Porsche Cup: double strike by the old master
CHANGE IN LEADERSHIP Jean-Paul von Burg won both sprint rounds of the Swiss Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge in Dijon, snatching the top spot from Antonio Texeira. In the Cayman GT4 Cup, the previous dominator Linus Diener could hardly score any points. In qualifying for the first of the two 18-lap GT3 Cup Challenge sprints at the Circuit de Dijon-Prenois, Jean-Paul von Burg still had to contend [...]
In qualifying for the first of the two 18-lap GT3 Cup Challenge sprints at the Circuit de Dijon-Prenois, Jean-Paul von Burg still had to settle for the fifth-best time. Nevertheless, the multiple champion, most recently of 2017, started from the second row. Carlo Lusser had traded pole position for two new race tires and saw himself demoted by three positions in return.
Texeira conveyor pilot at the back of the pack
However, the Geneva native already returned from the first lap in third place. In the fifth lap he passed Dominik Fischli and on lap 10 Lusser was also due, who had initially moved up to second place in the starting phase and maintained the lead from the third lap. At the finish, the order was accordingly von Burg, Lusser and Fischli, followed by class winner Rolf Reding in the older 991 GT3 Cup car.
Antonio Texeira, who is sponsored by the Association of Swiss Porsche Clubs (VSPC) and Porsche Schweiz AG, dropped from sixth place to the back of the field on the opening lap. It was not until the halfway point of the race that the 18-year-old young talent managed to catch up again, but more than 15th place among 26 starters was no longer within his reach.
Von Burg new table leader
Jean-Paul von Burg also took up the second sprint race from 4th place on the grid. This time it was he who accepted the corresponding downgrade for two joker tires. As a result, pole went to Carlo Lusser ahead of Dominik Fischli and Alexander Fach. After an initial lead by Lusser, the veteran driver took the lead in the sixth round, where he remained until the finish.
Antonio Teixeira offered the race's catch-up: starting from 18th place only on joker tires, he appeared in the leader's rearview mirror after 14 laps and a safety car period. Six tenths behind, the Portuguese-Swiss took second place ahead of Lusser and Fischli. Nevertheless, he had to relinquish the lead of the standings to double winner Von Burg.
A weekend to forget
After five wins and a third-place finish in the first six races of the Cayman GT4 Clubsport category, which is also fiercely contested, Linus Diener experienced a weekend to forget. In the first sprint race, the newcomer had to retire early in the battle for the top spot with a puncture.
He therefore only started race 2 from P18 and fought his way up to fifth place within nine laps. However, the attempt to attack Marcel Zimmermann ended in retirement for both of them. Diener thus lost a large part of his 60-point lead in the standings.
The big winner was Laurent Misbach. Already in qualifying, he attracted attention with the best time, after which he drove to his first win of the season ahead of Emmanuel Bello. Misbach did not miss a beat in the second sprint either, relegating Marcel Wagner, third in the first race, and his rival Patrick Schetty to the places of honor.
Regularly fast Sandra Auer
Sandra Auer caused a big surprise in the Porsche Driver's Challenge. With her 718 Cayman, she only allowed herself a deviation of 2.21 seconds from her cumulative average time on the 3.7 km long uphill and downhill course outside Dijon. The reward was the trophy for second place behind Andreas Ritzi (2.15 s difference).
The fifth of six race weekends of the GT3CC and PSCS will be held at Mugello, north of Florence, Italy, from September 26-28.
