At the 41st AvD Oldtimer-Grand-Prix last weekend, Wolfgang Kaufmann was privileged to get behind the wheel of two iconic pieces of Porsche racing history. For the first time, he got to drive a Porsche 904 – a milestone in Porsche’s 1960′s racing history – and he revisited the Jägermeister Kremer Porsche 935 K3 he had won the Oldtimer Grand Prix in two years ago.
On Friday, the German racing professional and his partner Afschin Fatemi put the 904 through its paces at the 3.5 hour “Klassik-Marathon” on the Nordschleife. Even though he experienced Porsche racer had never driven the 904 on the Nordschleife before, Kaufmann immediately placed the car on the second row of the grid. At the very start of the race, he took the lead and within a short time had established an impressive advantage over the rest of the field. When Kaufmann handed the mid-engined Porsche to Afschin Fatemi at the 1.5 hour mark, the silver no. 58 car held a secure lead. Fatemi drove a strong middle stint and Kaufmann once again took over for the last hour of the race, when the six cylinder boxer engine suddenly lost power. Nevertheless, Kaufmann/Fatemi ended their race in an excellent 3rd place. “Sadly, the engine lost power when I was in 3rd position, directly behind the leaders. Therefore I could not launch a final attack. Still, 3rd place is a fine reward for our effort as with our engine trouble, I had not expected to get to the finish.” Bitter aftertaste: “Timing and scoring made a mistake with my name, and had me down as Georg Kaufmann. So in my first race with a Porsche 904, I drove incognito…”
For the rest of the weekend, Kaufmann traded the nimble, 2l midship engine Porsche 904 for a “larger calibre” machine. Rear engine, twin turbochargers, more than 600bhp, and the legendary Jägermeister livery: It was Kaufmann’s second appearance with the Kremer Porsche 935 K3 at the revival race of the „Deutsche Rennsport Meisterschaft” at the Oldtimer Grand Prix, on the Grand Prix track. In the Saturday race, he was on the attack from his starting position in row 1. Imediately after the start, he outbraked his main rival in the Coca-Cola Porsche 935 K3, and took the lead which he would not relinquish till the chequered flag. This success gave Kaufmann pole position for the second Revival race on Sunday; and it was a carbon copy of the first heat as Kaufmann easily drove away from the field and to a double victory. The only excitement toward the end was the attempt at a good finish line photo: “My team mate Daniel Schrey was in 2nd place, so I took it a little easier for the last two laps to get us a nice photo finish, not without leaving enough of a margin of course!”
“Porsche Kremer did a fine job of work over the weekend, and gave me a 935 K3 that was perfect right down to the last detail. In both races, the K3 ran perfectly and handled great. I am looking forward to the next races with Kremer Racing in the German endurance championship on the Nürburgring; this team knows what it’s doing!”
It was not just the immaculately prepared Porsche, and his two wins, that Kaufmann was delighted with: “The atmosphere at the Oldtimer Grand Prix was amazing over the whole weekend. The fans were enthusiastic and very knowledgeable. Winning twice in front of such an audience makes it double fun!”
Kaufmann will continue with historic racing next weekend when he will once more get behind the wheel of the Castrol Ford Escort BDA, at Zolder in Belgium. “At the last Youngtimer race in Spa-Francorchamps, I had o abandon the race while in the lead with technical trouble. So I hope I that my success at the Oldtimer Grand Prix will carry over to the Escort in Zolder.”
Source : Wolfgang Kaufmann