ADAC GT Masters: Brilliant 1-2-3 Audi victory in a rainy race 1 at the Nürburgring

A brilliant 1-2-3 victory for the Audi Sport customer racing squad in the ADAC GT Masters race 1 at the Nürburgring. C.ABT Racing took the race win ahead of MS Racing and YACO Racing in a race highlighted by rain and difficult track conditions.

The winning #2 Audi R8 LMS ultra was driven by Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim. The latter had a phenomenal stint in the second half of the race. The Danish factory Audi driver was impressive and was able to build a very comfortable gap ahead of his rivals.

Second place went to the #100 Audi R8 LMS ultra from MS Racing. The car was shared by Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström.

The podium was completed by the #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra from YACO Racing. The car driven by Rahel Frey and Philip Geipel.

Both of  #100 Audi R8 LMS ultra from MS Racing and #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra from YACO Racing improved in the closing stages.

UPDATE: The #100 Audi R8 LMS ultra from MS Racing has been given the race victory. Race officials gave the race winning #2 Audi R8 LMS ultra from C.ABT Racing a 30 seconds penalty for overtaking under yellow flags.

The #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra from YACO Racing moved to second place. The podium is completed by another car from C.ABT Racing, the #1 Audi R8 LMS.

Photo credit: ADAC GT Masters

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ADAC GT Masters: The Audi squad moves to the Nürburgring

By Tarek Ramchani

The famous Nürburgring circuit will play host to the fifth ADAC GT Masters meeting this weekend. The Audi Sport customer racing squad will be represented by six Audi R8 LMS ultras.

The Audi teams had some ups and downs last time out at the Lausitzring. The three privateers teams will be eager to bounce back and fight for race victories in one of the most demanding GT3 fields in Europe.

C.ABT Racing will once again field three cars. #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra driven by Stefan Wackerbauer and Kelvin van der Linde. The #2 Audi R8 LMS ultra is shared by Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim. The #3 Audi R8 LMS ultra will have Andreas Weishaupt and Christer Jöns. C.ABT Racing is ninth in the overall standing with 36 points.

kfzteile24 MS RACING will enter the Nürburgring round with a two-car effort. The #24 Audi R8 LMS ultra will be driven by Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng. Their team-mates Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström will share the sister #100 Audi R8 LMS ultra. kfzteile24 MS RACING is seventh in the teams' standing with a total of 57 points.

YACO Racing as always will have a single car. Their #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra will be shared by Rahel Frey and Philip Geipel. YACO Racing is eleventh in the teams' championship standing with 30 points.

Action at the Nürburgring will start on Friday with two practice sessions and two qualifying one. The first race will be held on Saturday. Warm-up and the second race are set for Sunday.

Photo credit: ADAC GT Masters

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ADAC GT: Top 5 result for MS Racing Audi in Lausitzring race 2

By Tarek Ramchani

The Audi teams had mixed fortunes in the second ADAC GT Masters race of the weekend at the Lausitzring. The Audi race was highlighted by strong performances and a lot of bad luck as well.

MS Racing performed well with their two Audis in the the 60-minute race. The #100 R8 LMS ultra driven by Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström finished in fifth place overall. The two drivers did not take part in yesterday's race 1 following technical issues.

Their-team mates Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng were strong as well. They finished the race in sixth place behind the wheel of the #24 Audi R8 LMS ultra.

As was the case yesterday, the lone YACO Racing entry managed to enter the top-ten. The #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra shared by Rahel Frey and Philip Geipel crossed the finish line in tenth place.

A much harder race for the C.ABT Racing squad. The defending champions faced a lot of bad luck today. Their best ranked car was the #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra driven by the 2014  series champion Kelvin van der Linde and  Stefan Wackerbauer in twelfth place.

The #2 Audi with Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim was fourteenth. Unfortunately the #3 car with Andreas Weishaupt and Christer Jöns did not finish the race.

Race victory went to the #21 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 from Zakspeed Racing. Callaway Competition took the second place with the #66 Corvette Z06 GT3. The final spot of the podium went to the #36 Porsche 997 GT3 R from Schutz Motorsport.

The next ADAC GT Masters round will be held at the Nürburgring, July 17th-19th.

Photo credit: ADAC GT Masters

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ADAC GT Masters: Strong qualifying for Audi teams at the Lausitzring

By Tarek Ramchani

The Audi teams performed very in the two ADAC GT Masters qualifying sessions at the Lausitzring today. The Audi R8 LMS ultras were among the best cars in a very demanding field.

In the first qualifying session Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström were the best drivers within the Audi squad. Behind the wheel of the #100 Audi R8 LMS ultra from MS Racing they were third quickest overall.

Their team-mates Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng were sixth fastest with the #24 Audi R8 LMS ultra.

2014 series champion Kelvin van der Linde and team-mate Stefan Wackerbauer were seventh with the #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra from C.ABT Racing.

The other three Audis qualified outside the Top 10. Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim (#2 C.ABT Racing) were twelfth. Rahel Frey and Philip Geipel (#16 YACO Racing) were fourteenth. Andreas Weishaupt and Christer Jöns (#3 C.ABT Racing) did not set any time.

In the second qualifying session the Audi entries were able to perform well again. Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim were second fastest and narrowly missed pole position with the #2 Audi R8 LMS ultra from C.ABT Racing.

Kelvin van der Linde and Stefan Wackerbauer (#1 C.ABT Racing) were sixth.  Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng (#24 MS Racing) were seventh. Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström (#100 MS Racing) were ninth. Rahel Frey and Philip Geipel (#16 YACO Racing) were fifteenth. Andreas Weishaupt and Christer Jöns (#3 C.ABT Racing) were seventeenth.

The first race will be held on Saturday with a live stream coverage provided by the series official website.

Photo credit: ADAC GT Masters

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ADAC GT Masters: Audi teams chasing victories at the Lausitzring

By Tarek Ramchani

The Lausitzring circuit will play host to the fifth round of the 2015 ADAC GT Masters season this weekend. Audi Sport customer racing will be once again represented by six Audi R8 LMS ultras.

The Audi squad performed well in Belgian round of the series last time at Spa-Francorchamps. The Audi teams will be chasing race victories against world class rivals at the EuroSpeedway.

C.ABT Racing will field three cars. The #1 Audi will be driven by 2014 series champion Kelvin van der Linde and  Stefan Wackerbauer. The #2 R8 LMS ultra will be in the hands of Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim, the latter won both Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland races at the Norisring last weekend. Andreas Weishaupt and Christer Jöns will share the #3 machine.

MS Racing will have two cars at the Lausitzring. Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng will share the #24  R8 LMS ultra, the twi drivers took a fine podium at Spa-Francorchamps last time out. Their team-mates Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström will be behind the wheel of the #100 Audi.

YACO Racing will be at the Lausitzring with their lone #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra. The car will be shared by Rahel Frey and Philip Geipel.

Lausitzring Entry List

Action will start at the Lausitzring on Friday with two practice sessions followed by the two qualifying ones. Race 1 will be held on Saturday. The warm-up and Race 2 will conclude the ADAC GT Masters race weekend on Sunday.

Photo credit: ADAC GT Masters

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ADAC GT Masters: Podium for MS Racing Audi in a very wet Spa race 2

By Tarek Ramchani

A very wet Spa-Francorchamps hosted the second ADAC GT Masters race of the weekend. The Audi squad performed well in extremely difficult weather and track conditions. A fine podium and a total of four R8 LMS ultras inside the Top 10.

The start of the race was delayed for the very bad weather. Once the race started the Audis were able to improve.

Unfortunately there was a contact between two cars from MS Racing, Edward Sandstrom and Marc Basseng touched each other exiting La Source with. The #100 R8 LMS losing a large amount of time stopped on track. Few minutes later and the Safety Car was deployed, once the race restarted the Audis charged back again.

At the end of the hard and fought race the #24 MS Racing ended in a strong third place. The car was shared by Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng. The Audi drivers were behind the winning #21 Mercedes-Benz SLS GT3 from Zakspeed Racing and the second placed #66 Corvette Z06 GT3 from Callaway Competition.

The #2 Audi from C.ABT Racing was fourth overall with drivers Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim. The lone YACO Racing entry was seventh with  Rahel Frey and Philip Geipel behind the wheel of the #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra.

Andreas Weishaupt and  Christer Jöns were ninth with the #3 Audi R8 LMS ultra from C.ABT Racing. Their team-mates Stefan Wackerbauer and Kelvin van der Linde narrlowly missed the Top 10 with their #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra. The #100 car from MS Racing was sixteenth with drivers Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström.

Photo credit: MS Racing / ADAC GT Masters

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ADAC GT Masters: The Audi teams performed well in Spa-Francorchamps qualifying

By Tarek Ramchani

The famous Spa-Francorchamps circuit in Belgium is playing host to the third round of the 2015 ADAC GT Masters season. Audi Sport customer racing is represented by no less than six Audi R8 LMS ultra cars.

The Audi teams performed well in the two qualifying sessions held this afternoon in the Ardennes. In the first qualifying qualifying session, the best ranked R8 LMS ultra was the #1 car from C.ABT Racing driven by Stefan Wackerbauer and Kelvin van der Linde, they qualified in fourth place overall.

The two MS Racing Audis were inside the top 10. Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng were eighth with the #24 Audi. Their team-mates Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström were ninth with the sister #100 R8 LMS ultra.

Audi Qualifying 1 Results:

P4 #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra Stefan Wackerbauer - Kelvin van der Linde (C.ABT Racing)
P8 #24 Audi R8 LMS ultra Florian Stoll - Marc Basseng (MS Racing)
P9 #100 Audi R8 LMS ultra Daniel Dobitsch - Edward Sandström (MS Racing)
P11 #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra Rahel Frey - Philip Geipel (YACO Racing)
P14 #2 Audi R8 LMS ultra Jordan Lee Pepper - Nicki Thiim (C.ABT Racing)
P19 #3 Audi R8 LMS ultra Andreas Weishaupt - Christer Jöns (C.ABT Racing)

In the second qualifying session, Stefan Wackerbauer and Kelvin van der Linde were again the fastest within the Audi squad. The two C.ABT Racing drivers qualified in seventh place overall.

MS Racing's Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström were eighth fastest with the #100 Audi R8 LMS ultra. Their team-mates Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng narrowly missed the Top 10, they ended in eleventh place.

Audi Qualifying 2 Results:

P7 #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra Stefan Wackerbauer - Kelvin van der Linde (C.ABT Racing)
P8 #100 Audi R8 LMS ultra Daniel Dobitsch - Edward Sandström (MS Racing)
P11 #24 Audi R8 LMS ultra Florian Stoll - Marc Basseng (MS Racing)
P12 #3 Audi R8 LMS ultra Andreas Weishaupt - Christer Jöns (C.ABT Racing)
P15 #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra Rahel Frey - Philip Geipel (YACO Racing)
P18 #2 Audi R8 LMS ultra Jordan Lee Pepper - Nicki Thiim (C.ABT Racing)

Race 1 will be held on Saturday

Photo credit: ADAC GT Masters

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ADAC GT Masters: Top 10 result for kfzteile24 MS RACING in Red Bull Ring race 2

By Tarek Ramchani

The Audi Sport customer racing squad had a very frustrating ADAC GT Masters race 2 at the Red Bull Ring. All of the three Audi teams pushed very hard yet they were never able to fight for the top spots.

At the end of the 60-minute sprint race, a single Audi R8 LMS ultra car made it inside the Top 10.

The best ranked Audi drivers were Daniel Dobitsch and Edward Sandström in tenth place overall. They shared the #100 R8 LMS ultra from kfzteile24 MS RACING.

The single entry from YACO Racing was a position behind. Rahel Frey and Philip Geipel sharing the #16 Audi R8 LMS ultra were eleventh.

Best of the C.ABT Racing Audis was thirteenth with the #2 Audi R8 LMS ultra driven by Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim. Their team-mates Stefan Wackerbauer and Kelvin van der Linde were sixteenth with the #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra.

Florian Stoll and Marc Basseng were seventeenth  driving the #24 Audi R8 LMS ultra from kfzteile24 MS RACING. Unfortunately, the #3 Audi R8 LMS ultra from C.ABT Racing driven by Andreas Weishaupt and Christer Jönswas forced to retire after 4 laps.

Up ahead it was a Lamborghini affair. Race victory went to the new #63 Lamborghini Hurcan GT3 from GRT Grasser Racing. The #25 Lamborghini Gallardo from Reiter Engineering was second. The #36 Porsche 997 GT3 R from Schütz Motorsport was third.

The next ADAC GT Masters round will be at the demanding Spa-Francorchamps circuit, June 19th-21st.

Photo credit: ADAC GT Masters

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ADAC GT Masters: Seven Audi R8 LMS ultra cars for the 2015 season

Audi Press Release

With a field made up of eight automotive brands, the ADAC GT Masters is one of the world’s strongest national GT3 championships. This weekend, the new season of the high-caliber GT racing series will open at Oschersleben. Four customer teams will be putting a total of seven Audi R8 LMS ultra cars on the grid – no other manufacturer has as many cars in the field as Audi.

The title winner is returning: Kelvin van der Linde, who in 2014 immediately won the ADAC GT Masters drivers’ championship, is staying with the privateer team C. Abt Racing in the new season. After his previous team-mate René Rast has switched to Audi’s WEC driver squad, the 18-year-old South African is now sharing a cockpit with a young Bavarian talent: 19-year-old Stefan Wackerbauer from Landshut. Wackerbauer is set on showing that he deserves sitting in car number ‘1.’”

“Kelvin’s title win has made him even stronger and Stefan has greatly impressed me with his on-track performances as well,” says Team Director Christian Abt, who won the title in the series himself in 2009. “Thanks to the support of our partners we’re fielding two more Audi R8 LMS ultra cars with good driver pairings. Cars number ‘1,’ ‘2’ and ‘3’ are the dream of any team boss, as well as a serious commitment. It’s a tough competition.”

kfzteile24 MS Racing Team from Waldshut-Tiengen is fielding two GT3 sports cars with the four rings. The squad of Team Director Harald Böttner was the 2012 winner of the ADAC GT Masters and is now relying on Audi for the third consecutive time. Regular driver Florian Stoll is sharing the cockpit with former GT1 World Champion Marc Basseng; Daniel Dobitsch from Austria is competing together with the Swede Edward Sandström in the sister car.

Two other teams are each fielding an Audi R8 LMS ultra. Like last year, Team Yaco Racing from Plauen headed by Team Director Uwe Geipel relies on the driver pairing Philip Geipel and Rahel Frey. Dupré Engineering Motorsport from Schiffweiler is contesting its first full season in the ADAC GT Masters. The team of Claus Dupré based in the Saarland looks back on a decade-long association with Audi in customer racing.

Two drivers are again sharing a cockpit in the ADAC GT Masters this season. Two one-hour races with pit stops and driver changes are held per weekend. Eight sports car models – Audi, Bentley, BMW, Chevrolet Camaro, Corvette, Mercedes-AMG, Nissan and Porsche – are represented in the field.

“Anyone who prevails in the ADAC GT Masters can stand their ground in international series as well,” says Romolo Liebchen, Head of Audi Sport customer racing. “The series is now being held for the ninth consecutive year. 25 entrants from eight marques contest the events, delivering thrilling racing in Germany, Austria, Belgium and the Netherlands. The races will again be covered live on TV, which causes the fan community to steadily grow. We’re proud that so many customers opt for the Audi R8 LMS ultra. In the fierce on-track competition, our customers can depend on our presence with service vehicles and points of contact at all races and receiving optimum support from us.”

The Audi customer teams in the 2015 ADAC GT Masters

Audi R8 LMS ultra #1 (C. Abt Racing)
Kelvin van der Linde/Stefan Wackerbauer (ZA/D)

Audi R8 LMS ultra #2 (C. Abt Racing)
Jordan Lee Pepper/Nicki Thiim (ZA/DK)

Audi R8 LMS ultra #3 (C. Abt Racing)
Christer Jöns/Andreas Weishaupt (D/D)

Audi R8 LMS ultra #10 (Dupré Engineering Motorsport)
Christoph Dupré/NN (D)

Audi R8 LMS ultra #16 (Yaco Racing)
Rahel Frey/Philip Geipel (CH/D)

Audi R8 LMS ultra #24 (kfzteile24 MS Racing Team)
Marc Basseng/Florian Stoll (D/D)

Audi R8 LMS ultra #100 (kfzteile24 MS Racing Team)
Daniel Dobitsch/Edward Sandström (D/S)

Photo credit: Audi Media

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ADAC GT Masters: 2015 C.Abt Racing Audi R8 LMS ultra liveries revealed

By Tarek Ramchani

Reigning ADAC GT Masters champions from C.ABT Racing have unveiled their liveries for the 2015 season.

Three Audi R8 LMS ultra cars will take part in the demanding German GT series aiming to keep the 2014 drivers' and teams' championship titles.

The #1 Audi will have a red livery and will be shared by 2014 champion Kelvin van der Linde and Stefan Wackerbaue. The #2 R8 LMS ultra will have a black and white livery and will be in the hands of Jordan Lee Pepper and Nicki Thiim. The #3 car will be have a red and white livery and will be driven by  Andreas Weishaupt and Christer Jöns.

All three cars liveries were made by Redcart-Designs

Photo credit: C.ABT Racing / Redcart-Designs

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ADAC GT Masters: C.Abt Racing testing Pirelli tires at Oschersleben

By Johan Laubscher

C.Abt Racing was out testing at Oschersleben on Wednesday. The day's proceedings included tire testing with the team's Pirelli-shod #1 Audi R8 LMS ultra. Christopher Mies was on hand to drive the car. A number of other ADAC GT Masters teams also took part in the Pirelli tire testing.

The German Audi Sport customer racing team is preparing to run a three-car Audi R8 LMS ultra campaign in the 2015 ADAC GT Masters.

Oschersleben will be hosting the opening round of the ADAC GT Masters from 24-26 April.

Post by Motorsport Arena Oschersleben.

Photo credit: 
Motorsport Arena Oschersleben
Christopher Mies

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ADAC GT Masters: C.ABT Racing testing Audi R8 LMS ultra cars at Ascari

By Johan Laubscher

C.ABT Racing was out testing two Audi R8 LMS ultra cars at Ascari in Spain this weekend. The German Audi Sport customer racing team continued its preparations for the 2015 ADAC GT Masters by taking part in test sessions during a TCC Winter Challenge weekend hosted at Ascari.

The team is busy preparing to run a three-car Audi R8 LMS ultra team in the ADAC GT Masters championship, aiming to repeat the success from the previous two years: 2013 and 2014 teams' titles and the 2014 drivers' title.

The 2015 ADAC GT Masters season gets underway at Oschersleben from 24-26 April.

Photo credit: Gedlich Racing

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ADAC GT Masters: Kelvin van der Linde is Bridgestone SA /SA Guild of Motoring Journalists Motor Sportsman of the Year

Kelvin van der Linde Press Release

Kelvin van der Linde, 18, the reigning Bridgestone SA / SAGMJ Motor Sportsman of the Year, has made it two in a row.

Van der Linde, who last year at age 17 became the youngest ever recipient of this prestigious award, has again been honoured this year, as the 2014 Bridgestone SA / SAGMJ Motor Sportsman of the Year.

The talented track racing star received the award at a function in Johannesburg today for his exceptional performance in the prestigious GP Masters Series last year.

The function was attended by nearly 200 of the most influential role-players in South African motorsport, including Kelvin’s proud father and former national champion Shaun van der Linde, his mother Bernadine and younger brother Sheldon (also a finalist this year).

Kelvin went back to Germany in his matric year to compete in the prestigious championship in an Audi R8 LMS Ultra of the Prosperia C Abt team. He and partner Rene Rast were the class of the field and won the title against some of the finest sports car and F1 drivers in the world.

This world-class achievement follows the former national karting champion and Volkswagen Cup champion’s victory in the 2013 International VW Scirocco R-Cup against drivers from 24 countries.

During 2013 he was also chosen to attend the elite FIA Institute Young Drivers Excellence Academy as Africa’s representative after an exhaustive selection process. This year he will be taking his burgeoning career to the next level with a full-time drive in the international GT Masters for the official Audi GT team.

The award, which recognises and rewards outstanding and remarkable achievements by South African motor sport competitors, was first won in 1964. It has been sponsored by Bridgestone South Africa for the past 22 years.

Photo credit: 
Audi Communications - Motorsport
Kelvin van der Linde
Live Event Broadcast

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