After a one-year break, the traditional event Leeb Rundstreckentrophy is back in the racing calendar of the Big Open Single Seater.
Second station: Huge program
Last year, the BOSS GP had to suspend the popular race in Spielberg. Due to the unique appearance at the Jumbo Race Festival in Zandvoort, the BOSS GP did not compete on the Grand Prix circuit at the Red Bull Ring. The race in the Netherlands was scheduled exactly on the same date as the regular race of the series in Austria. This year only one race will be held in the Netherlands, from 17th to 19th August in Assen, so nothing stands in the way of a home race for the Austrian race series.
The BOSS GP is the main event of the Rundstreckentrophy organized by Gerhard Leeb. Austrian racing fans have the only opportunity to see Formula 1 cars from the ten-cylinder era in racing action this weekend. Due to the discontinuation of the Truck Grand Prix, the Rundstreckentrophy is also this year’s first major event on the Red Bull Ring. In addition to Europe’s fastest racing series, the GT4 Central European Cup, the GT, touring car and formula races of the FIA Central European Zone, the Škoda Octavia Cup, the Kia Platinum Cup and the DMV sports car series will start.
In 2016 we saw an epic duel of Ingo Gerstl (front) and Klaas Zwart (back)
Red Bull Ring: a natural spectacle
Hermann Tilke, the world’s most renowned track architect, has taken on the design of the new Red Bull Ring. The result is a racetrack like an adventure park, homologated by the FIA with the highest standard, as “Grade A”. The track, about 75 kilometres north-west of Graz, has been reopened in 2011, the Formula 1 World Championship has been back in Spielberg since 2014 and the Motorcycle Grand Prix since 2016. A special feature of this racetrack is the difference in altitude (maximum uphill slope of 12 %, maximum downhill slope of 9.3 %) and the magnificent embedding in the Alpine landscape.
Participants: BOSS GP
There is no engine capacity limit in the OPEN class – “anything goes” is the slogan here. Four Formula 1 drivers had announced their start, two are on their way to Spielberg: Ingo Gerstl, BOSS GP Champion and winner of the last two races at Spielberg 2016, and the American Phil Stratford in the 1997 Berger-Benetton.
| Start-No. |
Name | Team | Nat. | Car |
| 1 | Ingo Gerstl | Top Speed | AUT | Toro Rosso STR1 |
| 7 | Phil Stratford | Penn Elcom Racing | USA | Benetton B197 |
Comebacker Johann Ledermair is a former BOSS GP champion
13 starters are registered in the smaller FORMULA class, including the winner of the first two races at Hockenheim: Florian Schnitzenbaumer. Bernd Herndlhofer changed for his home race from his temperamental Arrows Formula 1 car to a GP2 Dallara. He stands in for the Czech Veronika Cicha, who will be back in the series together with her partner Wolfgang Jaksch from the next race on. After his accident in the first race at Hockenheim, Salvatore de Plano is on the road to recovery, but the Italian misses the two races at Spielberg. His comeback will give Johann Ledermair from Tyrol, who won the title in the second class in 2012 and 2015.
| Start-No. | Name | Team | Nat. | Car |
| 100 | Thomas Jakoubek | Top Speed | AUT | Dallara GP2 |
| 101 | Peter Göllner | Speed Center | SUI | Dallara GP2 |
| 110 | Bianca Steiner | Top Speed | AUT | Dallara GP2 |
| 121 | TBA | Top Speed | Dallara GP2 | |
| 221 | Bernd Herndlhofer | H&A Racing | AUT | 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 WSbR |
| 444 | Johann Ledermair | Ledermair Motorsport | AUT | Dallara GP2 |
| 505 | Walter Steding | Inter Europol Competition | DEU | Dallara GP2 |
| 555 | Christian Eicke | Speed Center | DEU | Dallara GP2 |
| 565 | Hans Laub | Speed Center | DEU | Dallara GP2 |
| 888 | Florian Schnitzenbaumer | a | SUI | Dallara GP2 |
Time table: BOSS GP at the Leeb Rundstreckentrophy
Friday, 18 may 2018
9:30 am-9:55 am: Free practice 1
18:00-18:25: Free practice 2
Saturday, 19 may 2018
9:40 am-10:10 am: Qualifying
15:05-15:40: Race 1
Sunday, 20 may 2018
10:40-11:15: Race 2
The weather forecast predicts a mixed weekend of sunshine and rain
Free entry and open paddock
Friends of formula and touring car racing will certainly get their money’s worth at the Leeb Circuit Trophy: free entry on all three days, including a visit to the paddock. The vehicles of the BOSS GP are located in the garages with numbers 12 to 20, Andreas Fiedler (Dallara-GP2) pitched his tents in the paddock – at box number 18.