Kell-Macdonald reconnect with victory in a 1-3 day for Greystone GT

James Kell and Dean Macdonald are back on the top of a GT Open podium. After winning the season-opening race at the Algarve and being in contention for wins in the first part of the season, the British pair had to face some setbacks, but today they were unbeatable in the Race 2 at the Red Bull Ring.

Like at the Race 1 at the Hungaroring, it was an all-British young drivers podium, with Tom Lebbon-Tom Emson in the Elite Motorsport Ferrari taking second ahead of Jayden Kelly-Josh Rattican, who rounded a 1-3 for the Greystone GT McLarens and impressed in their debut in the series.

Exactly like last year, Ernst Kirchmayr and Giacomo Altoè took pole and victory in Pro-Am, in the Ferrari 296 of Austria’s Baron Motorsport, ahead of Steve Jans-Aaron Walker (GetSpeed Mercedes) and Maksim Kizilov-Alexey Nesov in the Car Collection Porsche.

In Am, Gino Forgione and Michele Rugolo (AF Corse Ferrari) are again lone leaders in the class after a seventh success, ahead of Mark Sansom-Marco Pulcini (Garage 59 McLaren) and Ameerh Naran (Vimana by GetSpeed Mercedes).

Levente Révész is back on top of the overall standings, having finished fifth with Max Götz in the Motopark Mercedes. He has a three-point lead (105 vs 102) on the Eastalent Racing Audi of Simon Reicher-Christopher Haase, today out of the points because of a puncture.

THE RACE – At the start, poleman Altoè keeps the advantage, with White being passed for second by Macdonald and soon after by Mosca too. Nesov is fifth ahead of Emson, Aron, Bortolotti, Kelly and Haase, who was demoted from P2 to P11 in the grid for a track limit infringement.

Vos stops in the first lap with a technical issue while Kell and Dörrbecker get in contact, with the McLaren remaining stuck in the gravel, which prompts the safety car out, while Poulsen pits briefly. At restart, things remain stable, but in lap 9, Haase has to pit with the rear left tyre punctured after a slight contact with Walker. In the lead, Altoè is closely challenged by Mosca, with Macdonald very close too. Only four seconds from the top, Nesov is fourth ahead of White, Aron, Bortolotti, Emson, Kelly and Révész, while Korzeniowski leads in Am ahead of Pulcini.

The pit stops start on lap 15, and while still out on track, Mosca takes the lead from Altoè in turn 1 at the start of lap 17. After all changes, James Kell leads with one second on Lebbon and Rattican, 5 on Kirchmayr, 9 on Petrov, 10 on Götz, then Ramirez, Bennett and Letlaka. Sansom leads in Am, while Müller spins. There is also an incident between Dörrbecker and Letlaka, for which the Mexican gets a 10-second penalty.

As laps go by, the three young Brits in the lead, Kell, Lebbon and Rattican, are covered by less than one second, with Petrov an excellent fourth ahead of Götz, Kirchmayr, Bennett, Kizilov and Jans, while Rugolo has passed Sansom for the lead in Am.  Positions, though, will not change much, except for Bennett taking fifth from Kirchmays, who wins the Pro-Am ahead of Jans and Kzilov. In Am, Rugolo passes Sansom, with Naran finishing third.