FIA GT1 Silverstone - Qualifying Report and Times

In the quest for the world’s most complicated qualifying format the GT1 World Championship is right up there with the now defunct A1GP series.

Session 1 sees all cars on track with the top 16 progressing to session 2

Session 2 sees the other driver in the car and the top eight progressing to the final session with first session times discounted

Session 3 sees the top eight cars, now again with the driver from session one in a head to head battle for pole for the qualifying race.

Got that? Good!

Session 1

With only 23 cars entered this weekend just seven cars would be eliminated from the first 10 minute session

Oliver Gavin in the #12 Mad Croc Corvette put down an early marker or two that he had every intention of figuring at or near the top of the timesheets, immediately under 2:01 and going progressively quicker over the following laps, into the 1:59s and completing his push with a 1:59.861, at that stage way quicker than the rest of the field.

The pace though was hotting up and Christophe Bouchut in the #37 All Inkl Lamborghini was ever so briefly in the top three but by sessions end he was the first of those to take the drop from the session, in part a drop assisted by an uncalled for assault on the #3 SRT Nissan of Karl Wendlinger, a clash which saw both cars spin and which effectively counted Wendlinger out of further contention in the session too.

The pack trying to chase down Gavin’s time included both Vitaphone Maseratis, Andrea Bertolini in #1 and Enrique Bernoldi in #2,  and Matteo Bobbi in the #34 Triple H MC12.

All three were into the 2:00s after their first couple of flyers but it was Bobbi that was next to bust the 2 minute barrier, he’d finish the session just a tenth off Ollie G’s early marker.

The Sumo Power Nissans meanwhile were having a much better weekend than their Abu Dhabi misadventure.  Warren Hughes in #22 and Michael Krumm in #23 well in the reckoning and under 2:01.

Another marque which was off-colour in the Gulf, and which has seen a substantial rebalancing since, is Aston Martin.  The #8 Young Driver DBR9, Thomas Mucke at the wheel, took substantial advantage from the lightened burden, up to second fastest early in his running with Darren Turner in the sister #7 car popping up in fourth slot at around the same moment.

The Abu Dhabi winning Matech Ford by contrast seemed to be struggling, Romain Grosjean looking at risk of session 1 elimination.

No such worries for Mucke though, he would grab the session bragging rights with a 1:59.694 as Alex Margaritas pipped his Triple H team-mate for third fastest in the session, the top four all lapping under 2 minutes.

The game now though was avoiding the drop and anyone not busting under 2:01 was very much at risk of the early bath.

At the flag the seven would include both SRT Nissans, both Marc VDS Fords (Grosjean scraping in to Session 2) , both All Inkl Lamborghinis and the Xavier Maassen pedalled #11 Mad Croc Corvette.

Session 1 Times

1 #8 YD DBR9 – Mucke - 1:59.694

2 #12 MC C6.R – Gavin – 1:59.861

3 #33 TH MC12 – Margaritis – 1:59.868

4 #34 TH MC12 – Bobbi – 1:59.888

5 #7 YD DBR9 – Turner – 2:00.076

6 #23 SPG GT-R – Krumm  - 2:00. 185

7 #1 Vit MC12 – Bertolini – 2:00.293

8 #2 Vit MC12 – Bernoldi – 2:00.424

9 #13 PC C6.R – Zuber – 2:00.471

10 #9 Hex DBR9 – Makowiecki – 2:00.594

11 #10 Hex DBR9 – Hirschi – 2:00.709

12 #24 Reit LAM – Kox – 2:00.782

13 #25 Reit LAM – Menten – 2:00.851

14 #14 PC C6.R – Hezemans – 2:00.856

15 #5 Mat FGT – Grosjean – 2:00.885

16 #22 SPG GT-R – Hughes – 2:00.995

First Session Cut

17 #37 AIM LAM – Bouchut – 2:01.158

18 #40 VDS FGT – Leinders – 2:01.175

19 #4 SRT GT-R – Ara – 2:01.193

20 #11 MC C6.R – Maassen – 2:01.424

21 #3 SRT GT-R – Wendlinger – 2:01.506

22 #41 VDS FGT – Palttala – 2:02.072

23 #38 AIM LAM – Schwager – 2:02.929

Session 2

16 GT1s rumbled out for the second ten minute session to whittle down the field to the top eight cars to progress to the final shoot-out.

With the times from Session One discounted, and with the second drivers from each car on board, 2:01 would again not be good enough if session three was the aim.

An early casualty was Altfrid Heger, spinning his Triple H MC12 at Turn 4 and doing his rubber no good whatsoever – He was doomed to the drop from that point onwards.

An Aston Martin would again top the session, but this time it was Clivio Piccione in the #10 Hexis DBR9 who would be the pacesetter, a 1:59.796 just edging out a last moment effort from Jamie Campbell Walter in the #22 Sumo Power Nissan GT-R.

That pair was followed by two more men going under 2 minutes, an impressive GT1 debut from Frank Kechele bringing the #25 Reiter Lamborghini man through the session third fastest and Michael Bartels completing the fastest four.

The remainder of the qualifiers moving on to the Top 8 shoot out all scored laptimes in the low 2:00s with Peter Dumbreck in the #23 Sumo Power Nissan fifth fastest ahead of Thomas Enge’s #7 Young Driver DBR9, Christopher Haase in the #24 Reiter Lamborghini and Thomas Accary in the #9 Hexis Aston rounded out the quickest 8.

Thomas Mutsch was struggling with the #5 Matech Ford – Despite valiant efforts he’d drop out after Session 2 together with both Phoenix Carsport C6.Rs (all three Abu Dhabi podium finishers!).  Both Triple H MC12s were out too at this stage together with Miguel Ramos’s Vitaphone version.  Christopher Nygaard’s early efforts weren’t enough to see him through in the #8 Young Driver Aston and Pertti Kuismanen was last of all in session 2 – It’s a tough qualifying format for the pro-am teams.

Session 2 Times

1 #10 Hex DBR9 – Hirschi – 1:59.796

2 #22 SPG GT-R – Campbell Walter – 1:59.826

3 #25 Reit LAM – Kechele – 1:59.876

4 #1 Vit MC12 – Bartels – 1:59.990

5 #23 SPG GT-R – Dumbreck  - 2:00.026

6 #7 YD DBR9 – Enge – 2:00.089

7 #24 Reit LAM – Haase – 2:00.099

8 #9 Hex DBR9 – Accary – 2:00.210

Cut Point

9 #13 PC C6.R – Zuber – 2:00.220

10 #8 YD DBR9 – Nygaard - 2:00.335

11 #14 PC C6.R – Kumpen – 2:00.637

12 #34 TH MC12 – Longon – 2:01.280

13 #2 Vit MC12 – Ramos – 2:01.371

14 #33TH MC12 – Heger – 2:01.899

15 #5 Mat FGT – Mutsch – 2:02.113

16 #12 MC C6.R – Kuismanen – 2:02.287

Session 3

The final 10 minute session would see the Sumo GT Nissans, Both Hexis and One Young Driver Astons duking it out for the overall grid positions alongside the #1 Vitaphone Maserati and both Reiter Lamborghinis – Balance of Performance don’cha just love it!?

The session saw several of the remaining contenders occupying the front row grid positions.  That was until Darren Turner got stuck in, the first lap in the 1:58s this weekend (1:58.808) saw pole for the qualifying race sewn up in straightforward fashion with the front row ending up as an all Aston affair, Frederic Makowiecki producing a fine lap in the low 1:59s to lift Hexis hearts.

Nissan too will have been cheered by the competitiveness of the Sumo Power GT-Rs, Michael Krumm producing a time good enough to make third slot on the grid for the qualifying race with Andrea Bertolini alongside in the #1 Vitaphone Maserati.

Session 3 Times

1 #7 YD DBR9 – Turner – 1:58.808

2 #9 Hex DBR9 – Makowiecki – 1:59.287

3 #23 SPG GT-R – Krumm  - 1:59.501

4 #1 Vit MC12 – Bertolini – 1:59.775

5 #22 SPG GT-R – Hughes – 2:00.459

6 #10 Hex DBR9 – Hirschi – 2:00.566

7 #25 Reit LAM – Menten – 2:00.641
8 #24 Reit LAM - Kox - 2:00.699