place in the junior classification after winning on Saturday. “The Lamborghini works well at the Nürburgring. We are confident and want to get two consistently good results in order to stay in the junior classification,” promises Mick Wishofer.
The fans are also looking forward to the newly crowned winners of the legendary 24-hour classic at Spa-Francorchamps. The three ADAC GT Masters drivers Jules Gounon (27, F), Daniel Juncadella (31, E) and Raffaele Marciello (27, I) won the race in Belgium in the Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo and would also like to take part in the ADAC GT Masters build on the strong performance of their teams.
All 14 races in the ADAC GT Masters will start at 1 p.m. The TV station NITRO will present the races live from 12:30 p.m.
