Laurents Hörr (25/Gerlingen) and Matthias Lüthen (42/Hamburg, both Koiranen Kemppi Motorsport) topped the timings sheet at the end of the second free practice session at the Norisring. Second place went to Markus Pommer (32/Untereisesheim) and Gary Hauser (31/LUX, both Racing Experience), with Robin Rogalski ((22/POL) / Valentino Catalano (17/Westheim, both DKR Engineering) taking third. Oscar Tunjo (27/COL) / Julien Apothéloz (22/CHE, both van ommen racing by DataLab) and Gustavo Kiryla (29/BRA) / Nico Göhler (20/Grasleben, both BWT Mücke Motorsport) narrowly missed out on the top three, ending the session in fourth and fifth place.
Matthias Lüthen and his team-mate Laurents Hörr are racing at the Norisring for the first time this weekend. “It was really good fun,” said a beaming Lüthen. “Even the walls, some of which are very close to the racing line, do not put me off.” The only concern for the driver from Hamburg was an issue when shifting gears. “For that reason, I was not able to do a really fast lap in FP2. However, by the time Laurents was sat in the car, the problem had been solved and he was able to put his foot down without any issue.” Hörr also feels comfortable at the Norisring. “This weekend is the highlight of the season. The Norisring flair is something very special.”
Markus Pommer and Gary Hauser were second fastest, 0.159 seconds behind the leading duo. “On my penultimate lap, I was 0.2 seconds faster than before – but then I made a mistake. I think the car could have done a faster lap time than our 0:49.234 minutes.” The last time Pommer drove at the Norisring was eight years ago, when he was racing in the FIA Formula 3 European Championship. “That is a long time ago, so I think I would have had a slight advantage in the first free practice, if at all.” His team-mate and Norisring newcomer Hauser is not looking back, but is already focussing on the first qualifying session: “So far, everything has gone to plan for us. I hope we can also get through qualifying without any mistakes. It is all so tight here, that even a small error can immediately cost you a few places on the grid.”
The first qualifying session in the Prototype Cup Germany at the Norisring is scheduled to begin at 17:50 on Friday evening.
