Kelvin van der Linde (#10 Prosperia C Abt Racing, Audi R8 LMS ultra), winner: "I found the first half hour of the race quite nerve-wracking and was a bit nervous when I took over as race leader, as I didn't know if I could hang on to P1 after the pit stop. But I then found myself further in front and just focused on finishing the race and managing the lead."
René Rast (#10 Prosperia C Abt Racing, Audi R8 LMS ultra), winner: "Kelvin drove a fantastic race, didn't make any mistakes and withstood massive pressure from the opposition. Apart from that frightening incident at the start, it was a relatively straightforward race. I opened up a gap on the Porsche but never quite managed to shake him off."
Christian Engelhart (#3 GW IT Racing Team // Schütz Motorsport, Porsche 911 GT3 R), P2: "After the pit stop, I lacked the momentum to get past the leading Audi. The only chance I had of overtaking would have involved making contact, and obviously I didn't want to take the risk. After that, the Audi was so fast that it opened up a gap. P2 is creditable and it was the maximum we were going to get today. In any case, I had to manage my tyres very carefully over the last few laps."
Dominik Baumann: (#19 PIXUM Team Schubert, BMW Z4 GT3), P3: "I had to concede third position to the Porsche after the restart, as my tyres weren't up to temperature at that stage. But I probably couldn't have held him off anyway. The gap on the cars behind was big, but I knew that I wouldn't be able to make any progress further forward unless the people in front made an error. I'm quite satisfied with P3 - it's a far better start to the campaign than last year."
Claudia Hürtgen (#19 PIXUM Team Schubert, BMW Z4 GT3), P3: "I tried hard to keep up with the Porsche and was hoping they would make a mistake, because there was no way that I was going to get past under my own steam. Sadly, they didn't oblige. So I just focused on finishing safely in third. I'm satisfied with a P6 and a P3 this weekend. Now we have to see what we can do in the next race at Zandvoort."
Daniel Keilwitz (#1 Callaway Competition, Corvette Z06.R GT3), retired: "The start was pure mayhem, because the drivers on the front row accelerated and then braked. That caused a concertina effect further back. Everyone at the rear then swerved when we got the green light. I got away well, drove over to the left as far as the grass embankment and then saw the Audi bearing down on me. I had nowhere to go, and then he hit me."
Patrick Assenheimer (#2 Callaway Competition, Corvette Z06.R GT3), P6: "I was behind a Porsche on the final few laps and was faster as far as pure lap times go but couldn't get past for love nor money. It was just not worth the risk and he didn't put a foot wrong either. I'm very satisfied with sixth place on my first weekend in the series."
Heinz-Harald Frentzen (#27 HTP Motorsport, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3), P7: "As things stand, we still cannot match the pace of the leading group, so we drove a very defensive race today and tried to maintain our position. That earned us some points, and we must now see if we can do even better next time."
Herbert Handlos (#7 TONINO Team Herberth, Porsche 911 GT3 R), P5 and winner of Gentlemen class: "My team-mate Alfred is a great racing driver and did a fantastic job of moving forward in the first stint. The team also did their bit really well. The Corvette behind me kept heaping on the pressure in the final phase, but I defended my position well to the very end."
Florian Scholze (#9 TONINO Team Herberth, Porsche 911 GT3 R); P12 and runner-up in Gentlemen class: "I saw bits flying everywhere at the start and held back before proceeding slowly. Things then went very well after the restart. I drove behind two Audis and matched their pace without too much problem. I'm satisfied with the result."
Dominic Jöst (#9 TONINO Team Herberth, Porsche 911 GT3 R); P12 and runner-up in Gentlemen class: "Everything went great once I'd got past Florian. The rear tyres were degrading towards the end of the race, but I maintained position well and only had to let one other Porsche through. For us, it's all about winning the Gentlemen classification and we've secured an excellent points' haul this weekend."
Wolf Nathan (#4 GW IT Racing Team // Schütz Motorsport, Porsche 911 GT3 R), P15, third in Gentlemen class: "Our pit stop was not all that terrific, and we wasted a lot of time, but otherwise the race was good for us. My first weekend of the ADAC GT Masters was really great. The series is super and a whole lot of fun."
Anton Wossos (#4 GW IT Racing Team // Schütz Motorsport, Porsche 911 GT3 R), P15, third in Gentlemen class: "We still need to practise our pit stops, but otherwise, the race was good and our Porsche never missed a beat. I was almost always in clean air during my stint and struggling to stay focused, which is not easy when there are no opponents in close striking distance. Great team, great team-mate, I'm happy."