GT racing: jubilation for Ricardo Feller, frustration for Neel Jani 🎥
DRAMATIC TITLE DECISIONS Ricardo Feller from Aargau is the German GT Champion 2021. Neel Jani would also have liked to be called GT World Champion, but this was prevented by the only competitor. However, the last word has not yet been spoken.
The dramatic title decision at the Nürburgring in two minutes.
With the fastest time in qualifying and thus pole position for Saturday's race, Ricardo Feller created the ideal starting position for himself at the finale of the German GT Championship and the ADAC GT Masters at the Nürburgring.
Third victory in Saturday's race
After a short battle with the pursuers, the 21-year-old from Aargau also immediately took the lead, whereupon partner Christopher Mies completed the duo's third victory of the season in the Audi R8 LMS from Land Motorsport.
Despite extending their lead in the standings, the decision in their favor on Sunday turned out to be a nail-biter. Starting driver Mies lost several positions in the turmoil of the first lap, which led to the race being interrupted after two accidents.
After the restart, it was just a matter of getting the GT3 sports car to the finish line in one good place in the points. This was necessary because the Porsche duo Ammermüller/Jaminet drove to their fourth win of the season and otherwise would have cleaned up everything.
In the end, 10th place was enough for Feller to win his first ADAC GT Masters title after 2016 and for Mies his second.
Ricardo Feller: "I was always dreaming of this moment even a few years ago in ADAC Formula 4. Now to clinch the drivers', team and junior titles is simply unbelievable. In the last race I had to take a back seat against my nature, but the junior title wasn't given to us either. This is really a terrific day."
Which brand will snatch up the talented Swiss?
For Feller, there is now only one goal for the season: signing a works contract, which he absolutely deserves after such top performances - which also include appearances with Emil Frey Racing in the GT World Challenge. The only question is with which manufacturer or manufacturers? Negotiations will undoubtedly be intensified now.
Rolf Ineichen makes it, Simona de Silvestro misses the podium
Rolf Ineichen was the second Swiss to make it onto the overall podium in a Lamborghini in third place on Sunday in the cold Eifel. The Lucerne native, who had previously won at Hockenheim, finished a good seventh with partner Franck Perera (F) in 2021.
Simona de Silvestro would also have liked to finally finish her final race of the season on the podium. After her partner Klaus Bachler took pole on Sunday and handed over the Herberth Motorsport Porsche to her in the lead, the driver from Vaud slipped to seventh place in her half of the race after losing several duels.
With 5th place, Audi works driver Patric Niederhauser equaled the best result of the season with young Jusuf Owega, behind which Jeffrey Schmidt on Callaway Corvette clearly lagged behind with two 13th places.
GT4 title to Swiss-German alliance
There was also celebration at Hofor Racing on Sunday evening. The BMW M4 GT4 entered by Bonk Motorsport from the fleet of Aargau racing team owner Martin Kroll is this year's ADAC GT4 Germany champion car after second places in 2019 and 2020.
Michael Schrey from northern Germany and Italian Gabriele Piana, who lives in Lugano, had a weekend to forget in terms of results. Nevertheless, the duo, which had been leading the standings since the start of the season, could no longer be knocked off the top spot.
Protest by Porsche against Ferrari foul
The day before, Neel Jani and Kévin Estre (F) looked on course for the title in the GT Pro category of the FIA World Endurance Championship at the Bahrain 8 Hours. However, third driver Michael Christensen (DK) was hit by the Ferrari of the only remaining title rivals at the rear of the Porsche 911 RSR in the final quarter of an hour. The ensuing spin dropped him behind the provisional winning and world champion duo of Pier Guidi/Calado.
Because Porsche Motorsport cannot understand the decision of the race organizers to first issue a penalty and then withdraw it, the German team lodged a protest in due time. The FIA must now decide on this.
Judge for yourself: Was this ramming of the Ferrari, seen from 4:16 minutes, fair?
Neel Jani criticizes
For the Swiss Porsche works driver, therefore, there is still faint hope of winning the title after all. He, too, is not happy with the forced outcome.
Neel Jani: "We were champions until eight minutes before the end of the race and then lost it. If someone overtakes us nicely, then we have no problem with that and he's the deserved winner - but not with a ram. The team did a top job, strategy and pit stops were mega."
Joy for Sébastien Buemi, disappointment for Fabio Scherer
Sébastien Buemi had one laughing eye and one crying eye in the hypercar class. With Kazuki Nakajima and Brendon Hartley, the man from Vaud took his third overall win of the season in the Toyota GR010 Hybrid ahead of the sister car and the Alpine team. However, their teammates Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López only had to finish to secure the drivers' championship crown. Toyota had previously been established as the manufacturers' world champion.
Fabio Scherer took a rather disappointing fourth place in class with United Autosport's Oreca-Gibson, which started from pole position. For the team from England, which had been leading the LMP2 standings until Le Mans, the end result was only fourth place in the championship.
