Nick Tandy takes clear win at turbulent season-opener
Stuttgart. The German premiere of the new 450 hp Porsche 911 GT3 Cup offered everything that makes motorsport exciting: a gripping two-way fight, many overtaking manoeuvres and a final phase that saw the front-runners completely reshuffled. First over the line on the Hockenheimring with a 14.819 second advantage was pole-sitter Nick Tandy (Konrad Motorsport). This marked the first victory for the Briton at just his second race in the German brand trophy series.Initially, the 25-year-old had to relinquish his lead to second qualifier Nicolas Armindo (Hermes Attempto Racing). At the lights, the Frenchman put in a spirited sprint to outpace Tandy and even managed to pull away in the first laps. Metre by metre, however, Tandy nibbled away at Armindo’s advantage to finally pass him in the twelfth lap in the hairpin and eventually bring home his first Carrera Cup victory. Armindo lost his supposedly safe podium result in the final lap when his 911 became slower due to a fuel line problem. The same fate struck third-placed Christian Engelhart (Germany, MRS Team PZ Aschaffenburg) and Sean Edwards (Great Britain, Team Deutsche Post by tolimit).
Climbing the podium alongside Tandy was a German and an Austrian: Niclas Kentenich (Farnbacher Racing – PZN) in second and Carrera Cup returnee Martin Ragginger (Schnabl Engineering) in third. The pair was part of a fighting pack that thrilled spectators with gripping action over the entire 18-lap race, joined by another prominent driver, double Carrera Cup champ Uwe Alzen (Herberth Motorsport PZ Olympiapark). After narrowly missing out on a top ten qualifying result by 0.5 seconds, the 42-year-old duly demonstrated in the race that he hadn’t lost his duelling qualities and brought home fourth place.
Fifth position went to Alzen’s teammate Robert Renauer. This season marks the sixth in the Porsche one-make cup series for the 25-year-old German. Trailing close behind, Philipp Wlazik (Hermes Attempto Racing) from Germany saw the flag in sixth, with former Porsche works driver Sascha Maassen (Team Deutsche Post by tolimit) hot on his bumper. The 21-year-old Russian, David Sigacev, one of three youngsters from Team SMS Seyffarth Motorsport, impressed with eighth.
Latvia’s Harald Schlegelmilch (Konrad Motorsport) enjoyed a perfect debut yielding ninth. As “Porsche Motorsport Talent” he receives support to contest the 2010 Carrera Cup Deutschland. The 22-year-old took up his first race with the fastest Cup-911 in history from 14th. His two scholarship colleagues, 18-year-old Ferdinand Stuck (Farnbacher Racing – PZN) and 23-year-old Tim Sandtler (Germany, MRS Team PZ Aschaffenburg) crossed the finish line in 15th and 16th. For the three talented youngsters, this season counts as a year of learning in which they started with virtually no testing experience.
The Carrera Cup Deutschland enjoys huge television coverage in 2010: Television station Motorvision not only broadcasts live footage of today’s race, but also shows a repeat of the race at 20.00 hours. 30 minutes of highlights can be viewed on Thursday, 29 April, at 22.30 hours on Sport1. Further reports are shown on N-TV on Tuesday, 27 April, at 16.30 hours as well as DMAX on Sunday, 2 May, at 12.00 hours.
Nick Tandy (winner): “I’m simply thrilled. That was a great start to the Carrera Cup season, especially when you consider I only received confirmation a short time ago. We experienced not one problem so I could even go flat out to the last lap. I’m very much looking forward to the next races and hope that I can maintain my front-running position.”
Niclas Kentenich (second): “Everything ran smoothly right from the start. To finish on the podium is the icing on the cake. It certainly wasn’t a walk in the park, even though I was able to match the pace of the leader. In the last laps Uwe Alzen and Martin Ragginger put me under huge pressure, but my tactic worked. The 911 was set-up perfectly for my requirements.”
Martin Ragginger (third): “The race went really well. And my times show me that we are always good for a win. We just have to get our qualifying in check. Until the next race we have enough time to tune the car to my driving style. Then I’d like to move up the ranks a few places.”
Race result:
1. Nick Tandy (GB), Konrad Motorsport, 31:09.468 minutes (158.545 km/h)
2. Niclas Kentenich (D), Farnbacher Racing PZN, + 14.819 seconds
3. Martin Ragginger (AT), Schnabl Engineering, + 15.385
4. Uwe Alzen (D), Herberth Motorsport PZ Olympiapark, + 15.570
5. Robert Renauer (D), Herberth Motorsport PZ Olympiapark, + 16.438
6. Philip Wlazik (D), Hermes Attempto Racing, + 17.588
7. Sascha Maassen (D), Team Deutsche Post by tolimit, + 18.637
8. David Sigacev (RU), SMS Seyffarth Motorsport, + 21.043
9. Harald Schlegelmilch (LV), Konrad Motorsport, + 22.490
10. Sean Edwards (GB), Team Deutsche Post by tolimit, + 25.625
Drivers’ standings after the first of nine rounds:
1. Nick Tandy (GB), 20 points
2. Niclas Kentenich (D), 18 points
3. Martin Ragginger (AT), 16 points
4. Uwe Alzen (D), 14 points
5. Robert Renauer (D), 12 points
Please note: Photos of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland are available for accredited journalists on the Porsche Press Database under the internet address https://presse.porsche.de
GO
Oliver Hilger
Communications, Sustainability and Politics
Spokesperson 911 and 718
+49 (0)170 911 3915
oliver.hilger@porsche.de文本
英語 (Porsche AG)
已归档
M10_0719
M 33/10
2010-04-25
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- 赛车运动
- 2010赛季
- Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland
- 最新消息
- Germany \ Hockenheim
Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland, round 1 in Hockenheim, race result: Nick Tandy takes clear win at turbulent season-opener