Around 50,000 spectators attended this year's Hockenheim Historic event. There was plenty of action in the FORMULA class, with Paul O’Connell being crowned the inaugural winner of the new WORLD SERIES category and Ingo Gerstl putting on a thrilling display in F1.

In glorious spring weather, there was thrilling racing action on the track and a packed programme of supporting events off-track. For Race 1 this year, BOSS GP was given a stage normally reserved for Formula 1. The opening race was celebrated in style with an extended grid walk, a tribute to Jim Clark and the German national anthem. The highlight for many was once again clearly the appearance of Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Team Top Speed) in the Toro Rosso STR1, who has twice been presented with the winner’s trophy in the BOSS GP F1 rankings.

The action was intense from the outset of Race 1 between the two leading FORMULA cars, driven by Simone Colombo (ITA) and Francisco Soldavini (ARG). The more experienced Colombo took the lead at the start, ahead of the 19-year-old rookie. However, Soldavini quickly made it clear that he wanted to overtake, but he misjudged his entry into the Mercedes Arena and collided with Colombo’s GP2 car. Both drivers were able to return to the pits, but ultimately had to retire their damaged cars. This cleared the way for Marco Ghiotto (ITA) and Thomas Zeltner (SUI) from Team Nardi Compressori. Towards the end of the race, Zeltner closed the gap to just half a second, but it wasn't enough to overtake his teammate Ghiotto — the race was already decided.

Martin Kindler (SUI, Jenzer Motorsport) and Alexander Seibold (SUI, Seibold auto+sport) battled it out for third place for lap after lap. Seibold defended his position hard for a long time, but shortly before the end, Kindler managed to make the decisive move at the hairpin bend. The two Team Top Speed drivers, Stephan Miller (AUT) and Erich Zech (GER), followed in fifth and sixth places.

The second race in the FORMULA class was equally exciting. Once again, Colombo and Soldavini engaged in a fierce duel, which culminated in the final corner. Soldavini attempted to overtake Colombo once more, but without success. Colombo held on to the lead and won, while Soldavini spun off the track. Ghiotto benefited from this once again and, with a second-place finish, he now leads the championship standings after the first weekend. His team-mate Zeltner finished third, ahead of Kindler and Seibold. Came to a hold on Saturday, Roland Rupprechter (AUT, R&B Wealth Management) crossed the line in sixth place on Sunday, ahead of Jens Renstrup (DEN, MM International) and Stephan Miller.

The new WORLD SERIES class, featuring 2012-model cars fitted with Gibson V8 engines, saw Irishman Paul O'Connell (HS Engineering) claim a clear-cut victory on its debut. Although he had a mishap on Saturday, his lead was sufficient to secure him the top spot despite spinning. After the race, he did a few doughnuts to the delight of the spectators in the South Stand. Andreas Fiedler (GER, HS Engineering), who was making his World Series V8 debut, also performed well, finishing second twice. Franz B. (AUT, Team Top Speed) also made it onto the podium twice, achieving third place on his BOSS GP debut. Technical difficulties meant that Marco Minelli (ITA, AM Sport System) could only watch from the sidelines on Saturday, but he came very close to the podium on Sunday. Nevertheless, finishing fourth in the class provided a satisfactory end to his weekend.

Karl Heinz Matzinger, together with Team Hoffmann Racing, brought the Dallara World Series T05 Turbo back into action and was right up there at the fast midfield of the overall standings; he also took victory in the OPEN class on Saturday. In Sunday’s race, however, the Austrian was involved in a collision at the start and was forced to retire at the first corner.

The SUPER LIGHTS standings were dominated throughout the weekend by Stefan Scho (GER, Lola F3000 T91). Driving the oldest car on the grid, he was not only a fan favourite but also unbeatable. Also on the podium on Saturday: debutant Frank Färber (GER, Färber Motorsport) in a V6 Formula Renault and Roberto Vanni (ITA) in a 1996 Formula 3000, fielded by Walter Colacino Racing.

The BOSS GP Racing Series will resume its season in four weeks’ time. Rounds three and four of the season are scheduled to take place at the Nürburgring on 13 and 14 June 2026 as part of the Nürburgring Classic.

Photo: Elfi Jung/ELFImages