BMW duo Oosten/Köhler claim victory at season-opener in Oschersleben

The BMW duo of Maxime Oosten (NL) and Leon Köhler (Erlenbach am Main/both FK Performance) got this year’s ADAC GT Masters off to the perfect start in the opening race at Motorsport Arena Oschersleben: the Dutch/German pairing claimed the first victory of the season in their BMW M4 GT3. Second place went to last year’s champion Elias Seppänen (FIN) alongside Tom Kalender (Hamm/Sieg) in the Landgraf Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3. The Mercedes-AMG of Max Reis (Ramstein) and Kwanda Mokoena (ZA) completed the podium for Haupt Racing Team.

Oosten laid the foundations for his second victory in the ADAC GT Masters at the start of the race: “There was an incredibly intense battle with the Grasser Lamborghini at the start. To defend the lead, I had to stay alongside Tim Zimmermann on the exit from turn one. After that I was able to hold onto the position and hand over to Leon, who brought our BMW home in one piece.” Team-mate Köhler was also happy after the race: “That was a super start to the season. Maxime did a fantastic job in the first part of the race. For me, it was all about maintaining lead in the second stint. I am very happy with the win and already looking forward to race two.”

The opening race at the 3.667-kilometre track in the Magdeburg Börde region began in sunny conditions, with temperatures around 20 degrees Celsius and plenty of tension in the air. Tim Zimmermann (Langenargen/Grasser-Racing-Team) made a good start from second place on the grid and was embroiled in a spectacular three-way battle for the lead in turn one with pole-sitter Oosten and Jannes Fittje (Langenhain). Oosten was unwilling to give up the lead without a fight and managed to maintain the upper hand against Zimmermann. The 20-year-old Dutchman then opened a lead of several car lengths. However, just five minutes later that lead disappeared with the appearance of the safety car.

Oosten showed no nerves at the restart and soon restored the gap between himself and Zimmermann, who bid farewell to the battle for the race win when he suffered a puncture. Zimmermann and his team-mate Benjamin Hites eventually came home eleventh. Out in front, Oosten handed the BMW over to Köhler, who went on to seal the victory with a lead of over 13 seconds. Oosten/Köhler also won the Silver Cup class for young drivers.

The season also started successfully with second place for the duo in the Landgraf Motorsport Mercedes-AMG GT3. “I am very happy with the result. Elias made my debut very easy for me. I am delighted to have made it onto the podium,” said Tom Kalender, who became the youngest driver in the history of the ADAC GT Masters to take his place on the podium.

Third place was also a successful start to the season for Reis and Mokoena. “A fantastic experience, to be on the podium in the very first race. Kwanda handed the car over to me in a very promising position, which gave me a good basis to work on. My stint was also good, so we were managed to pick up our first trophy,” said Reis, describing his debut.

Fourth place went to Jannes Fittje and Finn Wiebelhaus (Obertshausen/Haupt Racing Team) in another Mercedes-AMG, ahead of twins Michael and Johannes Kapfinger in a Porsche 911 GT3 R run by Team Joos by Twin Busch. Salman Owega (Cologne) and David Schumacher (Salzburg) came home sixth at the wheel of a Haupt Racing Team Mercedes-AMG GT3, followed by the Ferrari 296 GT3 of Emil Frey Racing duo Jean-Luc D´Auria (CH) and Alain Valente (CH).

Alexander Schwarzer (D) and Alexander Fach (CHE/both Fach Auto Tech) crossed the finish line in their Porsche 911 GT3 R in eighth place, which was good enough to earn them victory in the Pro-Am class. The Aston Martin Vantage GT3 of Walkenhorst Motorsport, with Mike David Ortmann (Ahrensfelde) and Denis Bulatov (Cologne) at the wheel, finished ninth. Simon Connor Primm (Großschirma) and Jonas Greif (Coswig/both Paul Motorsport) completed the top ten in their Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo2.