DTM Trophy: Theo Oeverhaus and Luis Henkefend win at the Norisring.
The narrow Norisring street circuit in Nuremberg (GER) always guarantees exciting racing, and last weekend’s two DTM Trophy races were no exception. The weekend proved to be particularly successful for the BMW M Motorsport teams, as victory went to a BMW M4 GT4 driver in both races.
On Saturday, young Walkenhorst Motorsport driver Theo Oeverhaus (GER) came through to win from 14th on the grid. In an eventful race featuring several appearances from the safety car, the 17-year-old consistently worked his way through the field, and took the lead on lap 23. The race ultimately finished behind the safety car after another crash, and Oeverhaus crossed the finish line in first place. The two Project 1 drivers Colin Caresani (NED) and Louis Henkefend (GER) came home fourth and fifth. Moritz Löhner (GER) and Jordan Wallace (USA) of the FK Performance Motorsport team finished seventh and ninth.
On Sunday, Project 1 claimed a one-two. The winner of that race, which was no less exciting, was Henkefend. His team-mate Caresani finished runner-up to join him on the podium. Saturday’s winner, Oeverhaus, came home sixth that time, followed by Steriyan Folev (BUL / FK Performance Motorsport) in seventh and his team-mate Wallace in eighth.
After six of the 14 races of the season, Caresani leads the championship with 99 points, one point ahead of his closest rival.
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BMW M2 Cup: Maxime Oosten is unbeatable at the Norisring.
The BMW M2 Cup held its second event of the season at the Norisring (GER), and there was simply no beating one driver, Maxime Oosten (NED), who triumphed in both races.
Having claimed a podium at the season-opener at the Lausitzring (GER), Oosten secured his first pole position in the series with the #54 BMW M2 CS Racing at the Norisring. He then converted this into a perfect lights-to-flag victory in race one. Second place went to Tom Nittel (GER / #7). Fabian Kreim (GER / #43), who won the first two races of the season at the Lausitzring, came home third.
In race two, it initially looked as though Oosten was again going to take a comfortable victory from pole position. However, championship leader Kreim gradually closed in on him from second place and eventually found himself right behind Oosten after a safety car period in the final third of the race. The two leaders provided a thrilling climax, in which Oosten managed to keep the upper hand and take his second win of the weekend. Kreim followed him home in second place. Rookie Lorenz Stegmann (GER / #99) joined them on the podium.
Kreim continues to lead the championship after four races, but Oosten has closed the gap to just five points.
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IMPC: Tough outing in Canada for Turner Motorsport.
Just one week after Turner Motorsport’s much-lauded victory with Bill Auberlen and Dillon Machavern (both USA) in the IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge at Watkins Glen (USA), the drivers returned to action at the weekend at Canadian Tire Motorsport Park near Bowmanville (CAN). However, the Canadian trip did not play out as hoped for Turner Motorsport. The #95 BMW M4 GT4 of Auberlen and Machavern was damaged in a qualifying crash, preventing the duo from starting Saturday’s two-hour race. Their team-mates Robby Foley and Vincent Barletta (both USA) were eighth in the #96 BMW M4 GT4. Sean Quinlan and Greg Liefooghe (both USA) came home tenth in the #43 BMW M4 GT4 run by the Stephen Cameron Racing team.
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GT4 European Series: Podium for W&D Racing Team at Misano.
The GT4 European Series was at Misano, Italy, at the weekend. The W&D Racing Team claimed a podium with the #50 BMW M4 GT4. Paolo Meloni (SMR) and Massimiliano Tresoldi (ITA) finished runner-up in the AM class in race two on Sunday. They had previously finished sixth in their class in the opening race.
The Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport team again ran two BMW M4 GT4s at Misano. Will Burns (GBR) and Berkay Besler (TUR) ended both races in fifth place in the Silver class. They were alternating at the wheel of the #12 car. Their team-mates in the #11 car, Yağız Gedik and Jason Tahincioglu (both TUR), finished 13th and 12th in the Pro-Am class.
