Reactions from the paddock after Saturday’s race in the Dutch dunes.
Ricardo Feller (Montaplast by Land-Motorsport, Audi R8 LMS), 1st overall, winner Pirelli Junior competition: “A perfect day with a perfect race. It all came together: the car was fantastic, the strategy spot on, and Chris did a great job of bringing home the win. I am overjoyed. Three weeks ago I took pole position and then the race win here in another series. I never dreamt that I would do the same again this weekend. To achieve that in the ADAC GT Masters is a mega performance. We have scored extremely valuable points for both the overall standings and the Pirelli Junior competition.”
Christopher Mies (Montaplast by Land-Motorsport, Audi R8 LMS), 1st overall: “I am delighted with the win and for the team. Ricardo did a super job in qualifying, and the good car meant the race was relatively easy for us. The victory was never really in doubt. At first I was quite surprised why the Lamborghini was so far ahead of us after the pit stop, and I obviously tried to close the gap as quickly as possible. I managed it too. When he then had to pull into the pits for the penalty, the race was relatively safe.”
Maro Engel (Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT, Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo), 2nd overall: “We did our best, but the guys in front of us were simply faster. We are satisfied with second place today. I had the chance to pass Mirko Bortolotti at the start, but unfortunately didn’t quite take it. The other drivers in front of us had new tyres and pulled away in the first few laps. It was a bit closer again towards the end, but unfortunately the opportunity never really arose to launch an attack.”
Luca Stolz (Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT, Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo), 2nd overall: “We are super happy with second place. I obviously tried to catch Christopher Mies, but you could see that the Land Audi is very good here. We were a little surprised to see the Grasser Lamborghini come out of the pit lane so far ahead of us, but the team then told me about the penalty over the radio. Raid would definitely have mixed things up again. Perhaps there will be a new opportunity tomorrow.”
Nick Yelloly (Schubert Motorsport, BMW M6 GT3), 3rd overall: “Seventh place on the grid was not such a good start for us this morning. At the end of the day, third place is still a good result. In this close championship, you have to be happy to make it into the top ten. Schubert Motosport did a good job, the car is running brilliantly. Our pace is competitive.”
Jesse Krohn (Schubert Motorsport, BMW M6 GT3), 3rd overall: “The team has done a fantastic job over the winter and up to this weekend. The new layout helped us a little. Our tyres are working better all the time on the sections of new asphalt. The second part of the race was great fun, particularly the fierce battle and the overtaking manoeuvre.”
Maximilian Buhk (Mann-Filter Team Landgraf – HTP/WWR, Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo), 9th overall: “The penalty was obviously frustrating, as we could definitely have been looking at fourth or fifth place. Still, we had a good race pace and the balance of the car was excellent. I tried to keep the pressure on the people ahead of me, but also to look after the tyres for Raffaele. Perhaps it would have been better to stay out for another lap or two before the stop. But hindsight is a wonderful thing. I hope that Lello, who is renowned as a good qualifier, can put our Mamba right towards the front of the grid tomorrow morning, as that would make a very good result possible in the race.”
Florian Spengler (Car Collection Motorsport, Audi R8 LMS), 11th overall, winner Pirelli Trophy: “The good start allowed me to make up a few positions early on, and put me in a position to keep attacking. In my stint, however, whenever I caught the cars in front of me and I was about to launch an attack, the safety car unfortunately decided to make an appearance. On the whole, I am still happy with eleventh. We are confident ahead of tomorrow.”