The 23-year-old Porsche Junior Sven Müller (D/Lechner Racing Middle East) locked out the first grid spot for the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland race on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife. On the 25.378 kilometre circuit, the qualifying times of the fastest one-make cup drivers were extremely close. On Saturday, Müller planted his 460 hp Porsche 911 GT3 Cup on the top of the time sheets ahead of Philipp Eng (A/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1) and Michael Ammermüller (D/The Heart of Racing by Lechner). “This is my first pole position in the Porsche Carrera Cup. My car was like a rocket here and it was a real thrill driving on the Nordschleife,” stated Müller.
As the sun set, the 24 pilots contesting this year’s Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland battled for the decisive fractions of seconds. The distribution of grid positions for race three underlined how fiercely competitive this Porsche brand trophy series is. Turning the pole-setting lap in 8:34.992 minutes, Müller narrowly beat Austria’s Eng by almost eight-tenths of a second. Eng was enthusiastic about the combination of the Grand Prix circuit and the Nordschleife (northern loop): “As a driver it’s the coolest thing to compete here. But you also notice how mentally stressful it is to drive six laps at the limit in qualifying. I’m pleased with second position.” Ammermüller from Bavaria qualified on third in a time of 8:36.749 minutes. “On my last lap the yellow flag suddenly came out, otherwise I would have been faster. I’ll perform even better in the race on Saturday,” said Ammermüller. Lining up alongside him on position four is Spaniard Alex Riberas (The Heart of Racing by Lechner), who placed just one-tenth of a second behind Ammermüller. Germany’s Robert Renauer (Herberth Motorsport) from Bavaria takes up the race on Saturday from fifth.
After a gripping qualifying session, Porsche Junior Matteo Cairoli (I/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1) claimed the tenth grid position. The 18-year-old champion of the Porsche Carrera Cup Italia contests his first year in the German Carrera Cup and has little experience on the Nordschleife. “My result is okay. Unfortunately on my second set of tyres I encountered a lot of traffic on the circuit. Now I’m looking forward to the race,” declared the youngster. Porsche Junior Connor de Phillippi (USA/Land-Motorsport) was unable to finish the 60-minute qualifying session after leaving the circuit and damaging his car so badly that it was no longer driveable. On the time sheet he was allocated twelfth. The 22-year-old underwent a health check at the Nürburgring Medical Centre but was released shortly afterwards. “That was quite an impact. I hope my car can be repaired in time for the race,” said the Californian.
Race three of Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland takes place on Saturday at 9.17 hours on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife.
Qualifying Nürburgring-Nordschleife
Grid lineup for race 3
1. Sven Müller (D/Lechner Racing Middle East), 8:34.992 min.
2. Philipp Eng (A/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1), 8:35.749
3. Michael Ammermüller (D/The Heart of Racing by Lechner), 8:36.749
4. Alex Riberas (E/The Heart of Racing by Lechner), 8:36.851
5. Robert Renauer (D/Herberth Motorsport), 8:37.824
6. Christopher Zöchling (A/Konrad Motorsport), 8:37.833
7. Nicki Thiim (DK/Team 75 Bernhard), 8:38.087
8. Klaus Bachler (A/Konrad Motorsport), 8:38.531
9. Jeffrey Schmidt (CH/Lechner Racing Middle East), 8:38.617
10. Matteo Cairoli (I/Team Deutsche Post by Project 1), 8:38.849