Wet initially, then dry towards the end - conditions steadily improved on the Austrian Formula 1 track this Saturday morning to produce an exciting first qualifying session that remained thrilling until the very last second. The lead changed hands several times during the dying stages of the 30-minute session, but in the end, Steijn Schothorst took P1 with a 1.31.254 to the delight of GRT Grasser Racing, based just a few kilometres away from the track. This is now the second time this season that 26-year-old Schothorst has won a Pirelli Pole Position Award and an exclusive pair of Pirelli skis along with it after his success in securing first place on the grid at Hockenheim for the race on Saturday.

"Qualifying was tricky in the damp conditions," said Schothorst, who shares the Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo with the German Tim Zimmermann. "It rained overnight, so there were still some wet patches to start with. However, the track gradually dried out with every lap and got faster as a result. In the end, it all came down to having the right timing. We succeeded. The team did a great job. Achieving pole position at a home fixture is really special for the team. We must now deliver in the race. Our top speed was not as high as that of the BMWs behind me, so it won't be easy. Still, our race pace should be good overall. If we can stay ahead, it should get very interesting, for sure!"

The BMW M6 GT3s that Schothorst mentioned qualified second and third. Sweden's Henric Skoog (Schubert Motorsport) was fastest in the Bavarian muscle car. He went into the lead several times over the closing stages, and in the end, his time of 1.31.448 minutes was good enough to secure second place on the front row. These are the best grid slots that we've seen so far this season for the BMW. Skoog is partnered by works driver Nick Yelloly. The BMW driven by Erik Johansson and last year's winner Jens Klingmann (MRS GT-Racing) followed closely behind with a time of 1.31.524 minutes. Robert Renauer and Sven Müller from Precote Herberth Motorsport in the best-placed Porsche took P4 from the Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo of Philip Ellis and Raffaele Marciello (Knaus-Team HTP-Winward).

Championship leaders Patric Niederhauser and Kelvin van der Linde will start the 199th ADAC GT Masters race from 24th place. Racing gets underway at 13.05 CEST with live broadcasting from SPORT1. Their closest title rivals, who are currently second in the standings, Christian Engelhart and Michael Ammermüller (SSR-Porsche) plus Luca Stolz and Maro Engel (Toksport-Mercedes-AMG) in P3 overall qualified tenth and seventh respectively, which means their chances of reeling in the leaders are excellent.