The ATS Formula 3 Cup is entering the home straight. Today’s qualifying session at Lausitzring kicked off the third-to-last racing weekend of the season. 19 drivers from ten countries battled for the fastest time and the pole position in hot temperatures and dry conditions. The first turn of the 3.442-km track was faster and smoother compared to the DTM version. Even though his Lotus team-mates put pressure on championship leader Marvin Kirchhöfer the driver from Leipzig will be the pole sitter in tomorrow’s first race. Sebastian Balthasar from Cologne set the fastest time in the Trophy ranking.
It was a hard battle for the pole position. All drivers pushed hard and the team-mates of leader Marvin Kirchhöfer from Leipzig are getting faster and faster. Russian Artem Markelov was the first to set a fastest time. However, Briton Emil Bernstorff (all Lotus / Dallara F311 Volkswagen Power Engine) managed to top that, before championship leader Marvin Kirchhöfer scored the fastest time. Bernstorff continued to fight and John Bryant-Meisner (Performance Racing / Dallara F311 Volkswagen Power Engine) took the other Top 3 place. After a few exchanges in the lead, Kirchhöfer took the pole position shortly before the end, having set a 1:15.427 min. Bernstorff scored the second fastest time (1:15.621 min) and Markelov followed in third place (1:15.727 min). This will also be the order of the starting grid of the third race on Sunday.
Newcomer pushed hard in the Trophy ranking
Turning 17 today, Sebastian Balthasar (GU-Racing / Dallara F311 Mercedes), gave himself the best present for his birthday. Perfectly preserving his tyres, the driver from Cologne grabbed the pole position in the Trophy ranking. Freddy Killensberger from Wortelstetten (GU-Racing / Dallara F307 OPC-Challenge) followed in second place. A newcomer set the third fastest time. Christopher Höher from Spittal an der Drau, Austria (Franz Wöss Racing / Dallara F307 OPC-Challenge) will start into the race from the third place in the Trophy ranking. The 16-year old is the youngest Austrian national champion in the history of Austrian auto racing.
Marvin Kirchhöfer: “That’s just how the Lausitzring is! Finding a free lap is not easy here. That one lap is crucial. It has to be perfect and I had to think of something in the end. However, that worked out fine. And my team-mates get faster and faster.”
Emil Bernstorff: “I had a great run, but then there was a lot of traffic. It would have been great if I had managed to set the second fastest time.”
Artem Markelov: “My race engineer told me to ‘push, push, push’ for the last few metres. So I pushed really hard. I am pleased with the third place. My team did a great job, choosing the right tyres.”
Sebastian Balthasar: “I was a little slower at first in order to preserve the tyres. Everything worked out perfectly right away. I am really happy!”