Marvin Kirchhöfer (Callaway Competition, Corvette C7 GT3-R), P1 in general classification: “We weren’t expecting to win twice. I’m all the more delighted now we’ve achieved that. It was a perfect weekend for us, with a maximum points yield. Next on the itinerary are some tracks where it’s going to be harder for us to compete at the front. At the beginning of my stint, I had everything under control, but as the track dried, it was extremely difficult to keep the tyres alive.”
Daniel Keilwitz (Callaway Competition, Corvette C7 GT3-R), P1 in general classification: “Two pole positions, two wins, and we’ve also taken over at the top of the championship. Things could not have gone better for us this weekend. It has definitely been a major step forward in our title challenge. I saw the clouds coming over before the start, and I thought it might begin to rain. Then, after two or three laps, it started to come down. At that point, you have to decide if you’re going to stay out. I got the impression that the slicks were still working OK. The cars that changed to rain tyres were no faster than us. That’s why we waited until the mandatory pit stop before switching to wets.”
Mirko Bortolotti (ORANGE1 by GRT Grasser, Lamborghini Huracán GT3), P2 in general classification: “We stayed on slicks for the entire race, and that paid off. It was an incredible race for us. Andrea started from P24, then came the rain. We decided to stay out on the slick tyres. When it was time for our pit stop, we had everything ready for the switch to rain tyres. I saw the car coming and took another look at the sky. I saw that it was still raining, but it somehow looked like it might improve. So I said to my engineer: ‘I’ll stick with slicks.’ We took a gamble because it was the only way to win the race. I’m here to win, not just to go along for the ride. That worked out brilliantly, because towards the end, the track was drying out. I am really happy with this result. It’s a great one for us after a few races that have been really tough. And to cap it all, it was a home race for the team. A perfect day and a perfect weekend. I couldn’t be happier.”
Andrea Caldarelli (ORANGE1 by GRT Grasser, Lamborghini Huracán GT3), P2 in general classification: “I’m speechless. We started from P24 and finished second. We knew it would not be an easy race because we saw the rain coming. When it started to rain, I took a risk and stayed out. At the pit stop, we stayed on slicks, and that paid off. The weather helped us in the last few minutes as the track dried up.”
Maximilian Götz (Mann-Filter Team HTP Motorsport, Mercedes-AMG GT3), P3 in general classification: “That went rather well. I saw that the others on rain tyres were no faster than I was. And of course, the objective was to save on the extra stop and stay out until the pit stop window opened. That worked out perfectly. We also thought about staying out until just before the pit stop window closed and leaving Markus on slicks as well. But at that moment, the rain came on even stronger, so we didn’t want to take any chances and the team brought me in.”
Markus Pommer (Mann-Filter Team HTP Motorsport, Mercedes-AMG GT3), P3 in general classification: “Even in drying conditions, the car was still very good on wet weather tyres. I was able to overtake the Audi in front of me and get myself established in second place. But as the Lambo got bigger and bigger in my mirror, I knew that the situation would be tight on the last lap. But never mind – who would have thought yesterday that we’d be on the podium today? I’m absolutely delighted.”
Sebastian Asch (Zakspeed BKK Mobile Oil Racing Team, Mercedes-AMG GT3), P5 in general classification and winner in Pirelli Junior class: “That was a race of ups and downs. I never thought that we would advance from 18th to fifth place. We can certainly be satisfied with that. The vagaries of the weather helped us out today. We changed to wet tyres at the pit stop to avoid taking any risks. Ultimately, slicks would have been better, but the risk would have been too great.”
Luca Stolz (Team Zakspeed BKK Mobil Oil Racing, Mercedes-AMG GT3), P5 in general classification and winner in Pirelli Junior class: “We’ve made heavy work of it here all weekend, but at least we rounded the occasion off in a relatively satisfactory way. Basti drove a super stint in the rain on slicks. We then switched to wet tyres. Ultimately, that was probably not the fastest option, but it was certainly the safest.”
Ezequiel Perez Companc (GRT Grasser Racing Team, Lamborghini Huracán GT3), P6 in general classification and P2 in the Pirelli Junior class: “After Franck did such a mega job on slicks, I drove my stint on wets. It wasn’t easy. In the final stages, it was one of the craziest races I have ever been in. The track dried up and the tyre pressures increased dramatically. I had to watch out for that. At the same time, I was battling with cars in front and behind me. It’s unbelievable to have finished the race so near the front.”
Franck Perera (GRT Grasser Racing Team, Lamborghini Huracán GT3), P6 in general classification and P2 in the Pirelli Junior class: “That was a crucial result for us. We haven’t been having an easy time of it on recent weekends. We have especially struggled in qualifying – here too with a P30. It’s a pity that it stopped raining towards the end, otherwise we might have finished in the Top Four or Top Five. Now we have to work on our qualifying performance for the upcoming races.”
Indy Dontje (Mann-Filter Team HTP Motorsport, Mercedes-AMG GT3), P16 in general classification and P9 in the Pirelli Junior class: “The car was really good, and so was the pace on wet tyres too. The odds were fifty-fifty that our strategy would work out. In the end, though, it didn’t. But hey, it’s all part of the game.”
Sven Barth (RWT Racing, Corvette C7 GT3-R), P19 in general classification and Pirelli Trophy winner: “There was a lot of chopping and changing in the race because of the onset of rain. We switched to wet tyres at the stop and then made good some positions. We are satisfied with the Trophy class win.”
Claudia Hürtgen (RWT Racing, Corvette C7 GT3-R), P19 in general classification and Pirelli Trophy winner: “We are disappointed with the whole weekend – we had hoped for so much more. We had one or two problems and made small mistakes. When you do that in a field of this quality, you soon find yourself at the back of the grid. From there, it’s difficult to make progress. But winning the Pirelli Trophy is a good way to round off the weekend.”