Germany’s Wolfgang Triller, driving for the raceunion Huber Racing team, clinched the third podium step at the invitation race as support to the Sports Car World Endurance Championship (WEC). “At the start I first had to find the right racing line under these conditions because the kerbs were very slippery. My duel with Thomas Preining was extremely close. That makes me particularly pleased about my victory,” said Ten Voorde.
In light rain and an outside temperature of 14 degrees Celsius, the 37-strong field of the combined Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland and the Porsche Sports Cup on the occasion of the inaugural “Porsche Motorsport Race Weekend” went out on wet tyres. When the lights were extinguished for the rolling start of the 30-minute race, the field spent the first two laps behind a safety car due to a vehicle that had been left stranded on the racetrack. As the result on Saturday determined the grid lineup for the second invitation race, Preining started as the leader. The Porsche Junior initially managed to defend his lead on the wet track, but Ten Voorde stuck close to his bumper. The two youngsters swapped positions constantly over the course of the race and delivered a gripping fight for first place. In the tenth lap, Ten Voorde made a decisive move, which saw him take the lead position at the end of the finish straight and ultimately drive to victory after twelve laps. “Unfortunately I was a little late on the brakes at one point. I had an intense but very fair fight with Larry Ten Voorde,” said Preining.
Many overtaking manoeuvres and close duels
A packed grid with drivers from seven countries treated spectators to many overtaking manoeuvres and close duels. Henric Skoog (S/raceunion Huber Racing) took up the race from the third grid spot and crossed the line in the same position. However, because of an illegal shortcut, the 21 year old was handed a 15-second time penalty after the race, which saw him relegated to fourth place. As a result Triller, as the best amateur driver of the day, inherited the third grid step. “The conditions were tricky, but I had a fantastic time out on the track today. It was great to race with the Porsche Sports Cup,” stated Triller. Behind the experienced Porsche driver from Mengkofen, Stefan Rehkopf (D/Cito Pretiosa) secured position five after he overtook Jörn Schmidt-Staade (D/Cito Pretiosa) in lap five. The driver from Düsseldorf concluded the invitation race on the storied 5.148-kilometre racetrack in sixth. These two teammates rounded off the podium in the amateur classification.
Michael Steiner (Member of the Executive Board Research and Development at Porsche AG), Dr. Frank-Steffen Walliser (Vice President Motorsport and GT Cars at Porsche AG) and Karsten Sohns (CFO of the Porsche Deutschland GmbH) handed over the trophies at the podium ceremony. The invitation races as part of the “Porsche Motorsport Race Weekend” were not counted as official rounds of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland, and therefore no points were awarded towards the championship.
A look back at race 1
The national one-make race series was contested with the Porsche Sports Cup as part of the “Porsche Motorsport Race Weekend” as support to the Sports Car World Endurance Championship (WEC). Larry Ten Voorde (NL/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1) and Henric Skoog (S/raceunion Huber Racing) achieved positions two and three. “Larry Ten Voorde drove a very strong race, but I kept my cool and grabbed my chance to overtake him. My first win the 911 feels absolutely fantastic,” said Preining.
This is the first time that the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland and the Porsche Sports Cup race together. With 37 starters from seven countries taking part in the Porsche Motorsport Race Weekend, motorsport fans were treated to gripping duels and overtake manoeuvres. Heading into the race with a rolling start from pole position, Ten Voorde settled in at the front of the field for the 30-minute race. Starting from the third grid spot, Sweden’s Henric Skoog from the raceunion Huber Racing squad promptly overtook Preining in the first corner. However, the Porsche Junior was not about to let the 21 year old get the better of him, and in lap three Preining snatched back second place. After the Austrian racer closed the gap to Ten Voorde, the two junior drivers delivered a tough but fair duel for the front spot. In the tenth lap, the Deutsche Post by Project 1 driver made a braking error after the start-finish straight. Preining used the chance to take the lead and crossed the finish line first after 15 laps “The start of the race went really well and I was able to pull clear of the field. But one minor mistake proved decisive. Still, I’ll be back on Sunday to attack again,” said Ten Voorde.
Third place on the 5.148-kilometre racetrack went to Skoog. “That was an exciting race. I’ve often experienced rolling starts so that helped me. Now we have to analyse why Thomas Preining and Larry Ten Voorde were faster,” said Skoog. Behind the driver from the Swedish town of Torshälla, Wolfgang Triller (D/raceunion Huber Racing) and Jörn Schmidt-Staade (D/Cito Pretiosa) battled for fourth place. After swapping positions many times, Triller concluded his race as the best amateur driver of the day on fourth place ahead of Schmidt-Staade. Tom Kieffer (BLACK FALCON) from Luxembourg came sixth. As the invitation race at the “Porsche Motorsport Race Weekend” is not an official championship round, no points for the overall championship will be awarded at the storied racetrack in the hilly Eifel region of Germany.
The trophies were handed to the winners on the podium by Michael Steiner (Member of the Executive Board Research and Development at Porsche AG), Andreas Haffner (Member of the Executive Board for Human Resources and Social Affairs at Porsche AG) and Altfrid Heger, the vice champion of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland from the year 1993. Race two of the double-header event with the Porsche Sports Cup gets underway on Sunday at 10.05 hrs on the occasion of the “Porsche Motorsport Race Weekend” as support to the WEC.
Results
Race 1:
1. Thomas Preining (A/Konrad Motorsport)
2. Larry Ten Voorde (NL/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1)
3. Henric Skoog (S/raceunion Huber Racing)
4. Wolfgang Triller (D/raceunion Huber Racing)
5. Jörn Schmidt-Staade (D/Cito Pretiosa)
6. Tom Kieffer (L/BLACK FALCON)
7. Stefan Rehkopf (D/Cito Pretiosa)
8. Christian Kosch (L/BLACK FALCON)
9. Wolf Nathan (NL/raceunion Huber Racing)
10. Peter Scheufen (D/Cito Pretiosa)
DNF:
Carlos Rivas (L/BLACK FALCON)
Race 2:
1. Larry Ten Voorde (NL/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1)
2. Thomas Preining (A/Konrad Motorsport)
3. Wolfgang Triller (D/raceunion Huber Racing)
4. Henric Skoog (S/raceunion Huber Racing)
5. Stefan Rehkopf (D/Cito Pretiosa)
6. Jörn Schmidt-Staade (D/Cito Pretiosa)
7. Carlos Rivas (L/BLACK FALCON)
8. Peter Scheufen (D/Cito Pretiosa)
9. Wolf Nathan (NL/raceunion Huber Racing)
10. Tom Kieffer (L/BLACK FALCON)
DNF:
Christian Kosch (L/BLACK FALCON)
Info
The next two official races of the national one-make race series will be contested in the Eifel. As support to the DTM, the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland will be held on the Nürburgring from 8 to 10 September.
