The Norwegian Dennis Olsen (Konrad Motorsport) won round six on Sunday at the wheel of his Porsche 911 GT3 Cup in front of Nick Yelloly (Team Deutsche Post by Project 1) from Great Britain and Porsche Junior Matt Campbell (AUS/Fach Auto Tech). “Fantastic! I was a touch faster than Matt Campbell at the start and that proved decisive for the win,” said Olsen.
Taking up the race as pole-sitter, Campbell was not able to his defend his lead spot from Olsen, who made a catapult start and beat the 22-year-old Australian in the sprint to the first corner. Olsen proceeded to build a half-second gap, only to have his advantage erased by a safety car which was deployed after a collision between two midfielders. Olsen made the most of the restart to again pull clear of Campbell. The junior driver from the Norwegian town of Våler kept a cool head after another safety car phase to ultimately bring home victory after 19 laps. After the start, Yelloly worked his way through the field from fifth on the grid to third place. The Deutsche Post by Project 1 pilot caught up to Campbell and in the penultimate lap swept past him on the inside of the hairpin. “Second place is the result of outstanding team work. The duel with Matt Campbell was intensive but fair,” explained Yelloly.
An ideal way to prepare for the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup
Behind Yelloly, Campbell concluded the race on the 4.326-kilometre circuit in third place. “A win on Saturday and third place today – that’s great. In the mid-sector of the second race I wasn’t able to match the pace of the frontrunners but all in all it was an excellent weekend,” declared the Porsche Junior. For Campbell, round six of the national one-make race series was an ideal way to prepare for the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup, which will run as support to the Formula 1 race in Spielberg in early July. As the best rookie of the day, Larry Ten Voorde (NL/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1) clinched fourth place. The Luxembourg guest driver Dylan Pereira from Zele Racing finished on fifth place ahead of Christopher Zöchling (A/MRS GT-Racing).
Porsche Junior Thomas Preining (Konrad Motorsport) was unable to finish Sunday’s race in Spielberg. Just metres into the race, the Austrian retired after losing power. “My start was very good but after about 50 metres my car suddenly had no propulsion. We’ll now have to look at the reasons for this,” stated the talented youngster from Linz. Despite his retirement, Preining managed to defend his lead in the rookie classification. The amateur category was won by Egidio Perfetti (NL/Momo-Megatron Team Partrax).
A look back at race 5
Campbell used the race as a test run for the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup. In early July, the 22-year-old will compete on the Spielberg circuit as part of the support programme to the Formula 1 race. “My first win in the Carrera Cup feels fantastic. Because of the late safety car phase my advantage suddenly disappeared, but I didn’t let it throw me off balance,” said the Swabia resident.
After planting his 485 hp Porsche 911 GT3 Cup on the first grid spot in front of 31 vehicles, Ten Voorde managed to defend his pole position after the start. Behind the 20-year-old Dutchman from Boekelo, Campbell fended off an overtaking attempt by Florian Latorre (FR/Martinet by Alméras) to initially retain his position in second place. Campbell then closed the gap to Ten Voorder and finally snatched the lead in lap three. At the front, Campbell proceeded to pull clear of the field until a collision in lap ten brought out the safety car and the field closed up. Campbell, however, kept his cool and, after the restart, gave Ten Voorde no chance to overtake. “The start went perfectly for me, but maybe I wanted too much. It’s a learning experience, but I’m thrilled with my podium result,” said the rookie from the Deutsche Post by Project 1 squad.
In the final laps, spectators were treated to gripping race action to the last corner of the 4.326-kilometre circuit. At the flag, David Kolkmann secured the third podium spot. The 20-year-old German overtook his teammate Nick Yelloly (GB/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1) in the final lap. “This is my first podium in the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland! After the restart I pulled out all stops in the last corners,” declared Kolkmann. Fifth place went to Christopher Zöchling (A/MRS GT-Racing) ahead of Porsche Junior Dennis Olsen (Konrad Motorsport) in sixth. “I got off the line well, but the race was really tough because of the close competition. I didn’t want to take any more risks and I’m happy with sixth place,” said the Norwegian.
Porsche Junior Thomas Preining (A/Konrad Motorsport) took up the race from the eleventh grid spot. “My first laps were great, but after a stone put a hole in my radiator, my 911 GT3 Cup lost fluid unfortunately. Under these circumstances, we were still fast and that makes me optimistic for Sunday’s race,” said the youngster from Linz. Preining finished on twelfth. Wolfgang Triller (D/Huber Racing by TriSpa) won the amateur class and has extended his lead in this classification.
Results
Race 6:
1. Dennis Olsen (N/Konrad Motorsport)
2. Nick Yelloly (GB/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1)
3. Matt Campbell (AUS/Fach Auto Tech)
4. Larry Ten Voorde (NL/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1)
5. Dylan Pereira (L/Zele-Racing)
6. Christopher Zöchling (A/MRS GT-Racing)
7. David Kolkmann (D/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1)
8. Florian Latorre (F/Martinet by Alméras)
9. Zaid Ashkanani (KWT/MRS GT-Racing)
10. Michael Ammermüller (D/raceunion Huber Racing)
Race 5:
1. Matt Campbell (AUS/Fach Auto Tech)
2. Larry Ten Voorde (NL/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1)
3. David Kolkmann (D/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1)
4. Nick Yelloly (GB/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1)
5. Christopher Zöchling (A/MRS GT-Racing)
6. Dennis Olsen (N/Konrad Motorsport)
7. Ryan Cullen (GB/raceunion Huber Racing)
8. Michael Ammermüller (D/raceunion Huber Racing)
9. Henric Skoog (S/raceunion Huber Racing)
10. Philip Morin (S/Martinet by Alméras)
DNF:
Florian Latorre (F/Martinet by Alméras)
Roland Bervillé (F/Martinet by Alméras)
Zaid Ashkanani (KWT/MRS GT-Racing)
Points’ standings after 6 of 14 races:
Drivers’ classification
1. Dennis Olsen (N/Konrad Motorsport), 116 points
2. Christopher Zöchling (A/MRS GT-Racing), 94 points
3. Michael Ammermüller (D/raceunion Huber Racing), 90 points
Info
Next up as part of the DTM programme is the double-header on the Norisring from 30 June to 2 July.