Tag: Ghiotto

Report Qualifying Misano

Posted on June 19, 2021 by Keke Platzer - General

Marco Ghiotto takes pole position at home race.

Two-time BOSS GP champion in the FORMULA class, Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio), secured the best grid position for both BOSS GP races this afternoon and on Sunday in a thrilling duel for pole position with Gianluca De Lorenzi (RSM, GDL Racing).

Right on time at 10:05 am local time and with an air temperature of nearly 30 degrees, the pit lights at the Misano World Circuit turned green and the engines were fired up. Andreas Fiedler (GER, Fiedler Racing) was the first to set a time in qualifying, but he quickly took a minor role in the battle for the fastest lap time. First Gianluca De Lorenzi (RSM, GDL Racing), this time in a WSbR-Dallara, blew away the best time by more than two seconds on his first lap.

But the opponents, in particular Marco Ghiotto and Simone Colombo (ITA, MM International) – all in Formula 2 cars – attacked soon. While De Lorenzi pitted after two fast laps, Ghiotto was able to take the lead with a time of 1:24.761 one minute before the end. Colombo also improved, but remained third behind De Lorenzi, with Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) setting the fourth fastest time.

In Qualifying 2, rookie Thomas Jackermeier (GER, Top Speed) was surprisingly the quickest driver. He only missed Fiedler’s time from Q1 by eight thousandths. Nevertheless, Jackermeier achieved his best qualifying result so far. He starts the race in sixth place. Walter Steding (GER, Scuderia Palladio) and Christian Ferstl (AUT, Top Speed) follow from row 4.

On row 5 starts the fastest car of the new SUPER LIGHTS class: Maurizio Copetti (ITA) in the World Series by Nissan car run by Scuderia Palladio. Joining him on row five will be Bruno Jarach (EST, Eesti Motorsport). Walter Colacino (ITA, in Formula 3000) and debutant Simon Jackermeier (GER, Top Speed), who could only set one lap time in qualifying, follow on row six.

Photo: Angelo Poletto/BOSS GP

Report Race 2 Mugello

Posted on April 11, 2021 by Keke Platzer - 5, General

Gerstl wins in the OPEN category, Ghiotto after recovering from an early spin in FORMULA class.

Another day, same question: dry or wet tyres? It had rained again and again at the Mugello Circuit during the day. But shortly before the start of the second race, parts of the track had dried up. Most of the drivers nevertheless relied on the Pirelli Cinturato rain tyres, even at the risk that they would not last the full 25-minute distance on an increasingly dry track. Exceptions were the two MM-International drivers Stefano Colombo and Luca Martucci (both ITA), who started the race on slicks. But with low outside temperatures of around ten degrees Celsius, they had a tough time in their GP2 Dallara single seaters.

Not so Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed), who immediately fled at the start. The pole setter entered turn 1 in his Toro Rosso STR1 first and did not relinquish his position at the top until the end of the race. Second in the OPEN classification was Ulf Ehninger (GER, ESBA Racing), who, after his premiere victory yesterday, also finished on the podium today and, together with Gerstl, will travel to the next race as BOSS GP championship leader.

BOSS GP newcomer Gianluca De Lorenzi in his Auto GP car showed another strong performance

In FORMULA class, Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) won today as in race 1. The decisive move was made by the Italian just before the end of the race. Ghiotto had spun in lap 1 and then started a terrific chase that had its climax on the penultimate lap: Marc Faggionato (MCO, Zig-Zag) defended his lead hard, but always remained fair. The decisive manoeuvre came at the exit of the medium-fast turn 12, where Ghiotto poked into a gap on the inside lane and overtook Faggionato. Gianluca De Lorenzi (SMR, GDL Racing) finished third in the class behind the two, sticking to the rear of Faggionato for a long time but ultimately having to let Ghiotto go as well.

Fourth place went to Salvatore De Plano (ITA, MM International), who made amends today after an early retirement yesterday. Andreas Fiedler (GER, Fiedler Racing) changed to rain tyres shortly before the start, which helped him to move up to 5th in class. Thomas Jackermeier (GER, Top Speed) achieved another convincing result at his first BOSS GP event with 6th position. Behind him came Walter Colacino (ITA) in the Formula 3000 with an Alfa Romeo sports car engine, who was able to drive the full 25 minutes of the race today without any troubles.

The overall standings after the first of six race weekends are available here.

Photos: Michael Jurtin/BOSS GP

Report Race 1 Mugello

Posted on April 10, 2021 by Keke Platzer - General

Marco Ghiotto beats everyone in the first race of the season. Premier victory for Ulf Ehninger in OPEN class.

Hectic hustle and bustle just before race start on the grid. Most of the teams changed from the Pirelli Cinturato rain tyres to the P Zero slicks. The rain had stopped before the start of the race, so that a large part of the 5.2-kilometre-long track had dried up. Nevertheless, a small group of drivers including Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio), Andreas Fiedler (GER, Fiedler Racing), Bruno Jarach (EST, Eesti Motorsport) and Formula 3000 individual Walter Colacino (ITA, Colacino), relied on the wet weather tyres from exclusive supplier Pirelli.

It was soon clear that they had bet on the right card. Ghiotto was already in front under hard braking into the first corner. Pole setter Marc Faggionato, who was cautious at the start, immediately lost a few places. Gianluca De Lorenzi (SMR, GDL Racing) slid into the gravel with under-tempered slicks in the wet, but was able to continue and Simone Colombo (ITA, MM International) was also only just able to avoid a spin in the first couple of corners.

Marco Ghiotto’s first pursuer was Andreas Fiedler (GER, Fiedler Racing), who started the race from only 11th on the grid and crossed the start-finish line in second place after lap 1. But on lap 4, the German parked his GP2-Dallara in the paddock and was sad about the missed chance.

But the action continued: Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed), who had started from pitlane with his Formula 1 Toro Rosso, tried to get through the packed field. In lap 5 he had reached the front of the pack and started chasing Ghiotto, until tyre blistering stopped him as well. At that time Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) took over second place. Martucci drove the fastest race lap but lost too much time to Ghiotto in the early stages of the race. Meanwhile, the 2020 and 2021 FORMULA champion was looking for every wet spot on the asphalt to keep his rain tyres alive. A late safety car period helped Marco Ghiotto to clinch the race victory.

f.l. Martucci, race winner Ghiotto, OPEN winner Ehninger and De Lorenzi

Martucci finished second and made up six places compared to qualifying. Gianluca De Lorenzi recovered quickly from his initial excursion into the gravel trap, third place is the well-deserved reward on his BOSS GP debut. Ulf Ehninger (GER, ESBA Racing) benefited from Gerstl’s retirement, but the Benetton driver can still refer to a controlled race in slippery conditions. Even a short ride through the gravel could not stop Ehninger. He was awarded with a well-deserved winner’s trophy in the OPEN class – the first of his BOSS GP career!

Nicolas Matile (MCO, Zig-Zag) and Bruno Jarach (EST, Eesti Motorsport) had a lap-long duel. Matile in the Auto GP was slightly faster in the corners, Jarach in his GP2 on the straights. In the end Matile was able to beat Jarach, which meant sixth place for the Monegasque.

The race of Simone Colombo (ITA, MM International) and Marc Faggionato (MCO, Zig-Zag) ended unhappily in the gravel bed of turn 1. In the duel for the podium, the two collided slightly. The revenge of the beaten may follow tomorrow. Race 2 starts at 14:25 local time. The race will be broadcast on Italian television (MS Motortv) and on race organiser Gruppo Peroni’s YouTube channel. Before that, a warm-up will be run at 10:00 am.

Photos: Michael Jurtin/BOSS GP

Report Race 1 Mugello

Posted on October 10, 2020 by Keke Platzer - General, Uncategorized

FORMULA: Martucci beats Ghiotto, Gerstl ahead of Ehninger in the OPEN class

The BOSS GP drivers have a lot to tell after this race. Of all things, it started to rain at the start of the warm-up lap on the 5.4-kilometre-long Mugello Circuit. To ensure a safe start to the race and to give the teams time to change to rain tyres, the race was stopped once again and started a few minutes later behind the Fanatec Safety Car. But not everyone switched from slicks to the Pirelli Cinturato rain tyres during the break. Nicolas Matile (MCO, Zig-Zag), Salvatore de Plano (ITA, Coloni) and Bruno Jarach (EST, Eesti Motorsport) took the risk, but their tyre choice turned out to be a mistake as soon as the race was started. At various points around the track it began to rain more heavily again. The changing conditions subsequently made it incredibly difficult for the drivers to find the right pace. But the BOSS GP drivers did an outstanding job and managed to keep their powerful Formula 1, Formula 2 and Auto GP cars on track.

Behind the Austrian Ingo Gerstl (winner of the OPEN class) in the Toro Rosso F1, Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) and Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) fought an epic battle for the victory in the FORMULA class. In lap 1 Ghiotto first passed Martucci. At mid-race, the action came to a head: After a few tentative attempts, Martucci made the decisive manoeuvre at over 300 km/h on the start-finish straight. Nearly there was contact. But the duel was not over yet, because now Luca had to be up front in difficult track conditions. Marco followed only a few metres behind and tried to pass Martucci once again. To show how close it was between Martucci and Ghiotto: The best lap time of the two was only 0.003 seconds separated (in favour of Ghiotto). But it was no longer enough for the championship leader, instead Martucci’s team had reason to cheer this time. It was the first victory ever for the tall Italian in the BOSS GP Racing Series, and what a victory that was!

Marc Faggionato (MCO, Zig-Zag) was able to follow the two Italians in their home race for a couple of laps. He finished in a strong third place. Andreas Fiedler (GER, Fiedler Racing) also delivered a surprisingly good race. The third in the championship in 2019 has bought a new Dallara GP2 and is using this season’s races as a test. Because his team had no rain tyres at hand, the German had to drive to his tent in the paddock and then start from pit lane. Relatively quickly he moved up to fifth place in his class, but the gap to the front was already large. Until the halfway point of the race, Walter Steding (GER, Scuderia Palladio) was on a good way to a fourth-place finish. But Steding lost ground in the second half of the race, and his position to compatriot Fiedler.

Armando Mangini (ITA, MM International) also drove impeccably, finishing sixth in his class behind Steding. Last year Mangini had announced his retirement. Today he proved that this was probably premature. Probably the hardest race had Salvatore de Plano (ITA, Coloni). He was the only one who stayed on dry tyres until the end of the race and therefore had no chance. It is probably only thanks to his driving qualities that he was able to finish the race safely.

A ten-minute warm-up will be held tomorrow morning from 10.20 a.m. The second race of the weekend start 14.30. Rain showers are predicted.

Photo: Roberto Piccinini/Actualfoto

Report Race 2 Brno

Posted on September 6, 2020 by Keke Platzer - General

Big surprise in the Sunday race: Double victory for Scuderia Palladio.

Although it was raining overnight, the track mostly dried up until the second BOSS GP race at the Masaryk Racing Days was started. As a result, all the drivers went onto the track on Pirelli P Zero dry tyres. Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) got a bad start from row 1, but he defended his class lead and followed Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) on the first meters. Right behind him Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) managed to overtake Roman Hoffmann (AUT, Hoffmann Racing) right on lap 1, just like he did yesterday.

Hoffmann had to defend himself against Salvatore de Plano (ITA, Coloni) and Andreas Fiedler (DEU, Fiedler Racing) which were pushing from behind. On lap 3 De Plano and Fiedler collided in turn 1. While de Plano was able to continue his race almost undamaged, Fiedler’s GP2 Dallara was visibly damaged. De Plano finished the race in 5th place, Fiedler behind Christian Ferstl (AUT, Ferstl Racing) still in 7th place.

The situation came to a head at the front when the overall leader Gerstl steered his Toro Rosso Formula 1 into pit lane. An overheated engine forced the winner of all previous season races to make a stopover. Marco Ghiotto thus took the overall lead in the race, which he did not give up until the checkered flag.

In the meantime, Chris Höher (AUT, Top Speed) also mixed up the field. However, like yesterday he had to park his car in the pits early. Meanwhile, Ghiotto’s teammate Walter Steding (DEU) caused a sensation. During the middle of the race he passed Hoffmann for third place. The Austrian defended himself hard, but that was not enough. A few laps later Martucci was also overtaken by Steding in the penultimate corner. For Steding, second place in today’s race was the first podium since his most successful racing season in 2015. For Marco Ghiotto’s Scuderia Palladio it was also the first one-two victory in the team’s history in BOSS GP.

For defending champion Ghiotto the overall standings after 6 of 12 races look very promising. Rival Luca Martucci is already 30 points behind. Walter Steding, who is only one point ahead of Roman Hoffmann, now follows in third place.

You can watch BOSS GP in race action again at the Cuvee Sensorium Grand Prix in Assen in three weeks’ time.

Photo: Dirk Hartung

Report Race 1 Brno

Posted on September 5, 2020 by Keke Platzer - General

Ghiotto fights a duel with Gerstl and extends his lead in FORMULA.

For the first time this year, racing fans were able to experience the BOSS GP Racing Series live on site at the Masaryk Racing Days in Brno. The sound of V10 and V8 engines and the late summer temperatures of around 30 degrees Celsius attracted a few thousand spectators on Saturday.

Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) was the clear favourite for the overall victory. But Gerstl did not make use of the full potential of his Toro Rosso STR1 F1 car and so Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) suddenly caught up with him in the middle of the race. Twice the lead changed between the two of them, until Gerstl finally prevailed. Ghiotto took it easy and with the class win he was able to further extend his lead in the FORMULA standings.

The gap to his competitors Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) and Roman Hoffmann (AUT, Hoffmann Racing) was much larger than initially expected. Martucci overtook Hoffmann right after the start and then settled for second place in the class. BOSS GP rookie Hoffmann remained third and was able to take home a trophy for the third time in a row despite gearbox problems.

Because Walter Steding (DEU, Scuderia Palladio) could not get away at the pre-start, a race to catch up followed with some overtaking manoeuvres worth seeing. In the end he only just missed the podium with 4th place in his class. Steding also overtook Salvatore de Plano (ITA, Coloni), who finished fifth in the FORMULA class.

Andreas Fiedler (DEU, Fiedler Racing) gained the most positions, moving up from 9th to 6th right in the starting phase. Bianca Steiner (AUT, Steiner Motorsport) remained in the race ahead of Christian Ferstl (AUT, Ferstl Racing) and Christopher Höher (AUT, Top Speed), who, however, made his way to the pits early.

Tomorrow’s warm-up starts at 9h05, before the second race gets underway at 12h20. As in race 1, the starting order will be according to the result of qualifying session. If the weather forecast is correct, the Pirelli Cinturato rain tyres could be in use tomorrow.

Photo: Dirk Hartung

Report Free Practice Brno

Posted on September 4, 2020 by Keke Platzer - General

Review of a surprising Friday at the Masaryk Racing Days.

If we look at today’s practice times, we can expect an exciting battle for pole position tomorrow, especially in the FORMULA class. With only small gaps Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) and Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) as well as Roman Hoffmann (AUT, Hoffmann Racing) qualified for the qualifying of the five fastest pilots from the free practice sessions. Hoffmann in particular could give the two fast Italians a good run for their only fifth race tomorrow in a GP2 Dallara. For the first time Walter Steding (DEU, MM International) also qualified for Q1. Can he even compete for a podium tomorrow?

The fastest drivers qualified for Q2 are Salvatore de Plano (ITA, Coloni) in his A1GP car and Florian Schnitzenbaumer (DEU, Top Speed). Bianca Steiner (7th in class; AUT, Steiner Motorsport) tried to settle in today. She make her comeback in the BOSS GP Racing Series after a long break from racing. Only for the second time at the start of a BOSS GP racing weekend is hill climb specialist Christian Ferstl (AUT, Ferstl Racing), today it was enough for eighth place in the class, and he is expecting even more on Saturday and Sunday. Behind him in the tableau follow Armando Mangini (ITA, MM International), Andreas Fiedler (DEU, Fiedler Racing) and Bruno Jarach (EST, Scuderia Palladio).

Fastest today was Brno lap record holder Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) in his Toro Rosso STR1 with V10 Cosworth power. He set the best time with 1:39.051. The qualifying session, divided into two groups, will start tomorrow Saturday at 9:30 am.

Photo: Dirk Hartung

Report Races Spa

Posted on August 2, 2020 by Keke Platzer - General

Ingo Gerstl is chasing Riccardo Ponzio for the lead

The BOSS GP Racing Series showed two fantastic races at Spa.

The compact schedule of two days, the challenging 7-kilometer track and the measures taken against Covid-19 made this race weekend a demanding one for man and material. However, the gentleman series mastered this challenge excellent and put a smile under the masks of everyone involved.

The time differences between the drivers were not only small on paper, no, also the racing among the drivers was impressive. In both races the lead changed several times: Temporarily Riccardo Ponzio (ITA, Adriatica Racing) and even the fastest FORMULA driver, Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) were leading the races. In the end, however, V10 power of the Cosworth engine and Ingo Gerstl’s (AUT, Top Speed) experience made the difference. Even minor driving mistakes in both races could not prevent Gerstl’s season wins 3 and 4.

Nevertheless, the beaten Riccardo Ponzio was over the moon. For the first time, the 22-year-old was able to drive his Jaguar R3 over two complete race distances and had the opportunity to show in some stages what is possible for car and driver. We can look forward to some more exciting duels this year.

OPEN class podium in Race 1 and 2: f.l. Ponzio, Gerstl, Ehninger

For Marco Ghiotto the two class wins in Spa-Francorchamps mean the lead in the FORMULA championship ranking. BOSS GP rookie Roman Hoffmann (Hoffmann Racing) also makes a big step forward in the classification. The Austrian not only skillfully made some drifts in both races, but was also able to finish on the podium twice. These were the first BOSS GP trophies for the former touring car ace.

Behind the Leading Car, driven by Fanatec CEO Thomas Jackermeier, the race started as usual with a flying start. In both races, many cars were side-by-side in the approach to the first hairpin. In race 1 Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) tried to gain places at the start, but had to pull back. For the Italian it was an average weekend by his increased standards. He finished fourth in class at his Spa premiere. In the second race he had a spectacular duel with pole setter Marc Faggionato (MCO, Top Speed). Just a couple of laps before the end the two touched each other slightly and Martucci spun out. But with a 22-point gap, Martucci is now Ghiotto’s first chaser. Faggionato could continue and finished third. Walter Steding (GER, MM International) can also be extremely satisfied with fourth place. Due to his consistent performances he is in the Top-4 of the points standings as well.

Race 2 battle between Martucci and Faggionato did not end good

If you have missed the races, you can watch a replay of all the BOSS GP action from Spa on our YouTube channel.

Report Qualifying Spa

Posted on August 2, 2020 by Keke Platzer - General

First row for Gerstl and Faggionato.

The heroes of the BOSS GP Racing Series blasted through the Ardennes at around 300 km/h. Fastest in today’s qualifying was once again Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed). With a time of 1:55.836, he was the only driver to stay under the two-minute mark for one lap.

Marc Faggionato (MCO, Top Speed), who will exceptionally start for Top Speed this weekend, also put in a strong performance. With a time of 2:03.888 he was four tenths faster than champion Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio). Ghiotto will start from the second row, together with fellow countryman Riccardo Ponzio (Adriatica Competition). His beautiful Jaguar R3 was repaired by the team overnight, allowing Ponzio to participate on race day.

Fastest driver in the second qualifying session (for all drivers outside the top 5 of free practice) was Roman Hoffmann (AUT, Hoffmann Racing). With this he surprisingly pushed Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) out of the top 5, with Walter Steding (DEU, MM International) and Andreas Fiedler (DEU, Fiedler Racing) following in the other places. Michael Aberer in the World Series by Renault classified ninth fastest. Ulf Ehninger in Benetton Formula 1 will start the race from tenth position.

Both races can be followed today, Sunday, in the live stream at www.bossgp.com/livestream. Race 1 starts at 12:05, race 2 at 16:05.

Report: Race 2 Imola

Posted on July 12, 2020 by Keke Platzer - General

Double victorys for Höher and Gerstl at the season opener in Italy.

Guest starter Christopher Höher also won the FORMULA class in race 2. In a convincing manner he crossed the finish line only two seconds behind OPEN winner Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed). After finishing third in race 1, Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) was able to improve his performance by finishing second behind Höher in the FORMULA class. The defending champion is therefore second in the championship after the first race weekend and is also a contender for the title this year. After a longer period of not being on the podium, Salvatore de Plano (ITA, Coloni) was allowed to step on the podium again. With a third place at his debut in an A1GP Lola he is also a real contender in the championship.

Roman Hoffmann impressed after his retirement in the first race with the fourth place in race 2, only three tenths of a second separated him from de Plano and thus from the podium. Luca Martucci finished fifth after a drive-through penalty (wrong position at the flying start). On the following places: Nicolas Matile, Michael Aberer, Bruno Jarach and Walter Steding.

The next race for the Big Open Single Seater will take place on 1-2 August at the DTM event in Spa-Francorchamps.