ADAC GT Masters·29.4.2014

Bad luck for Farnbacher Racing in Oschersleben : Contacts with opponents put a damper on Farnbacher Racing's start to the season

Farnbacher Racing started the season with high expectations after posting fastest time at the preseason tests in the etropolis Motorsport Arena Oschersleben, but the first two races of the season brought the Bavarian team little success. In the second race on Sunday, Sebastian Asch made contact with a Corvette during the start and had to pit with a damaged radiator. "My start was good," said Sebastian Asch. "I immediately moved up four or five places, but unfortunately, I was then involved in the accident at the start." Asch brought the Porsche back into the pits, and mechanics worked flat-out to get the vehicle running again - with success - Asch got back out on track for the restart but had to serve a drive-through penalty later in the race for pitting under the red flag. Frommenwiler placed 13th. "We would certainly have been in the points but for the penalty. Nevertheless, we're satisfied with the result. The next race in Zandvoort will definitely be better," said Asch, feeling inspired.

Frommenwiler/Asch also had a contact at the start of the first race. Frommenwiler was rear-ended by a fellow competitor in the very first turn, whilst jockeying for the top spots. "That ended Race 1 for us. Following that, we just had to do our best to minimise the damage," said Frommenwiler. "This was not quite what we had envisioned for the start of the season, but we will fight back at the next race in Zandvoort. The circuit should suit us and we intend to quickly consign our setback in Oschersleben to history."

The race went better than expected for Mario Farnbacher/Nathan Morcom. They fought their way up into 10th place from grid position 25, thereby securing their first championship point. "It was great. This was my first race and our first point as well. There was an almighty crash at the start, but I just drove through the middle," said Morcom. Mario Farnbacher added: "My stint was rather boring. I had very little traffic to contend with and so was able to gain ground. We're satisfied with the result."

Team manager Dominik Farnbacher sees the result as positive: "We got our first point. That's very good. Too bad for Sebastian and Philip, though, I would have thought they were good for a point or two. Our lap times were OK, and we kept up with the others. I would also like to take this opportunity to sing the praises of our mechanics, they did a fantastic job."