A double victory for Sabine
02.05.2021
The Frikadelli Racing Team landed an impressive double success in the third round of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS). Porsche works drivers Mathieu Jaminet and Earl Bamber secured overall victory with the # 30 Porsche 911 GT3 R ahead of their teammates Patrick Pilet and Maxime Martin, who shared the wheel of the # 31 Porsche 911 GT3 R. For the “fastest meatball in the world” it was the eighth day overall success in the Nordschleife championship; the last victory was in 2018.
“It was a perfect weekend for us, which we were able to finish in the best possible way with first and second overall. This double victory is only for sabine. We are all sure that she is just as happy at this moment as we are and that she enjoyed it from above, ”explains team boss Klaus Abbelen, for whom this success can be attributed to several factors. “I am incredibly proud of the entire team and our team performance. We used the entire preparation phase intensively with top engineers, mechanics and of course everyone in the background to enable such a result. Apart from the Nordschleife, which has many times more grip, we have found a lot of potential in our vehicles. In addition, Michelin did a great job over the winter. Almost all vehicle brands have confirmed this potential. Nobody can take the double victory away from us. "
The race day started with an extremely chaotic qualifying. Several incidents on the track meant that the session had to be interrupted twice with the red flag. However, the Frikadelli Racing Team was able to successfully stay out of all the turbulence. Earl Bamber and Porsche works driver Mathieu Jaminet achieved a lap time of 7: 54.980 minutes and put the # 30 Porsche 911 GT3 R in second starting position. The driver duo was just a tenth of a second short of pole position. Patrick Pilet and Maxime Martin finished sixth on the grid with the # 31 Porsche 911 GT3 R.
In the early stages of the race, Earl Bamber fought a courageous duel at the front with the pole setter BMW M6 GT3 from Schubert Motorsport. At the beginning of lap two, the New Zealander managed to take the overall lead while accelerating out of the Mercedes Arena. Behind him, Patrick Pilet fought his way forward in the sister vehicle. Starting from sixth on the grid, the Frenchman moved up to second overall position during the first stint and set out to pursue his team-mate Bamber. Due to different strategies, the picture at the top varied from time to time in the following rounds. After the last pit stops with a driver change, the two Frikadelli Porsche 911 GT3 R were again in the front and successfully defended this one-two lead to the finish. In the end, Jaminet / Bamber had the upper hand with just under 10 seconds ahead of Pilet / Martin.
Second place and championship lead for the # 962 Porsche Cayman GT4
Apart from the GT3 category, the Frikadelli Racing Team had every reason to be happy. Hendrik von Danwitz and “Jules” secured second place in the Pro-Am category of the Cup-3 class, just like at the season opener two weeks earlier. With this, the German-British driver team gained enough points to take over the championship lead in this special ranking of the Porsche Cayman GT4 Trophy after the second race of the season. In the daily standings of the Cup3 class, it was seventh out of a total of 17 vehicles that started.
Driver voices:
Mathieu Jaminet (# 30 Porsche 911 GT3 R): “The good starting position after qualifying was an important key for us. After we were able to take the lead early in the race, we did everything we could to keep up the pace and in the end we were rewarded with victory. First and second place is a mega team result. We all dedicate the victory to Sabine, of course. I am sure that she would be incredibly proud of us.
Earl Bamber (# 30 Porsche 911 GT3 R): “First and second place - a fantastic result for the entire Frikadelli Racing Team and great preparation for the 24h race at the Nürburgring. We are very happy about this result and are on the right track."
Patrick Pilet (# 31 Porsche 911 GT3 R): “A great race for Frikadelli Racing and Porsche. We will now briefly enjoy this moment before we fully focus on further preparation. Our goal is to be 100% sorted out in the 24h race. The qualifying race will continue next weekend, which will be very important for this. I'm already really looking forward to it. I really enjoy working with the entire team. "
Maxime Martin (# 31 Porsche 911 GT3 R): “The result makes me extremely happy for the entire team, who have worked very hard for this. Unfortunately, we had a stop-and-go penalty that cost us some time and maybe even the win over our sister car. However, it was important to see that we can achieve good pace with both Porsche 911 GT3 R."
Jules (# 962 Porsche Cayman GT4): “Today was a fantastic and very special day for Frikadelli Racing thanks to the double success of the two GT3 Porsches. But we are also incredibly happy and satisfied with our second place in the Pro-Am class. The car felt fantastic and the crew did an excellent job once again. Many thanks to Frikadelli Racing and my team-mate Hendrik. "
Hendrik von Danwitz (# 962 Porsche Cayman GT4): “With third place in qualifying, the day started well for us. The race was then characterized by an incredible number of Code 60 phases. Nevertheless, we got through well and again very satisfied with the result. "
