For numerous holidaymakers looking for pleasure and relaxation in central Europe, the weather conditions this last weekend have been deplorable. On the other hand for Maxime Martin, the ever-present downpour was …beneficial! Competing at the Nürburgring together with the Frenchman Dino Lunardi in the ADAC GT Masters, the official German Grand Touring championship, the young Brussels based driver took full advantage of the conditions levelling out the cars balance of performances, enough to bring the official Alpina B6 GT3 up into the top of the rankings.
During the first round on Saturday Lunardi set off from 7th spot on the grid, prior to working his way up through the ranks. “He was in 4th spot when he handed over the drive, Maxime explained. I managed to carry on through with this build up, initially slotting into 3rd and then into 2nd place. It was a great battle, as not only did I manage to get within 1”6 of the future winner, but on top of that as I crossed the finish line my lead over the third placed contender was some 14… thousandths of a second! In the meantime the championship leaders had scored nothing. A brilliant all round operation! »
A deal which might turn out to be ever better if Maxime and his team mate could prove their worth during the second round, always under wet conditions. Having qualified in an excellent 3rd place, Martin took on this morning race with hammer and tongs. “During the first few laps I held my 3rd position, keeping a close eye on my nearest rivals. It was in the 4th lap that I went into the attack, going from 3rd spot into the lead! The car was handling brilliantly, and I was able to hold a 7 seconds lead as I called into the pits. Dino finished off the job in superb fashion, notwithstanding the fact that he was faced with a drying track. But with a 2 seconds lead we clinched victory! Brilliant!”
And seeing that the competition leaders did not score any points during the event, Maxime Martin and Dino Lunardi managed to kill two birds with one stone by taking over the lead in the ADAC GT Masters by a mere 5 points… “Perfect exercise. However what is to come might well be more difficult, as on the Red Bull Ring we will be carrying an additional 50 kilos of ballast, which brings our overall handicap up to no less than … 160 kilos! It won’t be easy … »
This coming weekend Maxime Martin will be back at the Nürburgring… but this time around on the legendary Nordschleife, where he will be competing in the VLN, at the wheel of a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup and teamed up with the Finnish-Belgian driver Markus Palttala. Following that the major race, namely the 24 Hours of Spa is on the agenda, the top event of the Blancpain Endurance Series. Together with his regular team mates Bas Leinders and Markus Palttala, Maxime will be going all out for victory defending the colours of Marc VDS Racing. One heck of a meeting coming up… .