Difficult Weekend at Nürburgring

  09.10.2016 Sports & Leisure

Fifty-five cars, 25 (the average age of the drivers), a 5.5 kilometre circuit, three hours, three drivers, three red flags, one FCY, one safety car—that sums up a weekend at Nürburgring!

I went into the weekend relaxed, with two objectives: try my best, and evaluate my options for next year – if any.

On a side note, I went to Barcelona to test the Mercedes AMG GT3 on 5 September. The test went well until I spun, hitting the tyre wall.  Even though the car was not repairable on site, the team manager allowed me to continue testing with another car. Both acceleration and downshifting were not as good as the BMW. However, the overall package of the Mercedes is better. It was great on braking, has a lower centre of gravity, less roll, is more aerodynamic, and NO TURBO ENGINE, facilitating throttle management. More importantly, the tire wear is substantially less than the BMW. 

I usually report on each session – bronze test, free practice, pre-qualifying, qualifying and race. However, there is not much to report at the moment. I asked the team to simply allow me to drive and to leave my co-drivers to set the car. 

On Sunday morning, my qualifying session was cancelled due to fog. Our fastest driver had to abandon two attempts to qualify due to red flags. It was no surprise that we started as 53 of 55 cars!  Both youngsters did a great job during their respective stints, handing me the last stint in 6th place.  After four laps, the full course yellow was shown and four laps later the safety car was deployed, at which time all the cars were following each other and I lost the lead time. The restart was a mess. I tried hard to save my position but the car was very hard to drive. End result: 13th in class, 35th overall. 

I had a long conversation with BMW. They understand that a lot of work is needed to improve the car: traction, back axel and tyre wear.  I tried fitting in the Audi R8 – I had to apply my full yoga potential!  I am calling Ferrari. I’ve looked at the difference between Pro-Am, requiring a pro driver, and going back to Am, or another championship called Sport Club. 

Looking at last year’s times I was on average 1.7 seconds slower this year! At this time I am a little lost in transition for next year. I guess we will just have to wait and see, keeping my options open. One thing for sure: The Blancpain GT Series is the most ruthless, most competitive, and best GT3 series in the world, with very young and extremely talented drivers. There is a time when you need to reflect and make the right choices. 

In closing, I would like to thank my sponsors and supporters. I hope you enjoy the reports and photographs.


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