What the drivers had to say after Sunday’s race at the season finale of the German GT Championship in the Eifel.

Christopher Mies (Montaplast by Land-Motorsport, Audi R8 LMS), German GT Champion 2021: “It feels mega. The race was really nerve-wracking. It was brutally close from the start, but we did enough in the end. We made life hard for ourselves again. It feels good to have won. I am incredibly pleased to have picked up my second title with Land-Motorsport and am also astonished by the way Ricardo has developed in recent years. This is a very special moment for me today.”

Ricardo Feller (Montaplast by Land-Motorsport, Audi R8 LMS), German GT Champion 2021 and winner of the Pirelli Junior class 2021: “Everything feels pretty perfect at the moment. A few years ago, in ADAC Formula 4, I always dreamed of this moment. To win the Driver, Team and Junior titles today is simply incredible. I had to go against my natural instincts in today’s race, and the Junior title was far from a gift too. The battle with Kim at the end was hard but fair, and was obviously great fun. This really is an awesome day.”

Mathieu Jaminet (SSR Performance, Porsche 911 GT3 R), 1st overall: “The goal for the race was clear: we tried to push as hard as we could. We then tired an undercut with Michael, as we were stuck in traffic. That worked out well. We had good pace today, and a good car, which allowed us to take the win. Although it was not quite enough for the title, we are very happy on the whole. Land-Motorsport deserved the title this season, they really made very few mistakes.”

Michael Ammermüller (SSR Performance, Porsche 911 GT3 R), 1st overall: “I knew that it would be very interesting in the first corner. From second place on the grid, you are a little safer here. It was very cool, which made it difficult to get the tyres up to temperature. I was afraid that someone would clean me out from behind in turn 1. Fortunately, however, I got through it well and then pushed very hard to get the race win. We were in contention for the title right down to the finish, as it got really close again. However, we are obviously also pleased with second place.”

Joel Eriksson (Küs Team Bernhard, Porsche 911 GT3 R), 2nd place: “What a day, what a weekend. We were very unlucky in yesterday’s race, but reset everything for today. Marco drove a great qualifying in difficult conditions this morning, putting our car in fifth place on the grid. That helps hugely, as it is always better to start from the front in the GT Masters. Further back, there is often some turmoil. I had a super stint in the race. Then a Porsche and a Lamborghini got involved in a battle in front of me, and I waited for the opportunity to overtake them both. I took the very first opportunity and was second. It was a bit risky, but I saw a gap and made it. Towards the end of the race, I was primarily looking after the tyres. A big thank you goes to the team: we have had super pace every weekend since the Lausitzring. Everyone has done a great job.”

Marco Holzer (Küs Team Bernhard, Porsche 911 GT3 R), 2nd place: “Qualifying started well with fifth place. Unfortunately, we had traffic, which was not ideal. Otherwise, we could perhaps have been even higher up the grid. But P5 was okay. On the first two laps it was difficult to get the tyres up to temperature in the cold. I had contact in turn one, but was able to stay clear of most of the trouble and hand the car over to Joel in P4. He then drove a mega race with the class overtaking manoeuvre. I would like to thank everyone at Küs Team Bernhard, the car was always in top shape from the Thursday on. I am overjoyed to go into the winter break on the back of a second place.”

Rolf Ineichen (GRT Grasser Racing Team, Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo), 3rd place, 1st place in the Pirelli Trophy competition: “That was a great race to end the season on. It was great fun and I found all of today’s battles fair. In the end, it was mainly about the Team championship for us. I did not want to make any unnecessary mistakes. Our car was really good and I was able to apply pressure. Unfortunately, we came up just short.”

Franck Perera (GRT Grasser Racing Team, Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo), 3rd place: “The last round of the season and the cold weather promised to produce an exciting and tough race. We were a little disappointed with our qualifying. After the start, we tried everything to make progress through the field. I immediately made it into P4 at the start, and put the Porsche under pressure straight after the re-start. We can be proud of our season. Grasser and Lamborghini did a great job.”

Klaus Bachler (Precote Herberth Motorsport, Porsche 911 GT3 R), 7th place: “The conditions were definitely not easy in qualifying and the race. It was obviously great to secure pole position with my final lap. I had a super car for these conditions. In the race, Simona did everything she could to defend her position. We would have liked to have claimed a podium, but seventh place is also a good result, and one that we can be happy with.”

Robert Renauer (Precote Herberth Motorsport, Porsche 911 GT3 R), 11th place: “After a mixed season with many DNFs, often through no fault of our own, it feels good to end the final race with both cars in the points.”

Maximilian Buhk (Mann-Filter Team Landgraf - HTP/WWR, Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo), 19th place: “Somehow, the finale reflects our whole season: we were always fast, but were often unfortunate and were caught up in incidents. You cannot be champions in this high-class field if that is the case. I congratulate Chris Mies, Ricky Feller and the Land team on winning the title. They are worthy champions! I would like to say a big thank you to Lello and MANN-FILTER Team Landgraf – HTP/WWR for the way they battled tirelessly and the great team spirit they showed throughout the whole season. The Landgraf guys have done a fantastic job in their first season in the ADAC GT Masters. There was definitely potential for more.”

Thomas Preining (Küs Team Bernhard, Porsche 911 GT3 R), DNF: “I am obviously very disappointed. The race started well and I was able to climb two places at the start. We were definitely on course for the podium, but were unfortunately taken out of the race through no fault of our own. Today could have been a really good one, but that is motor racing for you.”