ADAC Formel 4·12.9.2015

Comments on Saturday: That was fun

Joel Eriksson (17, SWE, Motopark), Winner: "A victory at long last - and especially here in the home race for my team Motopark. It couldn't have gone any better. I got off to a good start and immediately put a few metres between myself and my pursuers. My plan was clear - to pull out a big lead and then hold the gap steady to the cars behind. That worked out a treat. My car was really super, and I never had any doubt that I was going to win. From the midway point of the race, I eased off slightly and conserved my tyres."

Marvin Dienst (18, DEU, HTP Junior Team), Second: "Things didn't go too well for me today, starting with qualifying. With so little time between qualifying and the race itself, any significant improvement was unlikely. Our car isn't quite as strong as it was at the Sachsenring, which made the situation here much more of a struggle. I took it relatively easy at the start and tried to keep the gap to the front and to the rear fairly constant. Overtaking is difficult at Oschersleben anyway, and I was about as fast as Joel or possibly a bit slower. In the circumstances, an attack would just have ruined my tyres. Now I've lost a few points to Joel in the championship. Nonetheless, this second place is a creditable and important result."

Robert Shwartzman (15, RUS, kfzteile24 Mücke Motorsport), Third: "I'm very pleased to have made it onto the podium again. My start was really good. It was a bit tricky, because two of my opponents were stationary in front of me, but fortunately, I was able to avoid them. From this moment on, I held on to fourth place and was posting the same times as the race leaders. When Michael Waldherr made an error just ahead of me, I went past him and secured third place. It was only towards the end that I noticed Mick was catching up from behind. He was fast, but I was able to defend my position."

Mick Schumacher (16, DEU, Van Amersfoort Racing), best-placed rookie & P4.: "My race was good. There were some tough battles, that was a lot of fun. Unfortunately, my tyres started to degrade towards the end of the race, otherwise I might have been able to mount another attack. Now I'll concentrate on the two races tomorrow and try to go on the attack again."

Tim Zimmermann (19, DEU, Neuhauser Racing), P6.: "Qualifying went better than expected, because we had found a good setup. I got off to a good start, but on the following laps, I was paying too much attention to my pursuers, which spoilt my rhythm. I simply couldn't find the perfect line, but I at least made good one place compared to my starting position. The tyres degrade very quickly here, but I have a clear target tomorrow starting from seventh, namely the podium."

Janneau Esmeijer (18, NL, HTP Junior Team), P13.: "I am really very disappointed. I was focused on warming up my rear tyres ahead of the start and missed my box. I didn't know what to do, and my team were unable to help me at that moment. So there was another formation lap, and I then had had to start from the pit lane. Thanks to my super car, I worked my way up the field and gained 20 positions, but that was only a small consolation. Tomorrow, I'll be starting from pole position again, and it must surely go better this time."

Mike Ortmann (15, DEU, kfzteile24 Mücke Motorsport), P14.: "Qualifying didn't go at all well, ending with only a P20. With so many cars on the track, it was difficult to get a clear lap. In addition, we were somewhat lacking in straight-line speed. Because there was so little preparation time before the race itself, no major changes were possible. In the circumstances, 14th place was a good result. Now we have to find out where we can still make improvements for tomorrow."

Moritz Müller-Crepon (18, CH, Jenzer Motorsport), P22: "Unfortunately, the weekend hasn't gone according to plan so far. We are struggling with the pace of the car and we can't make any progress. Obviously, that was reflected in qualifying, and I've had to start from quite far back. In the race, we tried to get the maximum result possible, but the pace of the car wasn't adequate."