The grand finale of the ADAC GT Masters at Hockenheim started on Friday morning under a bright blue sky, with the best time being set by a Corvette. Daniel Keilwitz and Andreas Wirth driving a Callaway Competition Corvette Z06.R posted a lap of 01:39.755 minutes in FP1. 0.25 seconds behind the Corvette duo were Luca Stolz and Maximilian Götz in an HTP Motorsport Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3. The third-fastest lap was set by another Mercedes-Benz gullwing driven by Luca Ludwig and newcomer Harald Schlegelmilch (BKK MOBIL OIL Zakspeed).

P4 in the morning session went to one of the pairings still in with a mathematical chance of claiming the title: Claudia Hürtgen and Dominik Baumann in a Pixum Team Schubert BMW Z4. Next came two TONINO Herberth Porsche 911 GT3 Rs, fifth place going to Herberth Handlos (main contender for the Gentlemen title) and Alfred Renauer and sixth to Robert Renauer and Martin Ragginger.

Current championship leaders and title favourites Kelvin van der Linde and René Rast placed their Prosperia C Abt Racing Audi R8 LMS ultra seventh. Their main rival for the title, Dutchman Jaap van Lagen who shares the cockpit of a GW IT Racing Team Schütz Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 R with Christian Engelhart, ended the morning back in ninth behind eighth-placed Nico Bastian and Jaime Alguersuari in a ROWE RACING Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG. Florian Stoll and Daniel Dobitsch in a kfzteile24 APR Motorsport Audi R8 LMS ultra were tenth fastest.

Apart from a minor incursion into the gravel by Mercedes-Benz driver Maro Engel (ROWE RACING), the first free practice session passed off without incident.

Corvette one-two in Gentlemen class

The Callaway Competition Corvettes were leading the way in the Gentlemen stakes, Remo Lips setting the fastest time ahead of Toni Seiler. Class leader Herbert Handlos, who can secure the title in the first race on Saturday, was third fastest in his Porsche 911 GT3 R ahead of his TONINO Team Herberth team-mates Florian Scholze and Dominic Jöst.