Emil Frey Racing: Good night together
TWO PODIUM PLACES The Lamborghini team from Safenwil claimed two podium places in the first night sprint of the GT World Challenge Europe. The following day, things did not go so well for Emil Frey Racing in Magny-Cours. Ricardo Feller continued where he had ended three weeks earlier in the first Endurance Cup race of the season in Monza - on the podium. But this time not [...]
Ricardo Feller picked up where he left off three weeks earlier at the first Endurance Cup race of the season in Monza - on the podium. This time, however, not with Alex Fontana as his team partner, as Emil Frey Racing had to change his plans after Norbert Siedler had an accident in pre-qualifying.
Accident requires reshuffling
As the Austrian did not feel fit after crashing into the tire pile, Arthur Rougier, who was present at Magny-Cours and normally only takes part in the endurance races, stepped in as a replacement driver. The damaged Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO, however, was repaired by the nimble team from Safenwil before the race.
Within the team, two of the three pairings for qualifying and this year's first two one-hour sprint races were therefore rearranged. Switching from the #14 to the #163, Feller promptly qualified his "new" car for second place on the grid.
Double podium at night brings double lead in the standings
The soon-to-be 21-year-old from Aargau and the Spanish professional Albert Costa then brought their Lambo home in second place behind the Audi R8 LMS of the Belgians Weerts/Vanthoor, which was never seriously threatened.
With Rougier as his new partner, Alex Fontana also enjoyed a podium. The Frenchman had qualified his Lambo for third place on the grid without any prior practice. The driver from Ticino then secured third place overall as second driver, which, as in Monza, also meant victory in the Silver Cup standings. The third duo, Aitken/Lappalainen, remained just outside the points in twelfth place.
Ricardo Feller took a sensational lead in the overall drivers' standings of the GT World Challenge Europe 2021 late on Saturday evening, while Fontana was now solo at the top of the silver drivers' standings.
Tire damage with consequences
Shortly after midday on Sunday, it looked like a repeat of the brilliant result from the previous day. Costa qualified the sports car for the front row of the grid as second fastest, Fontana as the best from the Silver Cup for grid position 5.
The Spaniard was hot on the heels of the race leader after the start. The pit stop window was just around the corner when a flat tire threw a spanner in the works for the #163 crew. Costa had to make an unscheduled tire change and lost valuable positions in the process.
After taking over his car, Feller was also called into the pits and had to end the race prematurely. The tire damage caused a technical problem and the team did not want to take any more risks in a hopeless position.
Alex Fontana on course for the title
Arthur Rougier brought his Huracán home in eighth place overall and took third place in the Silver class. Alex Fontana thus continues to lead the Silver Cup standings with a commanding lead. The young Finn Konsta Lappalainen and Jack Aitken finished in the points for the first time in ninth place.
With fifth place in the night sprint and third place overall in the second race together with the Russian Timur Boguslavskiy, Raffaele Marciello from Ticino, driving a Mercedes-AMG solo for Italy, took the overall lead in the championship (33.5 points), ahead of Weerts/Vanthoor (29.5), Feller (27) and Fontana (26.5).
