He was one of the main protagonists in the most nerve-racking season finale in the ten-year history of the ADAC GT Masters. Daniel Keilwitz and his French Callaway Competition team-mate with the Corvette outfit, Jules Gounon, headed to Hockenheim, trailing Audi drivers Connor De Phillippi & Christopher Mies in the lead by only two points. Things had never been this close in the run-up to a final Super Sports Car League race weekend. And it was set to become even more dramatic, since both teams were neck-and-neck in the virtual standings shortly after the driver handover in the last race of 2016. Then came the bombshell when Gounon retired after hitting the barriers. He was unhurt, but De Phillippi & Mies took the title, while Keilwitz & Gounon slipped back to third overall behind Porsche driver David Jahn.

"First we were on track to the title, then it was the turn of the guys in the Audi. It was nip and tuck," said Daniel Keilwitz about the decisive turn of events. "And then came the bad luck with the accident. I watched everything on the monitor in the pits and shared Jules' anxiety in the minutes thereafter. The most important thing at the time was that nothing bad had happened to him. Still, it was a pity for the whole team that things ended that way. Looking back over the season, though, we had a great year, notching up three wins with the new Corvette and our new driver pairing."

Losing the title in the last race is nothing new for Daniel Keilwitz: "It's happened to me before, unfortunately. This is the second time." In 2012, one year after his first full season in the ADAC GT Masters, Keilwitz went to the final showdown and had to be satisfied with joint second overall. He secured his greatest triumph to date with his title win the following season. During the past five years, he has finished on the overall podium four times at the end of the season. Is there a recipe for success? Keilwitz: "It's a mixture of several things. Firstly, I really feel at home in the ADAC GT Masters where I can compete against the best GT3 drivers. Secondly, the collaboration with Callaway Competition has been very fruitful for many years now. We stick together as a team. We knew the previous Corvette inside and out, and we've also gradually come to understand the new C7 better in this first year."

Daniel Keilwitz has taken the most wins of any driver during his seven years in the ADAC GT Masters, 17 in all. With a second title victory, he would have become the new 'Mr ADAC GT Masters'. "Of course, that's how I'd like to be known, but it didn't work out for me this year," said Keilwitz. "Still, as the saying goes, just because it hasn't happened yet doesn't mean it's never going to happen. I want to compete again in 2017 and fight for the title win."