Tag: Le Castellet

Report: Race 2 Paul Ricard

Posted on April 9, 2023 by - General

In the longer race on Easter Sunday, Ingo Gerstl, Antonio Pizzonia and Henry Clausnitzer were able to add a second victory. Simone Colombo takes revenge in the FORMULA class.

In front of thousands of spectators and once again in the best spring weather in Le Castellet, Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) in the Toro Rosso STR1 continued his winning streak. As Didier Sirgues (FRA, LRS Racing) could not start the Jaguar R2 today, Gerstl and Ulf Ehninger (GER, ESBA Racing) remained among themselves in the BOSS GP F1 Class. Gerstl therefore took a more relaxed approach and left the fastest lap to another driver. With 50 points from the first two races, the Austrian is already setting the path for the next title. Who can challenge him at Hockenheim?

The runner-up, Benetton driver Ulf Ehninger, was pleased to be able to present Jean Alesi’s former car to the fans twice over the full BOSS GP F1 race distance. Next up is his home race at the Hockenheimring.

Former Formula 1 driver Antonio Pizzonia (BRA, HS Engineering) put the pedal to the metal again today and set the fastest lap time of 1:47.991 (lap average 194.7 km/h). Towards the end of the race, the OPEN driver made his pit crew sweat again as he allowed the FORMULA group’s gap to melt down to 0.8 seconds. Pizzonia will be racing the entire season for HS Engineering.

Pizzonia leads the second group, behind are Faggionato, Colombo and Ghiotto

In the FORMULA class, today was the day of Simone Colombo (ITA, MM International). After a turbulent duel with compatriot Marco Ghiotto (Scuderia Palladio) in the first race of the season, the order was quickly sorted this time. At the start Ghiotto tried to overtake Colombo, but this was not successful and as the race progressed the lead increased to around five seconds. Finally, Colombo crossed the finish line 2.5 seconds ahead of Marco Ghiotto and 24.7 seconds ahead of “Checco” Malavasi (ITA, Scuderia Palladio). Malavasi thus repeated his podium finish from yesterday.

Thomas Jackermeier (GER, Top Speed) fought his way to a great fourth place. For a long time he was involved in a duel with David Moretti (FRA, Griffith’s), who delivered an excellent performance today. Until the last lap he was on course for fourth place before he had to park his car on the Mistral straight. Marc Faggionato (MCO) in the MM International GP2-Dallara was also out of luck: After the Monegasque had competed in no less than three races at the Grand Prix de France Historique yesterday and took victory in all of them – including the BOSS GP – he had to retire early today in both the Formula Ford race and the second heat of the BOSS GP. Faggionato was thus denied the chance of another double victory after Brno 2018.

Fourth place in FORMULA class for GP2 driver Thomas Jackermeier, who supposed to be in his Toro Rosso ST3

Rookie Henry Clausnitzer (GER) and his team WF Racing celebrated another finish at their first BOSS GP race weekend. He was rewarded with another 25 points for the class win in the SUPER LIGHTS six-cylinder class.

The next opportunity for teams and drivers to take to the track in their Big Open Single Seaters is in Baden-Württemberg in just four weeks’ time (5–7 May). Traditionally, the BOSS GP Racing Series competes there at the Bosch Hockenheim Historic in honour of Jim Clark.

Pictures: Angelo Poletto/BOSS GP

Report: Race 1 Paul Ricard

Posted on April 8, 2023 by - General

Anglo-American Peter Mann’s Formula 1 Ferrari F2008 led the BOSS GP Racing Series field into the first race of the season. This was just one of many highlights at the Grand Prix de France Historique on Saturday.

Once again, both Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) and his Toro Rosso STR1 Formula 1 car kept a “cool head”. The record-breaking champion secured the winner’s trophy at the first of 14 races of the 2023 season. The Salzburg native was presented with his winner’s trophy by French racing legends Jean Alesi, Rene Arnoux and Franck Montagny in the atmospheric setting of the paddock. Ulf Ehninger (GER, ESBA Racing) in second place and Didier Sirgue (FRA, LRS Racing) in third place in the BOSS GP F1 Class also enjoyed the applause of the fans.

At the grid walk the spectators got a closer look to the BOSS GP jewels

Antonio Pizzonia (BRA, HS Engineering) was busy handing out autographs before the start, before he burned lap times under 1:50 minutes into the asphalt a few minutes later. Finally, to the delight of his team, he set an impressive best time of 1:47.092 in the World Series car – victory in the OPEN class was only a formality. It was the first victory for Pizzonia in a single-seater car since his triumph in the AutoGP championship eight years ago.

The FORMULA class was explosive: Pole setter Marc Faggionato (MCO), wearing the MM International colours for the first time, stalled at the start of the warm-up lap and had to take the flying race start from the back of the field. However, after just a few corners, the Paul Ricard specialist was back in the leading pack. There, the duel between Simone Colombo (ITA, MM International) and Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) in their GP2 Dallara cars resumed on the first lap. After a mistake by Colombo and a subsequent collision between the two Italians, the race was over for Ghiotto, Colombo on the other hand had to pick up a new car nose in his pit. All this helped Faggionato overcome the incident at the pre-start and race towards victory. The Monegasque took his third BOSS GP win today after double victory in Brno 2018, while Colombo was similarly rewarded for a race to catch up, taking second. Unimpressed by the duels around him, “Checco” Malavasi (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) remained successful with third place. Giancarlo Pedetti (ITA, Nannini Racing) in a strong fourth place was unfortunate to just miss the podium. Jean-Christophe Peyre (FRA, Zig-Zag) finished fifth in his home race in the only AutoGP car on the grid.

Rene Arnoux (l.) with the successful BOSS GP drivers

Due to the incidents in the FORMULA class, SUPER LIGHTS driver Henry Clausnitzer (GER, WF Racing) was also able to finish the race in the top-10 and take a class win in his very first BOSS GP race.

The second race over 25 minutes starts tomorrow at 15:15 local time and can again be seen with extensive pre-race coverage in the livestream.

Pictures: Angelo Poletto/BOSS GP

Preview: Le Castellet

Posted on April 6, 2023 by - General

The BOSS GP Racing Series is the prime attraction at the Kennol Grand Prix de France Historique from 7 to 9 April 2023 at Circuit Paul Ricard. Formula 1 cars and a former F1 driver will enrich the programme for the season opener.

Legendary cars and drivers come together on the Côte d’Azur at Easter to enjoy racing and reminiscing about the “good old days”. Together with thousands of spectators, they celebrate racing from different eras, including the modern Monposto bolides of the last 25 years from the BOSS GP Racing Series. That racing series that gathers cars of immense material and emotional value and presents them to the spectators in action. All this will happen at the season opener in Le Castellet in front of the eyes of numerous French racing legends. Rene Arnoux, Yannick Dalmas, Jean-Pierre Jarier, Eric Helary, Gerard Larrousse, Franck Montagny and Jean Alesi have announced their participation. The latter will meet his 1997 race car, the Benetton B197 of German Ulf Ehninger (ESBA Racing), at the BOSS GP “Grid Walk”.

Entries

Divided into four classes (BOSS GP F1, OPEN, FORMULA, SUPER LIGHTS), 20 drivers and their teams head to Le Castellet for the season opener. There, the first championship points and trophies are at stake. Among them are defending champion Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) in his Toro Rosso STR1, his team-mate Thomas Jackermeier (GER) in his STR3 and Frenchman Didier Sirgue (LRS Racing) in a Jaguar R2. A dozen GP2 cars (now Formula 2) and AutoGP cars will also try to conquer the notorious Signes bend at the end of the Mistral straight as quickly as possible. However, all eyes will be on the surprise comeback of ex-Formula 1 driver Antonio Pizzonia (BRA). The Austrian team HS Engineering has scored a coup by signing the former Jaguar and Williams driver: “It’s been almost eight years since I last drove a single-seater when I raced in AutoGP with Zele-Racing, and I can’t wait to get the feeling of pushing a single-seater car to the limit again,” says Pizzonia ahead of the season opener. The Brazilian will drive the modified World Series car with a Gibson V8 engine in the OPEN class all season long.

Timetable

For the BOSS GP Racing Series, there will be two practice sessions on Friday, qualifying and a race on Saturday and another race on Sunday. The races will start after the VIP Grid Walk at 15:15. The race duration on Saturday (20 minutes) differs from that on Sunday (25 minutes) – however, the same number of points will be awarded for both races. But apart from the points and trophies, the main focus of this spectacle is fun, adrenaline and the enthusiasm of the drivers and the fans.

Friday, 7 April
12:20–12:45     Free Practice 1
16:10–16:35     Free Practice 2

Saturday, 8 April
09:35–10:05     Qualifying (divided in two groups)
15:15–15:35     Race 1 (20 minutes)

Sunday, 9 April
15:15–15:40     Race 2 (25 minutes)

all times CEST

Tickets and live stream

Tickets can be purchased online or at the box office. Access to the paddock is included in the ticket price, and the pit lane is open for a pit walk during the lunch breaks on Saturday and Sunday. The supporting programme includes a Formula 1 exhibition and two concerts by the AC/DC cover band “Rock to Hell”. Those who cannot be there have the opportunity to follow a large part of the programme via livestream.

Support events

On the racetrack, which was used by Formula 1 until recently, other legendary racing cars will be on display in addition to the BOSS GP Racing Series. Among them are Formula 1 and Formula 2 racing cars from the 1970s and 1980s. They will be joined by the FIA Historic Formula 3 European Cup, Formula Ford with cars from before 1993, the Lotus Trophy and endurance racers. The latter will tackle a 6-hour race on Saturday evening.

Pictures: Jean-Marie Biadatti/HVM

Antonio Pizzonia returns to single-seaters

Posted on March 31, 2023 by - General

Austrian BOSS GP team HS Engineering surprises everyone with the signing of former Jaguar and Williams F1 driver Antonio Pizzonia from Manaus, Brazil.

The 42-year-old replaces Harald Schlegelmilch (LVA) at HS Engineering. Pizzonia will pilot the OPEN title-winning car from last season, the World Series Dallara Gibson V8.

The Brazilian, who competed in 20 Grand Prix alongside Mark Webber and Juan Pablo Montoya started his racing career in single-seaters way back in 1996. He became champion in Formula Vauxhall Junior, Formula Renault and British F3 before stepping up to Formula 3000 and joined BMW Williams as test driver for the 2002 season.

Following his F1 career Pizzonia also competed in the Champ Car World Series, the Superleague Formula, Stock Car Brasil, the American Le Mans Series, in Daytona Prototypes, the FIA World Endurance Championship and the AutoGP Series taking the title in 2015.

Recently Antonio focused on supporting the racing career of his son Antonio Pizzonia Neto in karting and also returning to senior shifter karts himself taking the victory in the World Finals 2022 in Las Vegas.

Antonio Pizzonia: “First of all I would like to thank Michael Hascic for the opportunity to return to single-seaters. Racing is all I have had in mind since I was a kid. Being given the chance to drive a highly competitive car again at my age is for sure something special. It’s been almost eight years since I last drove a single-seater when I raced with Zele-Racing in AutoGP and I can’t wait to feel the sensation of pushing a formula car to the limit again.“

Michael Hascic (Team owner HS Engineering): “I am pleased to welcome Antonio to our outfit. I hope that adding a celebrity driver of his calibre to the BOSS GP grid will not only improve the overall status of the championship but will also help us to generate more attention in general about what we do and who we are. Of course, we aim to continue where we finished at Misano last year and want to add at least one or two more cars to the grid from Hockenheim onwards. We still have a couple seats available.“

Photo: Zele-Racing

Report: Le Castellet Race 2

Posted on June 19, 2022 by - 5, General

Rene Arnoux presents the winners’ trophies to Gerstl, Schlegelmilch, Chovanec-Lopez and Geier.

The atmosphere at the third event of the 2022 BOSS GP season was unique: visitors had the opportunity to buy tickets for the grid walk and thus get close to Big Open Single Seater and experience the tension before the start at first hand. Not only hundreds of fans took advantage of this, but also the French racing legends Jean Alesi, Rene Arnoux and Jean-Pierre Jarier. They were on hand for souvenir photos, as were the BOSS GP cars and their current drivers.

BOSS GP F1 Class

Toro Rosso, Benetton and Jaguar in a joint race – this unique picture was delivered by the BOSS GP Racing Series in Le Castellet. The legendary Formula 1 cars completed the first laps of Sunday’s race in formation, but in the end the same result as the day before was in the books: Ingo Gerstl (AUT, Top Speed) took the win ahead of Ulf Ehninger (GER, ESBA Racing) and Didier Sirgue (FRA, LRS Racing).

Didier Sirgue showed at the home race that a twenty-year-old Formula 1 car is far from old hat

BOSS GP OPEN Class

Once again Harald Schlegelmilch (LVA, HS Engineering) was chasing the Formula 1 cars in the World Series car with an improved V8 engine. With the fastest race lap, the Latvian won the OPEN class, which was newly introduced this year for cars without a displacement limit. To the delight of the fans who held out in the heat, he did some donuts after the race, immortalising himself at the Circuit Paul Ricard.

Schlegelmilch pushes as hard as possible to catch the F1 cars from other generations

BOSS GP FORMULA Class

The Portuguese Zdenek Chovanec-Lopez (MM International) was unbeatable again today, Sunday, in a race that was 5 minutes longer than the day before. Again MM International team mate Simone Colombo (ITA) was involved in a thrilling fight for position 2 behind Chovanec-Lopez. This time, however, he defended the position in the last third of the race against Marc Faggionato (MCO, Zig-Zag). With degrading tyres towards the end of the race, Colombo kept his nerve and thus also second place. Faggionato managed a conciliatory result with third place after retiring early yesterday after a spin. Once again, Francesco Malavasi (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) was left without a place on the podium. With a further improvement in performance, however, he was ultimately only a good seven seconds off the podium. His team boss and racing colleague Marco Ghiotto (ITA, Scuderia Palladio) retired already in the early stages. This means a setback for the overall standings. The defending champion is now already 47 points behind Chovanec-Lopez and 35 behind Colombo.

The best Frenchman in this class was Alain Girardet (FRA, GDL Racing) in his World Series car in the second race. Luca Martucci (ITA, MM International) finished in sixth place. This is remarkable, because the Italian had to fight his way back to the front from the end of the field after a spin in the early stages. The fights for positions behind were also worth seeing, among others with David Moretti, Walter Steding and Thomas Jackermeier.

Dominates the FORMULA class this season so far: Zdenek Chovanec-Lopez

BOSS GP SUPER LIGHTS Class

Alexander Geier (AUT, Geier Racing) sensationally managed to do the double at his BOSS GP race debut: The only 16-year-old Austrian in the V6 World Series car did a good job today as well and even dueled with the faster FORMULA cars at times. With two race wins and the full points tally this weekend, he was able to make up some points on the first-placed driver in the overall standings, Andreas Hasler (AUT, Hasler Motorsport).

Alexander Geier delighted the French spectators in the retro colours of the Renault World Champion cars of 2005 and 2006

The BOSS GP Racing Series now takes a summer break. Nevertheless, there is still work to be done, because the teams are using the time to revise the high-end racing cars and make them ready for the second half of the season. In twelve weeks, Europe’s fastest racing series will continue this year’s championship. At the traditional Masaryk Racing Days in Brno from 9 to 11 September, races 7 and 8 of the season will be held.

Pictures: Jean-Marie Biadatti/PhotoClassicRacing.com, SMW MEDIA

Preview: Le Castellet

Posted on June 15, 2022 by - General

The BOSS GP Racing Series is coming to Le Castellet with a top-class starting field for the French Historic Grand Prix (June 17-19, 2022). Racing legends await teams and drivers there.

Just two weeks after the races at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, the BOSS GP Racing Series continues its European tour in France. The fourth edition of the Grand Prix de France Historique at Circuit Paul Ricard provides the ideal setting to bring the past back to life. Located near the sea, between Marseille and Toulon, fans and drivers can expect an event full of awakened memories.

With a bombastic grid of over 25 cars, including Formula 1 race cars from Toro Rosso, Jaguar and Benetton, IndyCars and monopostos from Formula 2, GP2, World Series and Auto GP, Europe’s fastest racing series will contest rounds 5 and 6 of the season at Le Castellet. Also taking part are four Frenchmen: Didier Sirgue (Jaguar R2), David Moretti (GP2), Jean-Christophe Peyre (Auto GP) and Alain Girardet (WSbR), joined by Nicolas Matile (Auto GP) and Marc Faggionato (GP2), who will be competing under a Monegasque license.

Entry list:

Race Track:

The 5.8-kilometer Circuit Paul Ricard is a track that is demanding from a driving point of view and at the same time has some high-speed passages to offer. Well situated climatically, with around 180 different track variations and extremely safe, the circuit is a paradise for test drives for good reason. The Big Open Single Seater’s last race here was held in 2017.

Timetable (CEST):

Friday, 17 June 2022
11:00–11:25     Free Practice 1
15:45–16:10     Free Practice 2

Saturday, 18 June 2022
10:10–10:40     Qualifying
15:30–15:50     Race 1 (20 minutes)

Sunday, 19 June 2022
09:35–09:45     Warm-up
15:30–15:55     Race 2 (25 minutes)

Supporting program:

The fourth edition of the event is dedicated to the 70th anniversary of the FFSA (French Automobile Sports Association) and the fabulous history of Formula 1. In addition to the BOSS GP Racing Series, the program includes races with legendary cars from the 1970s (Historic F1). Furthermore, there will be races of the Historic Formula 2 (built before 1979), Formula 3 and Formula Renault Classic and Formula Ford 1600 with no less than 45 starters. Under the title “100 km du GPFH”, older and younger GTs and sports prototypes will also be competing.

A total of twelve races, spread over Saturday and Sunday, are on the racing program. Numerous other Formula 1 vehicles will be on display in the paddock. Fans can also do their own laps in F1 simulators or learn something new at the F1 technology exhibition. The paddock is freely accessible to visitors. No wonder that this also attracts numerous French motorsport stars to the Cote d’Azur. Jean Alesi, Rene Arnoux, Yannick Dalmas, Jean-Pierre Jarier, Patrick Tambay, Pascal Fabre, Jean-Marc Gounon, Patrick Gaillard and others have announced their visit.

Tickets & TV broadcast:

Tickets are available from 25 euros, for more details visit www.gpfrance.com/en/french-historic-grand-prix/ticketing

Admission is daily from 9 am.

The program on Sunday will also be broadcast on French television, on the channel Automoto La chaîne.

Pictures: Angelo Poletto/BOSS GP, Jean-Marie Biadatti, Bernard Canonne

First look at 2022

Posted on December 31, 2021 by - General

Seven race events on the calendar for the BOSS GP Racing Series in 2022. Among them the return to France.

The 28th season of the only true Big Open single seater series will start at the beginning of May and not end until November 2022, which should ensure a largely trouble-free season even under the circumstances of the COVID pandemic. The provisional race calendar includes only Formula 1 and MotoGP level circuits. This guarantees a modern infrastructure and high safety standards.

The first two of 14 races in 2022 will take place at the Jim Clark Revival at the Hockenheimring on 6, 7 and 8 May. This is followed by the home race of the Austrian-registered racing series at the Red Bull Ring on 4 and 5 June. One of the season highlights is the return to “Paul Ricard” for the French Historic Grand Prix (17-19 June).

Start of race 2 at Paul Ricard 2017.
Memories: BOSS GP 2017 in Le Castellet

Another race is listed for July, but confirmation is still pending. This race is intended as a replacement for the 2021 event at the Nürburgring, which had been cancelled due to the flood disaster in the nearby Ahr Valley.

From 9 to 11 September, the BOSS GP Racing Series will once again run as the main act at the Masaryk Racing Days in Brno. The season ends with an Italian double: first at “Forza Fanatec” in Mugello from14-16 October, then at Misano (4-6 November) for the “Pirelli Grande Finale”.

More news about the 2022 season coming soon on www.bossgp.com and on our social media channels Facebook and Instagram.

Pictures: Michael Jurtin/BOSS GP, Michael Kavena/BOSS GP

Gerstl dominating again, van Kalmthout and Ledermair compete head-to-head

Posted on June 11, 2017 by - General

Podium race 2 at Paul Ricard 2017.

Another heated race under French sun at Paul Ricard brought a clear winning Ingo Gerstl (Top Speed, OPEN class) with a head-to-head competition following on position 2 and 3 between the youngsters Rinus van Kalmthout (Mansell Motorsport, OPEN class) and Johann Ledermair (Ledermair Motorsport, FORMULA class). 

It was a clear start-finish-victory for Ingo Gerstl, who dominated the track also in the second race of the weekend in France. After winning the first race at Saturday, the Austrian repeated a successful performance on Sunday, racing his best lap in 1:46,605 min. “I’m happy with the race”, Gerstl recapped his performance. “Especially since I reached my goal, to improve the best lap compared to Saturdays race.”

Start of race 2 at Paul Ricard 2017.

Start of race 2 at Paul Ricard 2017.

 

The gap between Gerstl and the closest rivals on track, Rinus van Kalmthout (+ 1:00,865 min) and Johann Ledermair (+ 1:10,978 min) on position 2 and 3, was significant. “There was no chance against Ingo (Gerstl) today”, van Kalmthout showed respect to the winner. The both youngsters, Rinus 16 years old, Johann 25 years old, showed a decent battle. At the end best lap times were more than close, with a 1:50,616 min by van Kalmthout in his GP2 Evo Dallara and a 1:50,643 by Ledermair in his Dallara GP2. Quita a remarkable performance by the Austrian Ledermair, if you notice, that he competes in the FORMULA class, while van Kalmthout starts at the OPEN class. “It was a good race, tyre management went well again”, van Kalmthout was satisfied with his race. “Ingo was really quick, I had no chance, keeping up with him. Finally we got out the most of what was possible today, so I’m happy with the result”, the Dutch was satisfied with reaching the P2 again.

Johann Ledermair on track at Paul Ricard 2017.

Johann Ledermair on track at Paul Ricard 2017.

 

Meanwhile Johann Ledermair, finishing on grid position 3, making the P1 of the FORMULA class, was not pleased overall, but struggled with himself. “I’m totally not satisfied. The whole weekend was running a kind of weird. Initially I assumed tyre-problems due to their conditions after the race in Zandvoort. I was absolutely convinced, that the tyres caused some problems, we had to deal with. So we changed tyres, but I noticed immediately during the warm up lap, that something still is wrong. We checked everything and I got an okay by my chief mechanic. But I felt strong vibrations at the steering wheel during the race and took out some speed due to security reasons. Finally I just aimed to finish the race considering these circumstances. Most of all I’m angry with myself about hanging up on a tyre problem which turned out to be wrong”.

Finishing fourth was Wolfgang Jaksch (F Xtreme Racing Team, OPEN class) with his best lap in 1:56,507 min. As on Saturday Jaksch made it to the P3 of the OPEN class and was absolutely satisfied with his performance after some struggles at the race the day before: “Despite being on the same place, the race itself felt totally different for me. I’m absolutely satisfied and happy about the result and especially how it came. The car run smoothly, I got faster each round coming closer to the finish; to me that shows, each round strengthens the confidence in the car, which improves my lap times.”

Wolfgang Jaksch (l.) overtaking Mahaveer Raghunathan at Paul Ricard 2017.

Wolfgang Jaksch (l.) overtaking Mahaveer Raghunathan at Paul Ricard 2017.

 

Salvatore De Plano (MM International Motorsport) and Mahaveer Raghunathan (PS Racing by Coloni Motorsport) rounded the podium of the FORMULA class off, finishing on position 5 and 6. Got overtaken by Jaksch couple of laps before the finish, the gap between best lap times of the Italian (1:56,651 min) and the Indian (1:56,625 min) nevertheless was tight. “I totally didn’t expect to make it to the podium, so I am really really happy”, De Plano smiled widely. Having big issues on Saturdays race (“The car was terrible!”), De Plano changed his tyre management for Sundays race and was absolutely pleased: “The car run perfect, conditions were great, I loved the hot weather; it was a perfect race day for me.” Meanwhile P3 Mahaveer Raghunatan was happy, having reached a podium position as well, but struggled with the track layout. “The problem were the long straights. I lost a lot of time on these straights, actually I lost too much time there”, he summed up.

The remaing grid (all FORMULA class) either performed best lap times close to the podium drivers. David Moretti (Griffith’s, FORMULA class), getting overtaken by even seven drivers in the early stage of the race, started a great fight and made it from position 13 in round 2 up to position 7 while crossing the finishing line (best lap: 1:56,900 min). Wolfgang Jordan (8., H&A Racing, 1:59,784), Henk de Boer (9., De Boer Manx, 1:59,115) and Armando Mangini (10., MM International Motorsport, 1:58,225) also performed their best lap under two minutes. Christian Eicke (11., Speed Center, 2:01,327), Martin Kindler (12., Jenzer Motorsport, 2:02,586) and Bruno Navarrete (13., Griffith’s, 2:03,357) were close by.

Race 2 at Paul Ricard 2017.

Race 2 at Paul Ricard 2017.

 

Four out of the starting grid of 17 cars were not classified because of early exits, due to various technical problems. While Florian Schnitzenbaumer (Top Speed, FORMULA class) had problems with the gearbox of his GP2 Dallara in lap 11, Veronika Cicha (H&A Racing, FORMULA class) had to exit the race due to tyre-problems as well in lap 11. Already in lap 5 Patrick D’Aubreby (Griffith’s, OPEN class) exited the race with technical problems. Peter Göllner (Speed Center, FORMULA class) spun off the track in lap 4.

Results race 2 Paul Ricard 2017.

Results race 2 Paul Ricard 2017.

 

More:

Photo Gallery Paul Ricard 2017: bossgp.com/gallery/paul-ricard-gt-open-euroformula-open/

Race 1 Paul Ricard: bossgp.com/ingo-gerstl-leads-the-grid-chased-by-youngsters-rinus-van-kalmthout-and-johann-ledermair/

Qualifying report Paul Ricard: bossgp.com/qualifying-at-paul-ricard-with-some-strange-failures/

Practice day Paul Ricard: bossgp.com/practice-day-at-paul-ricard-results/

Ingo Gerstl leads the grid, chased by youngsters Rinus van Kalmthout and Johann Ledermair

Posted on June 10, 2017 by - General

Podium of race 1 at Paul Ricard 2017.

Hunting the reigning champion and current leader of the OPEN class Ingo Gerstl (Top Speed), youngsters Rinus van Kalmthout (Mansell Motorsport, OPEN class) and Johann Ledermair (Ledermair Motorsport, FORMULA class) did a great job. At the end of race 1 on Circuit Paul Ricard in France the experienced driver made quite clear, that he wouldn’t let go his pole position of the grid.

The race started – at boiling, southern French heat – with a crash of Peter Göllner (Speed Center, FORMULA class) in round 1. During overtaking, Göllner had trouble to keep his GP 2 Dallara on the lane and crashed. The following safety car phase challenged drivers and cars due to the danger of overheating and “really didn’t suit the plans”, winner Gerstl grumbled after the race. When the track was released for the grid, drivers took off and stepped on the gas. Gerstl as well as his hunters van Kalmthout and Ledermair, soon established the Top 3, who kept the following field on distance.

“Of course I’m pleased by the win. With the expection of some details we had a great race”, Ingo Gerstl was happy about his win with a best lap time of 1:48,420 min. “The duel with Rinus (van Kalmthout) on position 2 was interesting. I wasn’t too sure about a direct, close battle with him on the track. It’s not yet too easy, to estimate his experience. I mean – he his just 16 years old. He showed a great performance and made it a really good race; guess how he will drive with a couple more years of experience. So actually we can look forward to further races with and against him”, Gerstl was pleased.

Race 1 at Paul Ricard 2017: Leading Ingo Gerstl (r.) sharply followed by Rinus van Kalmthout.

Race 1 at Paul Ricard 2017: Leading Ingo Gerstl (r.) sharply followed by Rinus van Kalmthout.

 

By Gerstl much praised, Rinus van Kalmthout himself was not only happy about making it to P2 with a best lap time of 1:50,847 min, but also with his personal fast growing learning curve: “It was a good race. First round was pretty close with Ingo (Gerstl), so I could stayed with him. Then we had the safety car phase; it was something to learn from – warming the tyres, warming the brakes. So that’s why actually I was happy about this experience. The race felt really good, even if driving between Ingo Gerstl with one second gap in front and Johann Ledermair with one second gap behind was just like a little bit driving alone. I learned a lot about tyre management during that race, since the driving with Pirelli is a totally new experience for me.” In particular the final stage of the race pleased van Kalmthout: “It’s nice to see that at last lap I was quicker than Ingo (Gerstl). That really gives me a confidence boost.” Goal of the 16 years old Dutch for race 2 at Paul Ricard on Sunday?: “Getting closer to Ingo (Gerstl)”. So quite a nice challenge waits for van Kalmthout, since Gerstls target for Sundays race is “to drive some really fast laps at the second race, after being five seconds slowler at race 1 than at Qualifying”.

Ingo Gerstl (l.) and Rinus van Kalmthout (r.) talk-shopping after the race.

Ingo Gerstl (l.) and Rinus van Kalmthout (r.) talk-shopping after the race.

 

Sharply following the two fastest OPEN class drivers was once more FORMULA class driver Johann Ledermair with his best lap in 1:51,967 min. His team had won the race against time already before the actual race started. After dropping out at the Qualifying due to a technical problem (fatigue fracture), Ledermairs team had worked non-stop and finally fixed the car by five minutes left until race start. “Huge thanks and appreciation to my team for fixing the problem”, Ledermair was more than pleased with the performance of his technical crew. “The car felt well. But actually there were some slight vibrations by the front tyres and I had some trouble with understeering”, he summed up his race. “All in all the race went well, I made the most out of it. Now we will work on getting everything fixed again until tomorrows race. The motto is, to fully attack at the second race again and getting the car faster anyway.”

Johann Ledermair on track at Paul Ricard 2017.

Johann Ledermair on track at Paul Ricard 2017.

 

The podium of the OPEN class was completed by Wolfgang Jaksch, who raced onto overall position 7 with his Super Aguri SA06 (best lap: 1:58,177 min). “Second race this season, second podium. I’m absolutely happy about this result”, Jaksch smiled widely after the podium ceremony. Especially, since “it was a really difficult race. The grip level was totally different from the grid level during Qualifying. So the car was quite unstable and it was hard work, to bring my car home and take it to the finish. Lap times could have been better; despite of course I’m very happy with the P3, but not, how the race went.” Jaksch was self-critical as well: “I have to work on myself, to get along better with such difficult race conditions.” For second race on sunday “we will work on the setup and will do some finetuning. Making it again to the podium would be great”. Jaksch sets position 4 of the overall OPEN class ranking with 40 points, behind Ingo Gerstl on position 1 (75 points), Rinus van Kalmthout (47) and Phil Stratford (44).

Podium of the FORMULA class was completed by Florian Schnitzenbaumer (Top Speed) with a best lap time of 1:55,823 min, finishing on position 4 and Mahaveer Raghunathan (PS Racing by Coloni Motorsport), finishing on position 5 with a best lap time of 1:57,226 min. While Raghunathan keeps the overall position 2 at the FORMULA class with now 104 gained points, behind Johann Ledermair with a total of 122 points, Schnitzenbaumer and Salvatore De Plano (MM International Motorsport) follow on third rank (both 90 points),

A great catch up on the track of Paul Ricard showed David Moretti (Griffith’s). Starting from position 10 at his first BOSS GP race at season 2017, he made it to position 6, overtaking couple of drivers with his GP 2 Dallara. Definitely less satisfied was Veroninka Cicha (H&A Racing). After a great performance at Qualifying in the morning, her car showed technical problems sharply before finishing the race, during lap 9.

After recurring technical problems, as well during practice as at Qualifying, Karl-Heinz Becker retired from the race already after dropping out of the Qualifying, just racing one single round.

Complete results of race 1 at Paul Ricard:

Results race 1 at Paul Ricard 2017.

Results race 1 at Paul Ricard 2017.

Qualifying at Paul Ricard with some strange failures

Posted on June 10, 2017 by - General

Qualifying at Paul Ricard 2017.

While Le Castellet and its Circuit Paul Ricard continously are heating up, BOSS GP teams went on track for Qualifying at Saturday morning at temperatures of about 27°. Under best conditions Qualifying brought some “strange failures”, as Harald Michel, Official Scrutineer of BOSS GP Championship, recapped the session.

At first the Top 8 drivers of Fridays practice day – Ingo Gerstl (Top Speed), Rinus van Kalmthout (Mansell Motorsport), Johann Ledermair (Ledermair Motorsport), Mahaveer Raghunathan (PS Racing by Coloni Motorsport), Florian Schnitzenbaumer (Top Speed), Wolfgang Jaksch (F Xtreme Racing Team), David Moretti (Griffith’s) and Salvatore De Plano (MM International Motorsport) – entered the 5.842 km long track.

Wolfgang Jaksch during Qualifying at Paul Ricard 2017.

Wolfgang Jaksch during Qualifying at Paul Ricard 2017.

 

Two drivers left the Qualifying unplanned. While Wolfgang Jaksch with his Super Aguri SA06 failed due to a major driving error already early, Johan Ledermair in his GP 2 Dallara was stopped by a technical problem. “The car had an fatigue fracture”, Ledermair wasn’t pleased by his unexpected exit, “our team will work out on that. We hopefully will fix the problem until the race on the afternoon”. Nevertheless – with a 1:49.560 min he raced onto start position 3 for the race this afternoon before he had to exit. No technical problem, but a “clear driving error I made”, stopped Wolfgang Jaksch already in round 3. “I was delayed by Moretti in the first round. So I really had to push hard the following round, to improve my time. I managed to overtake him, but misjugded my braking phase afterwards; so I missed to take the turn properly and got stucked in the gravel trap”, Jaksch summed his performance up. “Luckily I made at least one counted lap”, he adds, starting with a 1:54.722 min lap-time on start position 6.

The two exits slowed down leading Ingo Gerstl, who raced onto pole position nevertheless. “If everything runs smoothly, I improve my time each round. So for the Qualifying I targeted a 1:40′ lap-time. Unfortunately we had to slow down twice during the Qualifying, which only gives us 8 minutes, to race a best time”, Gerstl summarized the Qualifying. “Of course I’m fine with starting from pole-position. But actually there could have been potential for a much better time on the track”, the current leader of the OPEN class made his point. He now is “looking forward to great race and especially the duel with Rinus van Kalmthout”. The 16 years old Dutch raced onto position 2 in his GP2 Evo Dallara.

Qualifying results Paul Ricard 2017.

Qualifying results Paul Ricard 2017.

 

In the second stage of the Qualifying the Top 9 until Top 18 entered the Paul Ricard track. Two more early exits by Karl-Heinz Becker (Becker Motorsport) already in round 2 and Peter Göllner (Speed Center) in round 7 made it 4 out of 18 drivers quitting the Qualifying earlier than planned. “Yes, we had some strange failures at this Qualifying”, Scrutineer Michel summed it up. “But apart from this fact Qualifying went well, we are satisfied with the performance of the grid.”

Armando Mangini during Qualifying at Paul Ricard 2017.

Armando Mangini during Qualifying at Paul Ricard 2017.

 

Started in the second chapter of the Qualifying, Armando Mangini (MM International Motorsport) with his GP 2 Dallara managed to improved time and position into to Top 8 field and moved forward in the starting grid; he will now start from position 8 in the afternoon.

The starting grid for season race 5 is set, and will be led by the “usual suspects”. The setup of Ingo Gerstl holding the pole position, followed by Rinus van Kalmthout on position 2, Johann Ledermair on third position promises an exciting top of the field.

Kick-off of the race is at 2:30 p.m. See and follow BOSS GPs Instagram channel for live updates and coverage.

Starting grid season race 5 at Paul Ricard 2017.

Starting grid season race 5 at Paul Ricard 2017.

More:

Practice day at Paul Ricard: bossgp.com/practice-day-at-paul-ricard-results/

Photo gallery from Paul Ricard 2017: bossgp.com/gallery/paul-ricard-gt-open-euroformula-open/