The Competition102 GT4 European Series experienced a successful Easter weekend at the Nogaro racetrack in France. 29,910 spectators witnessed both V8 Racing driving pairs taking victories, challenging battles for podium positions, unfortunate incidents and crashes. Dutchmen Luc Braams / Duncan Huisman and Jelle Beelen / Marcel Nooren were obviously very pleased to share victories and second places with their Chevrolets Camaro GT4. Jörg Viebahn (GER) joined his rivals on the podium of race one, even after his Aston Martin Vantage GT4 was damaged due to an incident on track. Frenchman André Grammatico became a local hero by finishing on the podium of race two while he took victory with the BMW M3 GT4 in the AM category.
KTM X-BOW GT4 racecars expected to compete at Zandvoort
Team ZaWoTec entered the Nogaro round with one Lotus Evora GT4. But soon this vehicle will be swapped for two KTM X-BOW GT4 vehicles. The brand cars are jointly developed by the renowned firms KTM Sportcar and Reiter Engineering and are almost ready to race. Mario Wolf, CEO of ZaWoTec, said: “It allows us to conduct an extensive testing programme to be fully prepared for the remaining five race weekends.”
Great performance but bad luck for Sin Cars
Sofia Car Motorsport participated with two brand new Sin R1 GT4 race cars. After completing a testing programme in Greece, the team made a strong appearance at Nogaro. Driver Hendrik Still secured pole position for race 1 and a podium finish was in reach. However, the speed wasn’t rewarded by a podium finish due to unfortunate incidents in both races. “We’re really happy with the performance of the car,” said Still, who is happy to represent the Sin Cars brand. “In terms of behaviour you could compare it with a Ginetta GT4, but actually it feels like a formula racing car. It is a fun and easy car to drive.”
Successful debut for the Porsche Cayman 981 SP
PROsport Performance has put another new GT4 racing car on track. Drivers Thomas Krebs and Arno Klasen were directly able to battle for top positions in the AM category. “It’s great to see that we are directly competitive with the Porsche Cayman 981 SP,” said Steve Buschmann, team manager of PROsport Performance. “We are really enjoying the racing series as it feels like we’ve been welcomed as family. Here it is all about having fun and racing at a high level. We like the paddock’s atmosphere.”
Grammatico became a (local) hero
André Grammatico is the reigning champion of the AM category and made a strong impression at Nogaro. The Frenchman finished third overall in the race on Monday, meanwhile he also won in the AM division. “Nogaro is a historic circuit and it doesn’t surprise me that many people have found their way to the track,” said Grammatico, who lives about 250 kilometres away from the circuit. “I am really pleased to be on the podium as I was a bit unlucky in race one.”
Viebahn successful with four different GT4 racecars
Jörg Viebahn is an experienced racecar driver and he proved once again that he can master many different vehicles. Last year he won races in a Ginetta, Porsche and BMW. At Nogaro he participated with an Aston Martin Vantage GT4 and finished third in race one. “I can quickly adapt to other cars,” knows Viebahn who has conducted development work for the VLN racing series. “Although the car’s setup was configured for endurance racing, I was able to handle the vehicle very well.”
See you in Zandvoort
Circuit Park Zandvoort will host of the next venue of the Competition102 GT4 European Series, scheduled at 22-24 May, 2015. It’s the home track of some of the teams and drivers like Simon Knap, competing for Racing Team Holland by Ekris Motorsport. “I’m really looking forward to race at my home track at Zandvoort,” said Knap, who shares a BMW M3 GT4 with Rob Severs. “I’m expecting to fight for podium positions, but it will be tough as some other drivers are familiar with the track too.”