Autor: admin

The Polish pilot Jakub Smiechowski, currently 2nd in the BOSS GP Championship ranking, was the measure of all things in Saturday`s qualifying session in Zolder. Under dry conditions with cloudy sky he knocked out his pole position time already in lap 3 of the qualifying session with a 1:18,061! Johann Ledermair, the current leader, tried everything to reach this benchmark, but he finally ended up 5/10 of a second behind and finished P2. Florian Schnitzenbaumer (GER), who also casted an eye at fighting for the pole, was finally classified on P3 with a gap of 2 sec behind the pole setter Smiechowski.

The biggest step from yesterday`s free practice sessions to today`s qualifying was performed by the French driver Christopher Brenier. He challenged Schnitzenbaumer and got quicker with every lap. With a slight backlog of 3/10 of a second he achieved P4 and will start in tomorrow`s race 1 from the second row. Henk de Boer confirmed his strong performance from the free practices and manifested his 5th position. P6 went to Gilles Brenier, who also improved dramatically comparing to the Friday sessions. The Team Italia pilot Armando Mangini needed some laps to adopt to the track but again he surprised the crowd with a huge time advancement and he caught P7 for tomorrows starting grid. Wolfgang Jaksch (GER) got classified on P8 and finished the qualifying behind his personal expectations.

The fastest Masters car was again steered by the German Hans Laub, who left the GP2 driver Christian Eicke right behind and will start the race from P9. P10 and 2nd on the Masters class grid was Walter Steding who showed a superb qualifying performance in his Mad-Croc Worldseries by Renault 3.5, P11 goes to the experienced German Karl-Heinz Becker followed by Veronika Cicha (CZE), who also needed some time to learn the difficult track and get used to the fast corners and the tricky chicanes of the Terlaemen circuit. However, her improving lap times towards the end of the qualifying session lead to the fact, that she will be highly motivated to pass some of her male contenders in tomorrow’s races and collect again valuable points for the Championship ranking. BOSS GP returnee Peter Göllner finished P14 with his Renault World Series 3.5. The Renault from Peter`s Racing team couldn’t participate in the qualifying session due to technical problems with the paddle-shift system.

The race track in Zolder is quiet famous for it`s freak weather conditions and the BOSS GP series had to face this aggravated circumstance during their 2 free practice sessions on Friday afternoon. 20 min before FP1 rainfall set in and all teams had to quickly change tires and setup`s in order to pay tribute to the fast changing situation. Finally 13 cars went out on the meanwhile wet track. From the beginning it was Florian Schnitzenbaumer (GER), who set the pace with his Dallara GP2. He delivered an astonishing performance during the 20 minutes session and entered the pitlane with the best lap time (1:41, 572) followed by the Polish driver Jakub Smiechowski and the French pilot Christopher Brenier. P4 went to Wolfgang Jaksch (GER), who also showed his driving skills in the wet and he finished only 0,4 sec behind Brenier. The current Championship leader Johann Ledermair (AUT) reached P5 followed by the first and fastest driver of the Masters Class, Walter Steding (GER) with his Renault 3,5l World Series car. Further top 10 ranking in FP1: P7 Henk de Boer, P8 Karl-Heinz Becker, P9 Gilles Brenier, P10 Christian Eicke!

After a 90 minutes break FP 2 was scheduled and the conditions changed in the meantime. The rain stopped right after FP1 and the track dried off pretty quickly. 15 cars joined the training session with slicks and a dry setup. Johann Ledermair (AUT) immediately took over the initiative and nailed a 1:22 lap time in the asphalt. Florian Schnitzenbaumer for the first time broke into the phalanx of the Austrian driver and his direct contender Smiechowski and stopped the car in the pits on P2 with a final 1:23,201! Smiechowski ended up on P3 with a gap of 1,1 sec  behind Schnitzenbaumer. Ledermair improved his best time in his last fast lap again as he passed the checkered flag with a 1:21,328!. Christopher Brenier was not only fast in the wet, his Superleague Formula V12 is always a candidate for a podium spot and after FP 2 the French driver could be truly satisfied with P4. P5 went to Henk de Boer, he did a big step from the wet to the dry practice. Wolfgang Jaksch (GER) finished P6 after being only out on track for 3 counted laps.

The current Masters leader Hans Laub, who was not able to join FP1 due to a technical problem (break line), confirmed again his current „run“ with P7 overall and fastest Masters car and he left his follower Karl-Heinz Becker directly behind himself. P9 went to Gilles Brenier (FRA) and Armando Mangini (ITA) completed the top 10 of FP2 with his Dallara GP2.

The results of both free practices show a further tendency towards closer results and the grudge match between Ledermair and Smiechowski seem to extend as Florian Schnitzenbaumer has definitely joined the club here in Zolder. However, the „freaky“ weather forecast for the weekend in Zolder may throw all the predictions into disarray.

Race 7 and 8 are scheduled for the BOSS GP Series. In the celebration of the Syntix Superprix, the fastest, loudest and most spectacular Formula Racing Series in Europe presents itself at the history-charged racetrack in the Limburg area of Belgium. The 4,011 km, naturally designed circuit Terlaemen was challenged by almost every existing racing series worldwide since it`s completion in 1963. With its own characteristic fast turns and the renowned „Sacramentsheuvel“ this Belgian circuit is truly one of a kind and all racing fans can expect again thrilling side by side fights, overtaking manoeuvers  and pure racing action  during the 2 planned races for the weekend.

The recent championship leader Johann Ledermair (AUT) will definitely be ready and highly motivated to defense his top rank after three wins in a row. Can Jakub Smiechowski (POL) get back his consistent pace in the long runs in order to challenge Ledermair? The two youngest and to date fastest BOSS GP pilots will have to confirm, whether they are again able to conquer the top positions on the podium. Florian Schnitzenbaumer (GER), the experienced German race car driver has already proven, that his move this year from a Formula 3 to a much stronger and faster GP2 can be done without any considerable difficulties. His performance curve shows upwards with every race and he feels more confident already to further close the gap towards the two recent top pilots.

Henk de Boer, who was still handicapped by a flu during the season opener in Hockenheim is gaining speed with every race since then and he is facing a direct positioning fight with the German newcomer Wolfgang Jaksch, who, similar to Schitzenbaumer, changed this year his 2.0l Formula Master car to the high performance Dallara GP2. The recent gap in the championship ranking between these two drivers (Jaksch P5 and de Boer P6) is only 1 single point and the two races will become important events for both drivers in order to either consolidate their positions or change the ranks and lose contact to the leaders.

The Superleague Formula driver Christopher Brenier (FRA), together with his father Gilles (FRA), will also restart their V12 engines after a break for the Monza event. Christopher is recently on P4 in the championship, 10 points behind Schnitzenbaumer and two points ahead of Wolfgang Jaksch, Gilles is well positioned in the midfield with 34 points on his account. Both drivers are always good for a steady and fast race and specially Christopher Brenier will try everything to put pressure on Florian Schnitzenbaumer and try to win back the podium spot in the championship.

Veronika Cicha, the fast Czech pilot and the only woman in BOSS GP, recently classified on P7 in the Formula ranking, will try to close the gap to Henk de Boer, who is ahead of her by 11 points. Becoming faster with every race, Veronika shows an incredible consistency in her first BOSS GP season as she finished to date all 6 previous races by always earning valuable points for the overall standings. The entire organization is proud of having the only woman right now challenging male drivers in such a fast, strong and powerful formula class with her pink beast, the Dallara GP2 from Team Top Speed.

Ingo Gerstl, the Top Speed team owner, gave a great show in Monza with the first roll out of his Toro Rosso STR1 and all Tifosi went crazy on the Italian race track, whenever Gerstl passed the finished line with an incredible sound and more than 340km/h. Right now it is not sure, whether he is able to participate in Zolder as he is still constantly working together with his engineers and mechanics in order to complete all necessary maintenance, setup and engine performance tests to guarantee reliability over a full race distance.

In the Masters Class we will again face the head to head fight between the current leader Karl-Heinz Becker (GER) and his direct chaser Hans Laub (GER). Laub put down a marker in Monza with two wins a row and he truly demonstrated, that he will not yield the floor to Becker without fighting till the last race. Walter Steding, currently P3 overall, who surprised in Monza with two podium spots (P2 and P3), still has contact to the two leaders with a gap of 22 points. Two good results in Zolder and he could reduce the backlog, if one of the current leaders becomes nervous or cannot finish a race at all.

BOSS GP in Zolder, Belgium! Pure adrenalin for all drivers and even more for all spectators – witnessing the sound, power and speed of all the GP2, Superleague Formula, Renault World Series 3.5 and the just slightly less powered Formula Nissan 3.0! See you on the track J!

Phil Stratford, the californian GP2 driver came all the way from the pacific coast to Monza to participate at one of his favorite tracks for the third BOSS GP race weekend. He already indicated in race 1, that he felt comfortable and motivated this weekend to claim a podium spot for himself. While finishing P7 in race 1, his pace and lap times were already quiet promising and he finally showed all fans a feisty race 2 and fought from his starting position 7 to P3, a pretty well earned podium for him. The long trip definitely paid off and he will take a valuable Monza trophy back home to the west coast!

With his third win in a row Johann Ledermair (AUT) seems to be the current benchmark in the BOSS GP series. A sovereign wire to wire gave his direct rival Jakub Smiechowski (POL) no chance to take home a winner trophy from Italy. The Polish pilot again finshed P2 and tries to stay connected to the Austrian leader with a gap of 14 points after both Monza races.

Florian Schnitzenbaumer (GER), still P3 in race 1, could manage to leave the first chicane after the rolling start on his starting position P3 and got later on confused by a marshal signal with his number on. He had the impression, that a stop and go penalty was declared and entered the pit lane. Unfortunately the signal was not ment for him, so he left the pit lane again but lost quiet a lot of positions and ended up finishing on P7. Overall still a very successful weekend for him as he climbed up on the series ranking from P5 to P3.

His Top Speed team mate Wolfgang Jaksch (GER) was able to leave the mishap from race 1 behind and he showed a very brave and exciting race catching up from starting position 14 to finally P5! He earned enough points this weekend to elevate from P7 to P5 in the current championship ranking.

Veronika Cicha (CZE), the female power of BOSS GP, seems to be the consistency in person. She finished also race 6 of her still young career in a GP2 formula car and gained three positions in the second Monza race. She passed the checkered flag on P9 overall and climbed on overall P7 leaving already 11 male pilots behind her in the current ranking. Her development in this male-dominated series is astonishing and we can definitely expect further improvement in the upcoming races.

Probably the most unlucky driver this weekend was Armando Mangini, the Italian hometown boy. After finishing race 1 on Saturday in 5th place, he threw away his second race on P3 as he spun out towards the end of the race in the second chicane and was not able to restart the car. The same misfortune overtook Jens Renstrup (DEN), who lost control over his GP2 in the ‘Parabolica’. Luckily he could manage to go back on track and got still classified on P9.

A surprising performance was given by the Dutch driver Henk de Boer. He could convince the crowd already in race 1 with a steady 6th place and he even improved this result in race 2 with an outstanding and faultless race finishing 4th. Another consistent effort was shown by the Swiss driver Christian Eicke. He gained overall 19 points this weekend and demonstrated his best personal achievement in this season so far.

The MASTERS class in Monza was dominated by the German experienced player Hans Laub. He was simply invincible this weekend and won both races without any doubts. Karl-Heinz Becker (GER), his closest rival for the Championship, on Saturday still on P4 climbed on the podium in race 2 finishing 2nd, Walter Steding earned another podium spot on the Sunday race with P3. The classement was completed by Wolfgang Jordan (GER) on P4, Philippe Haezebrouck (FRA) on P5 and Martin Kindler (SUI) on P6.

Stay tuned for the next BOSS GP race weekend!! The races will take place in Zolder/Belgium on the occasion of the spectacular Syntix Superprix event, June 21st!

After a quiet nice and sunny day in Monza, the weather god created some confusion right at the beginning of the BOSS GP Race 1. Whereas the formtion lap could be still finished in dry conditions, the rolling race start faced rain drops in some of the sections of the track. The safety car therefore kept being on the track for two more laps in order  to control the tricky situation. As the rain did not get stronger the race could be declared and finally started in almost dry conditions.

The polesetter Johann Ledermair (AUT) set the pace right after the start and controlled his leading position during the entire race. The polish contender Jakub Smiechowski was not able to put ongoing pressure on Ledermair even if he set the fastest lap in the race. He finished safely on P2 followed by the newcomer Florian Schnitzenbaumer (GER) from Team Top Speed. The German pilot earned the first podium with his GP2 already on his third race weekend. Ingo Gerstl again utilized race 1 to perform some installation laps out of the pit lane with his Torro Rosso STR1 and he feels confident, that he will soon find the correct setup and performance to compete over a race distance. The incredible speed and sound of this car created so much excitement among the spectators and guests of the BOSS GP organization.

Jens Renstrup (DEN), who was also very stable during the Friday and Saturday sessions finished P4. The Italian driver Armando Mangini confirmed again his exceptional performance from the two free practices and the qualifying session and finished P5 followed by Henk de Boer from the Netherlands. He might be a bit dissapointed to not reach the podium on his home race, however his pace and consistency was remarkable. Wolfgang Jaksch was again unlucky this race as the water temparature in his GP2 dropped down right after the rolling start and he needed to make a pit stop after a very slow lap one to reset the failure. He kept going and even, if he was already outlapped twice, he was able to become classified on the last position with the 5th best lap time of the race.

Veronika Cicha (CZE) started the race from P14 and could again gain two position finishing on the 12th position. It was the fifth time in five races, that the only woman in BOSS GP not only finished another race but furthermore left again some of her male opponents behind her. Her trend of closing the time gap to the faster guys in front of her is truely visible, her race speed is increasing step by step and her consistency is a big surprise. She alredy benefits from collecting ongoing experience with head to head fights after competing for the last 4 years of consecutive hill climb racing.

The MASTERS class was again dominated by the German pilot Hans Laub followed by Walter Steding (GER). The podium was completed by Philippe Haezebrouck (FRA). Karl Heinz Becker, always a candidate fort he podium was also affected by some technical problems and was not able to reach a podium spot in Race 1.

The saturday qualifying session of BOSS GP was accompanied by perfect weather conditions at the Royal Park in Monza. Johann Ledermair, the current leader in the series, again confirmed his current „run“ and outperformed his follower Jakub Smiechowski (POL) by 2,4 sec in the newly established qualification format.

The first 5 from the 2 free practice sessions on friday exclusively reserve the first 10 minutes of the 30 min session for their fast lap attempts. After a 5 min break the rest of the field gets a window of 15 minutes to fight for their best position in the starting grid.

Ingo Gerstl (AUT) did his roll out premier with his Torro Rosso STR1 and was at least able to complete 1 fast lap and finished 3rd with a gap of 4,2 sec. However he drove with limited RPM`s and faces still lots of challenges to find the right setup.

Florian Schnitzenbaumer (GER) also confirmed his upword trend and starts from P4 with 1:37,474, 1,017 sec behind the Torro Rosso from Ingo Gerstl. P5 went to the local hero Armando Mangini, who surprised the  fans with a very competitive 1:39,635. Jens Renstrup will start from P6, 0,296 sec behind Mangini, followed by Henk de Boer (NED) and Wolfgang Jaksch (GER, who were just 95/1000 apart from each other.

Phil Stratford, who came all the way from Los Angeles to participate in this Boss GP race weekend, will start the race from P9 with a time of 1:40,147. P10 goes to Christian Eicke with 1:42,092.

The fastest of the Master Series was again Hans Laub with his Renault Wolrd Series 3.5. He will join the race from P11 with a fastest lap of 1:42,732. Karl Heinz Becker is just behind him followed by Walter Steding and the only woman in the Boss GP series, Veronika Cicha. Martin Kindler, the swiss pilot follows with 1:44,122 and Philippe Haezebrouck closes the starting grid from P16 with 1:44,133. Wolfgang Jordan was unlucky, his clutch blew off and he could not finish a fast lap.

Since many years the upcoming BOSS GP race weekend at the famous and legendary F1 track ‚Autodromo Nationale di Monza‘ is on the event calendar of Europe`s fastest FIA approved Formula series. The fast and exciting natural circuit in the midst of Monza with its long straights, hard breaking zones before the chicanes and the long, open turns with extremely high lateral forces serves as the perfect playground for the F1, GP2, F3000 and Renault World Series 3,5l formula cars with it`s powerful engines and the extreme down force capabilities.

All fans will again witness spectacular two races and ongoing positioning fights between the leaders and followers in the three classes the BOSS GP series is divided. Johann Ledermaier (AUT), the current leader of the main classement will try to defeat his top position against his direct pursuer and last years BOSS GP Champion Jakub Smiechowski (POL). Ledermaier is surely high motivated and feels confident to show a good performance after his amazing results at Paul Ricard/Le Castellet. Jakub Smiechowski lies in wait for his chance to win his first race this year.

Some of the new drivers, who joined the series this year, will face the circuit for the first time ever while others are returning pilots with experience. Florian Schnitzenbaumer (GER) is feeling more and more comfortable with his new GP2 and he became faster and faster with every free practice, qualifying and the last two race weekends in Hockenheim and Paul Ricard. His tendency and personal motivation is surely facing towards the podium. Wolfgang Jaksch (GER), the second newcomer in the BOSS GP series had a promising premiere in Hockenheim with starting in both races from the third row and finishing both races on P7. Unfortunately he could not confirm this upward performance at Paul Ricard. The new and unknown track in combination with some technical problems influenced his confidence and he was not able to improve his positions in Le Castellet. For Monza all looks again positive and we will see, how he can handle the situation this weekend with another new track.

The one and only woman in BOSS GP ever, Veronika Cicha (CZE), positively surprised all fans and critics with her performances during the first two race weekends in Germany and France. Coming from the European hill climb scene, where she competed the last 4 years with all the European professionals and finishing last year as the fastest Woman and 9th overall in her class with a Mitsubishi Evo VIII WRC, the adventure BOSS GP with a high powered GP2 formula car brought up some doubtful statements from the observers of the formula racing world. However, already in Hockenheim she put all the scepsis to bed and was fighting in both races within the midfield. She conquered even her first ever experience at the difficult and blind circuit in Le Castellet and again finished both races in the midfield without making any mistake. The entire Team Top Speed is already truely proud and more than happy to have the first woman ever in BOSS GP in their team and we all can expect a highly motivated and focused woman challenging her male opponents again in Monza.

The current leader in the Masters Class, Karl-Heinz Becker (GER) faces again a pole fight with his direct follower Hans Laub (GER) while drivers like Wolfgang Jordan (GER), Martin Kindler (CH), Walter Steding (GER) and particularly Philippe Haezebrouck (FRA), who showed an amazing racing performance in Le Castellet, are looking forward to give the two leaders a hard time.

Ingo Gerstl (AUT) from Team Top Speed, one of the fastest and most experienced BOSS GP pilots, announced, that he is planning for the first time to leave his GP2 in the garage and tries his first roll out in Monza with an original F1 Toro Rosso STR1. The high performance F1 model from the 2006 season was not only the fastest and most powerful spec car ever built, it will furthermore and definitely impress all fans at the spot with its incredible sound, created by a original Cosworth V10 power train.

We are looking forward to another exciting, fascinating, thrilling and in the same time safe and sound racing weekend with the real and pure racing performance of BOSS GP!