Tag: GP2

Report: Practice & Qualifying Spielberg

Posted on September 22, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

The fastest racing series in Europe brings the fun of racing back to the Red Bull Ring. The start grid for both races was already set up yesterday due to the bad weather conditions today.

Saturday started as predicted very wet. Even in difficult conditions the brute BOSS GP bolides were on the track. For safety reasons the race control decided to run the timed practice as 3rd free practice and to set up the starting grid from the combined times of FP1 and FP2.

Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed, Toro Rosso STR1) took first position in qualifying for the seventh time in the seventh race meeting of the season. From the first to the second practice he improved by more than three and a half seconds. With 1:12.082 min yesterday he was still far behind the times of May, when the local hero had already scratched the 1:10 mark. In the rain, dominator Gerstl was only fifth in the Formula 1 car, which surprised him: “Maybe there’s something wrong with the timing,” smiled Gerstl, who had already been confirmed BOSS GP Champion 2018 before the final races this weekend.

Phil Stratford (USA, Penn Elcom, Benetton B197) complained about technical problems in the first practice session and a reduced driving time for him. But in the 2nd practice he easily finished second overall. He used the rain this morning for training kilometers. Stratford, who lives in California, has hardly any rain experience, but announced for the races: “Should it rain, I’ll drive”.

Luca Martucci was once off track, but very quick in dry and rain

Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International, Dallara GP2) surprised everyone: The Italian with Formula 3 experience is the fastest FORMULA driver of Friday and will lead this class into the race. In the rain practice Martucci set the best time, so he is the favourite this afternoon (starting time: 16:00, also in the Live stream).

Salvatore De Plano (ITA, Top Speed, Dallara GP2) starts from row 2. The Italian this weekend has to switch from his regular team MM International to Top Speed. At MM International all cars were rented this time. At Top Speed they offered the fast Italian an alternative home, he thanked it with a successful Friday.

Championship duel between Florian Schnitzenbaumer (l.) and Andreas Fiedler (r.)

Florian Schnitzenbaumer (DEU, Top Speed, Dallara GP2) starts from row 3 and thus directly ahead of his only remaining competitor for the championship: Andreas Fiedler (DEU, Fiedler Racing, Dallara GP2). Schnitzenbaumer has set himself the goal to enter today’s race attentively and ideally to make the title clear today.

Between Schnitzenbaumer and Fiedler stands Marco Ghiotto (ITA, MRC Sport, Dallara GP2), who won the brother duel with Sergio (ITA, MM International, Dallara GP2). Sergio Ghiotto starts from 10th place, but in Saturday’s rain he showed with second place that he still has potential for the front. Gianluca Ripoli (ITA, MM International, Dallara GP2) starts from 8th place, newcomer Alain Valente (SUI, Speed Center, Dallara GP2) from 9th place.

Peter Göllner (SUI, Speed Center, Dallara GP2), who has been on the podium twice in the last three races, will start from row 6 together with his team mate Christian Eicke (DEU, Dallara GP2). Hans Laub starts with his Formula 1 Forti in the middle of the FORMULA field from 13th position. Walter Steding (DEU, Inter Europol, Dallara GP2) starts from 14th. Eicke, Steding and Armando Mangini (ITA, MM International, Lola F3000) are still fighting for 3rd place in the championship. Mangini starts the race with a disadvantage, because he is the only one to start in a Formula 3000 and was far behind his immediate opponents yesterday.

Trouble for Thomas Jakoubek on Friday

For Thomas Jakoubek (AUT, Top Speed, Dallara GP2) it was already over yesterday after a gearbox damage. Unfortunately, we also have to miss out on the second Toro Rosso from Top Speed. Frits van Eerd had to cancel at short notice, substitute driver Markus Lehmann was only on the track in the first practice session.

Pictures: Michael Jurtin/BOSS GP

Trend-setting: BOSS GP with DTM in Spielberg

Posted on September 18, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

Everything you need to know about the big season finale of the BOSS GP as part of the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters at the Red Bull Ring.

What does the joint event with the DTM mean for the BOSS GP?
For the second time in its history, the BOSS GP is part of the programme of the largest touring car series in the world. Ingo Gerstl is the driver and co-initiator of the joint BOSS GP and DTM event in Spielberg. He sees the race as a great opportunity: “This race has the highest priority for us. The DTM package is attractive and many fans will become aware of the BOSS GP for the first time. Working with such a professional racing series is incredibly enriching.” A possible repetition or even expansion of the cooperation with the DTM cannot be ruled out in the future.

Who drives in Spielberg?
The stars are certainly the cars that make the most noise. What unites them all in the OPEN: 10 cylinders! Ingo Gerstl drives the first Toro Rosso from 2006. Phil Stratford starts in the 1997 Benetton of Jean Alesi. Alesi’s team-mate at the time is now DTM boss: Gerhard Berger. Another rare piece of motorsport history is Hans Laub’s Forti from the late 1990s. In the open class – the OPEN – Formula 1 cars, ChampCars and IndyCars are eligible to start from 1997 onwards. The engines are optional. They carry the starting numbers from 1 to 99.

The second, slower but by no means less interesting class is the one with the name FORMULA. Among others, Formula 2/GP2, A1 GP, Formula 3000 and GP3 cars are on the track here. Only original engines are allowed, the starting numbers from 100 to 999 are reserved for the FORMULA. No less than six starters in FORMULA come from Italy. With Sergio and Marco Ghiotto (Monza winner) the uncles of Formula 2 driver Luca will start together in the BOSS GP for the first time. From an Austrian perspective, the eyes are on Thomas Jakoubek. Jakoubek drove endurance races with the new Austrian rally champion Niki Mayr-Melnhof. Jakoubek has already shown several times this year in the BOSS GP that he can also drive fast. Interesting will be the start of young Alain Valente. The Swiss GT4 and Lamborghini Super Trofeo driver makes his BOSS GP debut at Speed Center Racing.

The full line-up is now online: http://bossgp.com/entry-list-all-starters-for-spielberg/

For the second time this season the BOSS GP heroes will climb up the Austrian mountains

What about the championship?
Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed, Toro Rosso STR1) already made himself the champion of the big class at the penultimate race weekend in Brno. The tenth win of the season also meant the fourth BOSS GP title in the OPEN class, his third in a row.
While a decision has already been made in the OPEN, the FORMULA classification is still not decided yet: Florian Schnitzenbaumer (DEU, Top Speed, Dallara GP2) has been in the lead since the first race of the year. Two retirements in Monza and Assen have brought his fiercest competitor Andreas Fiedler (DEU, Fiedler Racing, Dallara GP2) closer again: Fiedler is 38 points behind Schnitzenbaumer before the final two races in Spielberg; 25 points are awarded for a race victory.

For Florian Schnitzenbaumer it would be the first title in the BOSS GP, and thus also the biggest success of his motorsport career to date. The Fiedler, who has switched from hill climb and sports car racing, is already fighting for the championship in his very first BOSS GP season, and a possible runner-up title can hardly be taken away from him. Both would be worthy champions in any case.

Even closer are the other positions, third place is vacant: Armando Mangini (ITA, MM International, GP2 Dallara) fights with Christian Eicke (SUI, Speed Center, GP2 Dallara) and Walter Steding (DEU, Inter Europol, GP2 Dallara), who have moved up to the front positions of the standings with consistency.
Before the final races in Spielberg, 31 drivers have already collected 2018 points in the BOSS GP season.

When is the BOSS GP on track?
The BOSS GP opens the event program in Spielberg on Friday, September 21st with the 1^st Free Practice at 11:25 a.m., the 2^nd Free Practice is scheduled at 3:30 p.m. local time.

Saturday, 22 September, qualifying will take place at 9:45 am. The qualifying is divided into two sessions: Q1 goes over 8 minutes and is reserved for the 5 fastest drivers from the totaled free practice sessions. After a break of 2 minutes all other drivers are allowed on the tracks, they have 20 minutes at their disposal. The final classification of this timed practice is the starting grid for both BOSS GP races.

The two races go over 20 minutes and will be started with a flying start. The first race will take place on Saturday at 16:00, the second race directly after the DTM race on Sunday afternoon (15:10).

Florian Schnitzenbaumer is protecting his championship lead

Florian Schnitzenbaumer would like to protect his championship lead

Are there still tickets available?
Yes, there are still seats available on all grandstands (main, south-west and west) – either via the DTM ticket portal, oeticket.com or via GPTicketshop. Weekend tickets are already available from 30 euros. Reductions of up to 50 percent are available for young people and wheelchair-accompanying persons. For children to 7 years and wheelchair users the entrance is free.

On Friday there is free choice of seats on all open grandstands and free admission to the paddock for holders of a valid admission ticket (with Gold tickets, otherwise to be purchased on site). On Saturday and Sunday, the booked seats are valid.

How close can fans get?
The DTM has come up with something special for its penultimate station in Spielberg: the Public Grid Walk. Both on Saturday and Sunday fans with a paddock ticket will have access to the starting grid of the DTM, which will be extended from 15 to 40 minutes for this purpose. The access rights to the grid will be issued in the paddock – as long as stocks last.

As in previous years, there will also be the Pit Walk, i.e. the sightseeing tour through the pit lane. You can watch the DTM teams as well as the BOSS GP teams working on their racing cars. Saturday from 16:35 to 17:25, Sunday from 9:20 to 10:15.

Most of the BOSS GP teams will be in pits 24 to 32. As always, the BOSS GP drivers and teams will be happy to sign autographs and answer questions – friendly questions are usually sufficient.

Is there a livestream?
For the first time in the history of the BOSS GP there will be an official livestream. You can watch it either on the website www.bossgp.com, on the Facebook page (@bossgpofficial) or on the YouTube channel of the racing series.

Saturday / September 22, 2018
09:40–10:20: Qualifying
15:40–16:35: Race 1 (start: 16:00)

Sunday / September 23, 2018
14:50–15:45: Race 2 (start: 15:10)

*all local time

Pictures: Michael Jurtin/BOSS GP

Report: Race 2 Brno

Posted on September 9, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

Ingo Gerstl secured his fourth BOSS GP OPEN title in the third last race of the season; the driver of the race was again Marc Faggionato.

The highlight of the Masaryk Racing Days in Brno was scheduled for Sunday at noon. The engines howled on time and Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) and Phil Stratford (USA, Penn Elcom Racing) started from the front row at the flying start. Throughout the race Gerstl, Stratford and Wolfgang Jaksch (DEU, F Xtreme Racing) remained within sight. But Gerstl’s tenth victory of the season was never in danger. The Toro Rosso pilot thus also fixed the third championship in three years, Gerstl won today for the fifth time a BOSS GP title after 2008, 2011 (FORMULA), 2016 and 2017.

A word about the overall podium could perhaps have been said by the man of the race: Marc Faggionato (MCO, ZIG-ZAG Motorsport Service) had, as yesterday, the difficult task of starting from the rear. A clutch problem prevented the start in qualifying, so he was positioned at the back of the grid. From there, he already took 8th place on the first lap and then 4th overall in the middle of the race. With lap times faster than Stratford and Jaksch he caught up tenths by tenths like yesterday but catching up was no longer possible at this point. Nevertheless, Faggionato managed to win for the second time at the second start of the year.

OPEN podium f.l. Stratford, Gerstl and Jaksch

FORMULA podium f.l. Göllner, Faggionato and Schnitzenbaumer

Peter Göllner (SUI, Speed Center) was also very pleased with his podium finish. After the Assen double, Göllner stood on the podium for the third time this year. Championship leader Florian Schnitzenbaumer (DEU, Top Speed) was also allowed to take part in the award ceremony and thus extended his lead to Andreas Fiedler (DEU, Fiedler Racing), who finished fourth in the FORMULA. Fiedler is 38 points behind Schnitzenbaumer before the final in Spielberg (21-23 September 2018); 25 points are given for a victory in the BOSS GP.

Nicolas Matile (MCO, ZIG-ZAG Motorsport Service) drove in the only Auto GP bolide without any problems to class rank 5. As already in race 1 Walter Steding (DEU, Inter Europol), Thomas Jakoubek (AUT, Top Speed) and Christian Eicke (SUI, Speed Center) fought a tough fight in the midfield. Steding was able to hold his own against Jakoubek in the very last corner and finished sixth in the FORMULA.

H&A Racing had to complain of a double loss: Veronika Cicha (CZE) could not finish her home race either, nor Bernd Herndlhofer (AUT), who at times was on a podium course.

MM International with the drivers Salvatore De Plano and Armando Mangini (both ITA) did not start. One of their mechanics was seriously injured the day before. On behalf of the BOSS GP organisation and all teams and drivers we wish him and his relatives the very best for his recovery.

Pictures: Michael Jurtin/BOSS GP

Report: Qualifying Brno

Posted on September 8, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

Ingo Gerstl heats up to the unofficial lap record in the Automotodrom with over 200 km/h average speed. Salvatore De Plano was the fastest FORMULA pilot on his return to BOSS GP.

Sixth qualifying, sixth pole position: Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) is on his way to the next championship title. The fact that he doesn’t slow down despite his dominance is proven by the qualifying best time of 1:35.155 min. Since the engagement of tyre supplier Pirelli the lap records have tumbled, but a possible new track record (1:36.065; Ingo Gerstl last year) only counts during the race.

In addition to Gerstl, Phil Stratford (USA, Penn Elcom Racing) will start the 20-minute first race from the front row this afternoon (starting time: 14:50 local time) in the 1997 Benetton. Wolfgang Jaksch (DEU, F Xtreme Racing) in the Super Aguri had to start in Q2 once again, but still managed a strong time despite traffic. In the race a duel for 2nd place with Stratford is quite possible.

Salvatore De Plano (MM International)

Salvatore De Plano (ITA, MM International) makes his racing comeback after a five-month break and has lost nothing of his speed. The fast Italian with a time of 1:45.751 is only three tenths behind the slowest OPEN car. Florian Schnitzenbaumer (DEU, Top Speed) is the leader of the FORMULA standings. Schnitzenbaumer qualified ahead of his fiercest competitor for the title Andreas Fiedler (DEU, Fiedler Racing). Bernd Herndlhofer (AUT, H&A Racing) is a former BOSS GP champion De Plano and the two Germans. A thrilling four-fold fight for the podium places in the FORMULA is to be expected for the races.

Veronika Cicha (H&A Racing)

The two Speed Center drivers Christian Eicke and Peter Göllner will follow in positions 8 and 9. Local Veronika Cicha made it into the Top Ten. Nicolas Matile (MCO, ZIG-ZAG) finished behind her. Like his team mate Marc Faggionato (no time in qualifying due to clutch damage), he also participates in a BOSS GP weekend for the first time this year.

Nicolas Matile (ZIG-ZAG) and Bernd Herndlhofer (H&A Racing)

The fast and technically demanding track in the Czech Republic claimed its victims in qualifying, with Armando Mangini, Walter Steding, Nicolas Matile and others spinning. However, all drivers were able to continue the qualifying without damage.

Pictures: Michael Jurtin/BOSS GP

Full racing line-up: BOSS GP in Brno

Posted on September 5, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

At the Masaryk Racing Days almost everything that has wheels is on the track. The main event in the Czech Republic are the Big Open Single Seaters.

With a track length of 5.403 kilometres, Brno is the longest challenge in the BOSS GP 2018 racing calendar. The track is most famous for the MotoGP Grand Prix every year, nevertheless the track is also popular for drivers in Monoposti. On the one hand, it offers many smooth and fast corners that alternate with a technically demanding part, and on the other it is one of the safest race tracks on the calendar. Engine power is also important at the penultimate stop of the BOSS GP 2018, as the Czech roller coaster (9 right and 6 left turns) climbs steeply in the last third of the track.

Salvatore De Plano is back on the track in Brno

The fastest boys and girls
Ingo Gerstl (Top Speed) holds the lap record on the largest Czech racetrack. The Austrian and three-time BOSS GP champion drove round the track last year in only 1:36.065 min, faster than any other driver in the 30 years since the opening of the circuit. Gerstl (Toro Rosso STR1, 3 litres, 10-cylinder Cosworth) could already secure his third consecutive OPEN title in Brno: If he scores four points more than his opponent Phil Stratford (Penn Elcom Racing), he will already be champion before the final in Spielberg (21-23 September 2018). The US-American Stratford delivers consistently good performances this year and makes hardly any mistakes. The technique of his Benetton B197 (4 litres, 10-cylinder Judd) works better and better, which increases the driving pleasure and extends the driving time.

As third starter in the faster OPEN class Wolfgang Jaksch drives a Super Aguri SA06 (3 litres, 10-cylinder Cosworth). The German with Swiss license was the only one who could win a race this year except Gerstl. However, several retirements in the championship threw him far back, good individual placings are now the goal.

In the FORMULA class all eyes are on Veronika Cicha (H&A Racing). The Czech racer is currently the only woman in the BOSS GP and most recently took her first podium in Assen. The former hill climb racer has been driving in the BOSS GP since 2015, and many guests will support the Czech at her home race.

The FORMULA is also about the championship and a possible preliminary decision. 34 points separate leader Florian Schnitzenbaumer (Top Speed) from rival Andreas Fielder (Fiedler Racing). Both had a DNF at the last event in the Netherlands. Everything is still undecided, 25 points are awarded for a victory, four races are still on the calendar.

You should also keep an eye out for the comeback of Salvatore De Plano (MM International). In the first race of the season he injured himself in an accident in the fight for victory. After a long-forced break, the fast Italian is back in the race car. Marc Faggionato and Nicolas Matile (both ZIG-ZAG Motorsport Service) are also back after a long BOSS GP break. Matile starts with a Lola-Zytec from the Auto GP, making him the only non-GP2 pilot.

Brno has produced many good BOSS GP races throughout the last years

Masaryk Racing Days: Quite busy
The race days in September are the second largest circuit racing event in the Czech Republic after the Motorcycle Grand Prix. In addition to the headliner BOSS GP, other racing series will run from Thursday to Sunday: FIA Central Europe Zone for sports cars, touring cars and formula cars, ESET V4 Cup with TCR, Suzuki Swift Cup Europe, Chevrolet Cruze Eurocup, Renault Twingo Cup and various historic racing classes (HAIGO).

The weekend ticket costs 300 Czech crowns (=13 Euro), at the entrances to the race track there are ticket counters. Children under 14 and seniors over 67 have free entry. The BOSS GP cars are in the pits between 2-11, Andreas Fiedler is placed behind them in the paddock.

Timetable: BOSS GP at Masaryk Racing Days

Friday, September 7, 2018

11:35–12:05: Free Practice 1
16:00–16:25: Free Practice 2

Saturday, September 8,2018

10:00–10:30: Qualifying
14:50–15:25: Race 1 (distance: 20 minutes)

Sunday, September 9, 2018

12:15–12:50: Race 2 (distance: 20 minutes)

Participants: BOSS GP

The OPEN class is for type Formula 1 car built from 1997, Champ Car and IndyCar built from 1997. Engine is free; numbers from 1 to 99.

Starting No.	Name	Team	Nat.	Car
1	Ingo Gerstl	Top Speed	AUT	Toro Rosso STR1
7	Phil Stratford	Penn Elcom Racing	USA	Benetton B197
26	Wolfgang Jaksch	F Xtreme Racing Team	DEU	Super Aguri SA06

FORMULA is open to GP2/Formula 2, GP3 (13/16), Auto GP, A1GP, Formula Acceleration 1, Superleague Formula, World Series by Renault, World Series by Nissan, F3000 cars build from 2002. Only the original engine is allowed, organisation committee can make an exception in the classification of a car according to the performance data of the car; Numbers from 100 to 999.

Starting No.	Name	Team	Nat.	Car
100	Thomas Jakoubek	Top Speed	AUT	Dallara GP2
101	Peter Göllner	Speed Center	SUI	Dallara GP2
116	Nicolas Matile	ZIG-ZAG Motorsport Service	MCO	Lola Auto GP
129	Marc Faggionato	ZIG-ZAG Motorsport Service	MCO	Dallara GP2
221	Bernd Herndlhofer	H&A Racing	AUT	Dallara GP2
222	Veronika Cicha	H&A Racing	CZE	Dallara GP2
321	Andreas Fiedler	Fiedler Racing	DEU	Dallara GP2
323	Armando Mangini	MM International	ITA	Dallara GP2
505	Walter Steding	Inter Europol Competition	DEU	Dallara GP2
555	Christian Eicke	Speed Center	SUI	Dallara GP2
888	Florian Schnitzenbaumer	Top Speed	DEU	Dallara GP2
999	Salvatore De Plano	MM International	ITA	Dallara GP2

Photos: Michael Kavena/BOSS GP

Report: Race 2 Monza

Posted on July 1, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

This race was not for the faint-hearted: Wolfgang Jaksch (Super Aguri) wins surprisingly, in the FORMULA classification Armando Mangini (Dallara GP2) still wins today.

It took six races until Ingo Gerstl (Top Speed) was not on the podium of the OPEN classification for the first time this year: Wolfgang Jaksch (F Xtreme Racing) is the big surprise winner of the second race day in Monza. The German won his second BOSS GP race after Assen in 2017.

Right at the start, the German benefited from an unfortunate manoeuvre by the pilots in front of him. While Jaksch overtook Armando Mangini (MM International) at the start, the first three of the starting group headed for the first corner: Ingo Gerstl was the first to turn into the Prima variante, but the Toro Rosso was hit by Phil Stratford‘s Benetton (Penn Elcom Racing). Stratford had to avoid Rinus van Kalmthout (Mansell Motorsport) when braking. The Dutchman had made a mistake with cold brakes – the chain reaction led to the retirement of Ingo Gerstl (rear right puncture) and Phil Stratford (broken snout).

Starting incident with Gerstl, Stratford, Van Kalmthout andJaksch

After two laps behind the safety car Van Kalmthout overtook the leader Jaksch. The duels behind were Florian Schnitzenbaumer (Top Speed) against Andreas Fiedler (Fiedler Racing) and David Moretti (Griffith’s). Once again the race was interrupted by a mistake of Christian Eicke (Speed Center). He had parked his WSbR-Dallara in the gravel bed of the Variante Ascari.

When the race was resumed, Van Kalmthout, who was in 1st place, entered the pits. He parked his car a little later. Jaksch took the lead after the bad luck of the last races and days. The later winner caused a moment of shock only once when he grazed the gravel at the end of the second Lesmo curve.

10 minutes before the end of the 25-minute race Andreas Fiedler crashed into the rear of his front man Florian Schnitzenbaumer. Schnitzenbaumer spun into the gravel bed, Fiedler hit the tyre stacks of the Ascari variant frontally. The German could not get out on his own and had to be brought to the Medical Center in an ambulance. According to initial information, he hurt his back. We wish him all the best!

OPEN:

Wolfgang JAKSCH (SUI) Super Aguri FA SA06 Cosworth 9 Laps
Rinus van Kalmthout (NED) Dallara GP2 Judd + 3 Laps

Fastest lap: Rinus VAN KALMTHOUT – 1:37.058 min

FORMULA:

Armando MANGINI (ITA) Dallara GP2 Mecachrome 9 Laps
Marco GHIOTTO (ITA) Dallara GP2 Mecachrome + 0.452 sec
David MORETTI (FRA) Dallara GP2 Mecachrome + 1.054 sec

Fastest lap: Marco GHIOTTO – 1:39.693 min

While Wolfgang Jaksch won the OPEN class, two Italians won the two biggest trophies in the FORMULA class: Armando Mangini was victorious ahead of Marco Ghiotto. Ghiotto, yesterday’s winner of the FORMULA class, stopped at the pre-start. The Italian started from the pits and was the last to follow the field, he benefited from the retirements in the race. David Moretti was ranked third, the Frenchman was on the BOSS GP podium for the first time. Walter Steding (Inter Europol Competition) finished fourth in the FORMULA classification ahead of Veronica Cicha (H&A Racing). “Piter” also scored many points on his first visit to Monza in sixth place. Wolfgang Jordan‘s race was unlucky: The German spun in the warm-up lap and was thrown away. Karl-Heinz Becker (Becker Motorsport) had his first problem-free race weekend of the year in mind. Shortly before the end of the Red Flag race, however, he rolled out.

Quotes after the race:

OPEN winner Wolfgang Jaksch: “I let Rinus pass because he was pushing. The plan was to hang on to him and maybe because I have a little more power, I can pass him in the last lap. I had a good pace today, felt much better in the car than yesterday. Once I got into gravel, it was brutal, but luckily I still caught the car. I wanted to win the race today. Hats off to Ingo (Gerstl, note) yesterday. “What times he’s able to set is sensational.”

FORMULA winner Armando Mangini: “That was Grande Casino today. I don’t even know how I got through it.”

The next race of the BOSS GP 2018 will be the highlight of the season. For the first time, the BOSS GP will be part of the Formula 1 World Championship. 25 BOSS GP cars are expected for Hockenheim (July 20 to 22).

Photos: Michael Kavena/BOSS GP

Weekend for speed freaks: BOSS GP in Monza

Posted on June 29, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

Speed is not only a term here, but it can be felt – so is the danger. In the Royal Park of Monza, the BOSS GP is once again making a stop this weekend, in the best weather and with excellent food.

Third stop: through the park
The Big Open Single Seaters are coming after Hockenheim and Spielberg on another traditional race track: the Monza Eni Circuit, as the track has recently been called, was an uninterrupted part of the BOSS GP Series from 2011 to 2016. This year the track is back as headliner of the Peroni Race Weekend.

Autodromo Nazionale Monza: Temple of Speed
The 5.793-kilometre circuit in the Royal Park of Monza is one of the most impressive racing facilities in the world. It is one of the last high-speed tracks in the world and one of the most challenging tracks in Europe for drivers.

Located just 15 minutes by car northeast of Milan, it is located in the metropolitan area of Italy’s second largest city. Many drivers and fans combine their visit with an excursion to the city centre and to nearby Lake Garda.

The 688 hectare park (twice as large as Central Park in New York, by the way) has been the home of the Autodromo since 1922. After Brooklands and Indianapolis, the circuit was the only third permanent racetrack in history built specifically for motorsport. The steep curves of those days still exist today and are a popular visitor point.

Hans Laub in his 1996 Forti will start again in this year’s edition of the Monza race

Participants: BOSS GP
The unchallenged OPEN class leader Ingo Gerstl (Top Speed) will face competition from Rinus van Kalmthout. The 17-year-old Dutchman contests the Indy Lights series in the USA. In the Dallara-GP2, equipped with a Judd engine (8 cylinders, 4 litres displacement), he wants to collect more kilometers in a powerful racing car in Monza. Already last year he showed extraordinary performances. Wolfgang Jaksch will also be back. The German didn’t get his Super Aguri running at Hockenheim, but now everything is supposed to work for Monza. At the last second Hans Laub also announced a Formula 1 car for the OPEN. With the Forti FG 03 the German has a rare racer from 1996 under his butt.

Start-No.	Name	Team	Nat.	Car
1	Ingo Gerstl	Top Speed	AUT	Toro Rosso STR1
7	Phil Stratford	Penn Elcom Racing	USA	Benetton B197
11	Rinus van Kalmthout	Mansell Motorsport	NED	Dallara GP2 Judd
22	Hans Laub	Speed Center	DEU	Forti FG 03
26	Wolfgang Jaksch	F Xtreme Racing Team	DEU	Super Aguri 06

12 starters are registered in the FORMULA class, among them some returners: Wolfgang Jordan and the two Italians David Moretti and Marco Ghiotto. For FORMULA leader Florian Schnitzenbaumer, Andreas Fiedler could be the most dangerous in the absence of Bianca Steiner, Johann Ledermair and Salvatore De Plano. Armando Mangini is the third Italian to compete in the home race.

Start-No.	Name	Team	Nat.	Car
100	Thomas Jakoubek	Top Speed	AUT	Dallara GP2
105	Wolfgang Jordan	H&A Racing	DEU	Dallara GP2
111	“Piter”	Ray-Ban	FRA	Dallara WSbR
150	David Moretti	Griffith’s	ITA	Dallara GP2
210	Marco Ghiotto	Ghiotto	ITA	Dallara GP2
222	Veronica Cicha	H&A Racing	CZE	Dallara GP2
321	Andreas Fiedler	Fiedler Racing	DEU	Dallara GP2
323	Armando Mangini	MM International	ITA	Dallara GP2
411	Karl-Heinz Becker	Becker Motorsport	DEU	Dallara WsbN
505	Walter Steding	Inter Europol Competition	DEU	Dallara GP2
555	Christian Eicke	Speed Center	SUI	Dallara GP2
888	Florian Schnitzenbaumer	Top Speed	DEU	Dallara GP2

Monza is not only interesting because of the Autodromo

Timetable: BOSS GP at Peroni Race Festival

Friday, 29 July 2018

10:40–11:10: Free Practice 1
16:15–16:45: Free Practice 2

Saturday, 30 June 2018

10:35–11:05: Qualifying
16:40–17:00: Race 1

Sunday, 1 July 2018

11:30–11:55: Race 2

Free entry and open paddock
Peroni has become the very heart of Italian motorsport. The bustling organisers of the Gruppo Peroni Race thus also attract a large number of spectators to the race track. Free admission during the three days of racing in Monza is a special offer. You can visit the paddock to get a rare insight into the work of the teams. There is a free choice of seats in the stands. If teams grant access, the boxes may also be viewed. The BOSS GP teams are in the garages with numbers 51 to 60, Andreas Fiedler (Dallara-GP2) pitched his tent in the paddock again, at the same level as the other BOSS GP teams in the paddock. Parking for motorcycles costs 5 Euro, for cars 10 Euro. Access is Viale Vedano 5 in Monza.

Other racing series on this race weekend are the German sports car series DMV GTC, the Northern European Formula Renault 2.0 and the Renault Clio Cup Italy. Historic cars compete in the Campionato Italiano Auto Storiche, the Alfa Revival Cup and the FIA Lurani Trophy for Formula Junior cars. All in all, a mix of jewellery from the recent and older motorsport past worth seeing.

Report: Race 2 Hockenheim

Posted on April 22, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

At almost 30 degrees Celsius hot duels at the Hockenheimring were obligatory: Gerstl wins the OPEN class confidently, Schnitzenbaumer the FORMULA class.

The chronology of the race:

Preliminary start: 13 drivers and two female drivers entered the second race of the weekend, which demanded everything from both the drivers and the Pirelli tyres. The Austrian Thomas Jakoubek (Top Speed) did not participate like yesterday, Salvatore de Plano had to stay in hospital overnight after his crash in race one. The Italian had injured his back, but is on the road to recovery. Bernd Herndlhofer (H&A) and Wolfgang Jaksch (F Xtreme Racing Team) had already retired before qualifying, so there were only two starters left in the top class.

Start: From the start Ingo Gerstl set the pace. 1:25.5 min at the beginning of the race proved that there is nothing to win here for Phil Stratford in his Benetton. Gerstl said after the race: “I wanted to show at the beginning what I could do.” They stayed within a six-second margin for the whole race, at the end Gerstl crossed the finish line three seconds ahead. Stratford was pleased with Gerstl’s pace: “I’m happy to follow and feel the air turbulences, the aerodynamics, when I can drive so close to Ingo’s Toro Rosso”.

Lap 1: John Reaks had to brake across the grass, but the Briton could continue and finish last, four laps behind the leaders.

Florian Schnitzenbaumer (Top Speed), yesterday’s FORMULA winner, had less work today. His equal opponent de Plano was missing, so the German set the pace in the smaller class. Armando Mangini was able to keep up with Schnitzenbaumer’s speed for a while, driving 1:21 times – the Italian did not have the consistency of the German, even though Schnitzenbaumer’s shoulder hurt: “In the middle of the race I felt uncomfortable due an old operation”.

Manfred Loach wanted to bring a good result home today after retiring early yesterday due to an increased oil temperature. After a bad start the Austrian fought his way forward place by place.

Lap 2: “Piter” in the white Dallara from the World Series had to fight with the same difficulties as yesterday. Twice he stopped after the slowest part of the course, accelerating out of the hairpin – twice he was able to continue. But after four laps he drove into the pits.

The man of the race was German Andreas Fiedler in GP2, who started from 10th place and passed FORMULA driver Bianca Steiner, who had previously finished third, who was targeting on a podium as she did yesterday. A self-error led to a spin in the first race, today she made no mistakes and finished 4th in the FORMULA. “We had too much tyre pressure. At the end of the race I come closer again on Andreas. One more lap, maybe then …” Fiedler thus reached his first podium. The German with the GP2-Dallara machine became third FORMULA driver behind Schnitzenbaumer and Mangini.

Lap 6: Veronika Cicha got stuck in fourth gear, on the approach to the hairpin with almost 200 km/h. She touched the tyre bundles with her nose, but was not injured.

Lap 7: Shortly afterwards Peter Göllner parked his car in turn 2-3. The marshals worked quickly, so the safety car was able to stay in the pits today.

Last lap: Loach bets 8th in the fight to attack Walter Steding (Inter Europol Competition) and spun. It was the last retirement of the race. Karl-Heinz Becker finished seventh and the almost 75-year-old achieved a sensational result.

The results of the second race of BOSS GP 2018:

OPEN

Gerstl
Stratford

FORMULA

Schnitzenbaumer
Mangini
Fiedler
Steiner
Becker
Steding
Eicke
Kindler
Loach
Reaks

Report: Qualifying Hockenheim

Posted on April 21, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

Not surprisingly, the Austrian Ingo Gerstl takes pole position. De Plano and Schnitzenbaumer in the FORMULA only seperated by two hundredths of a second.

OPEN:
Only two of the four registered cars could start into qualifying today: Ingo Gerstl in his Toro Rosso and Phil Stratford in the Benetton, which the technicians managed to repair overnight. Bernd Herndlhofer and Wolfgang Jaksch had to pack their cars yesterday.

With 1:25.2 min Stratford improved his times in comparison to the previous day noticeably, against the ten years younger STR1-Cosworth of Gerstl of course no cure grew. The Austrian managed to finish under 1:20 with 1:19.664 min.

Phil Stratford’s Benetton is repaired and back on track

FORMULA:
This is where the music plays, especially when it comes to the excitement of the race: The fastest times were set by the drivers in Qualifying 1, which is reserved for the five fastest drivers from yesterday’s practice. Florian Schnitzenbaumer in the Dallara-GP2 of Top Speed led until shortly before the end of the only eight-minute session. Salvatore de Plano, who set the best time in the first free practice yesterday, beat the German in the penultimate lap and improved his time from 1:29 to 1:27.9 min. Only two hundredths of a second separated the two FORMULA pilots. De Plano was annoyed about a mistake in the first flying lap in the braking of the second corner, which almost cost him his pole. Schnitzenbaumer expects a close race between the two GP2 drivers.

Armando Mangini (MM International) is already in third place in the FORMULA class by far, but still very satisfied. On the track at Hockenheim, which he did not like, the Italian managed to get a good starting position for the first race this afternoon.

The second qualifying group was disturbed by interruptions. Martin Kindler stopped in the Mercedes Arena, a wheel nut had come loose – the car was towed away.

Shortly after the release Manfred Loach and Andreas Fiedler collided in the warm-up lap. Understandably Fiedler ran badly into the top speed pits. Loach damaged his front wing and also had to park his car at the side of the track, so the fast Austrian only starts from 13 at his BOSS GP debut; Fiedler has to start far more back from 16. Bianca Steiner (Top Speed) did a better job, she came close to the FORMULA front runners; behind de Plano, Schnitzenbaumer and Mangini she is fourth in the FORMULA class.

Best non-GP2 of the FORMULA racers was Karl-Heinz Becker, who got his red Worldseries car ready right before the qualification and will start later as tenth.

The first race starts today at 5:00 p.m. on Saturday.
Race 2 starts Sunday at 13:20.

Right before they collide: Manfred Loach in front of Andreas Fiedler

Report: Free Practice 2 Hockenheim

Posted on April 20, 2018 by Keke Platzer - General

John Reaks and "Piter" in their World Series cars

Ingo Gerstl (Top Speed) was fastest in his V10-Toro-Rosso for the second time; Florian Schnitzenbaumer was first in FORMULA this afternoon.

The victory in the OPEN class leads – this is to be expected – over BOSS GP champion Ingo Gerstl, also because of the struggeling competitors:

Bernd Herndlhofer already had to have his Arrows A22 packed, after yesterday on the day of testing everything was still running smoothly, today nothing worked at all. Troubleshooting will continue at home and another attempt will be made at the second race at the Red Bull Ring (18-20 May).
Wolfgang Jaksch is still hopeful to participate in the qualifying tomorrow (10:35 a.m. local time). The Super Aguri Cosworth suffers from heart disease, at least the fuel pump could be brought meanwhile to run.
The fourth entered in the OPEN class, Phil Stratford (Penn Elcom Racing), was just ahead of the first FORMULA driver with 1:30.621 min. After he stopped in the morning, the mechanics continue to search for the cause in the afternoon.

Ingo Gerstl twice fastest in training on Friday at Hockenheim

With only one interruption, the BOSS GP came through the afternoon session. Bianca Steiner (Top Speed) spun at the branch of the new track, but with the help of the marshals she could continue.
The Frenchman “Piter” improved his time by three seconds compared to the morning (1:34.5 min) – despite a performance deficit compared to the GP2-Mecachrome he keeps up well with his World Series Renault.
Andreas Fiedler (Fiedler Racing) complained that the track “gives less” than last year. But with 7th place he is right in the middle of the very close FORMULA field. Only two and a half seconds lie between positions 4 and 9. Considering that some were still on the road with old tyres today, the most excitement can be expected here.
The fastest FORMULA pilot of the morning Salvatore de Plano (MM International) had to miss the second session. Increased engine oil temperature prevented the car from leaving the pits. Instead, Florian Schnitzenbaumer was fastest in Dallara-GP2, with 1:30.922 he was almost seven seconds behind his team mate Gerstl’s Formula 1.
Last, but happy was John Reaks at Speed Center. At 68, the Briton is second oldest in the field and for the first time at Hockenheim: “You learn lap by lap”, he said after the training. The fastest man of the team from Germany was Peter Göllner in 7th place.
Karl-Heinz Becker from Germany would also have liked to learn, but the engine did make that impossible. His engineer was contacted in Japan – but so far he could not help by remote control either.

Pictures of today’s practice sessions available here:

Hockenheim Historic 2018