The ADAC GT Masters enters crucial phase of the championship at the DEKRA Lausitzring

• Plenty of excitement in races nine and ten of the German GT Championship
• Mercedes-AMG works driver Raffaele Marciello out to defend his championship lead
• Tickets for the Family & Friends Festival, with spectacular motorsport, starting at € 5

Munich. Fans at round five of the ADAC GT Masters can look forward to a hot and eventful race weekend at the DEKRA Lausitzring (19th to 21st August). The super sports cars line up for races nine and ten of the season, as the title race enters a crucial phase. Many drivers are still in contention at the top of the championship, but, with the field so evenly matched, there is now no room for error. The four series on the support programme will also provide non-stop action at the 3.478-kilometre circuit in Klettwitz. Off the track, the Family & Friends Festival also offers a wide variety of experience worlds on Saturday and Sunday. Tickets are available online at unbeatable prices, starting at just € 5, from adac.de/motorsport. TV partner NITRO will broadcast the ADAC GT Masters races live, from 12:30 on Saturday and Sunday.

Key facts, Lausitzring, Klettwitz, races 9 and 10 of 14

• Circuit length: 3,478 metres
• Layout: Twelve corners (five right, seven left), driven anti-clockwise
• 2021 winners, race 1: Ricardo Feller/Christopher Mies (Montaplast by Land-Motorsport, Audi R8 LMS Evo)
• 2021 winners, race 2: Igor Jakob Walilko/Jules Gounon (Team Zakspeed Mobil Krankenkasse Racing, Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo)

Many changes in the table, and a new leader
Raffaele Marciello (27/CH) of Mann-Filter Team Landgraf produced an impressive performance alongside Maro Engel (36/Monte Carlo) at the Nürburgring. A win, a second place and two pole positions catapulted the Mercedes-AMG works driver from fifth to the top of the table. A similar display at the DEKRA Lausitzring would see the 27-year-old extend his lead and take another step towards his first title in the German GT Championship. Fellow Mercedes-AMG men Fabian Schiller (24/Troisdorf) and Jules Gounon (27/F) climbed even more places in the table. The duo from Drago Racing Team ZVO rocketed from twelfth to second in the championship on the back of their second win of the season, and are now the fiercest rivals of leader Marciello. Third-placed Christian Engelhart (35/Starnberg) and Ayhancan Güven (24/TR) from the Joos Sportwagentechnik team are also within striking distance with the #91 Porsche 911 GT3 R. Sven Müller (30/Bingen) and Joel Sturm (20/Brühl) climbed nine places in the overall standings and, after two podiums in the Eifel Mountains, are now fourth in the #22 Allied-Racing 911. Avoidable mistakes and a penalty have cost Niklas Krütten (19/Trier) and Ben Green (24/GB) important points. Despite this, the young duo in the #10 Schubert Motorsport BMW M4 GT3 were able to maintain their position in the top five and lead the Pirelli Junior competition ahead of the trip to the Lusatia region.

Home outing for Paul Motorsport
The Paul Motorsport team, which has its headquarters in Dresden, has big plans for its home event. Maximilian Paul (22/Dresden) and Marco Mapelli (35/I) are looking to finish in the top ten at the wheel of the #71 Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo. “Our goal is to get good results in both races. We have our sights set on the top five. We had good pace in the last race at the Nürburgring. That is something we can build on,” says Maximilian Paul, setting out the team’s aspirations. The youngster from Dresden, who just missed out on pole position at the DEKRA Lausitzring in 2020, does not believe there will be a home advantage. “The Lausitzring is a technically difficult circuit with back-to-back slow corners. If you get one wrong, the next will be even worse. I have driven an awful lot of laps here, but that is no advantage among the top-class drivers in the ADAC GT Masters. The good drivers know all circuits and need little time to adapt to the respective features. However, it is obviously always nice to drive in front of your own fans.”

Motorsport festival for the whole family
Sharing the bill with the ADAC GT Masters for the first time will be the Prototype Cup Germany, which features Le Mans prototypes. Spectacular wheel-to-wheel racing is also expected in the fiercely-competitive ADAC TCR Germany and the ADAC Formula 4 junior series. Fans can look forward to the finest in GT racing in the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland. The race weekend at the DEKRA Lausitzring boasts a high-class programme that will set the pulse of more than just motorsport fans racing: families are also in for a real treat at the Family & Friends festival. Various different experience worlds are spread across the entire site, offering plenty of information and excellent entertainment and something for all tastes, whether young or old. German DJs “Gestört aber geil” will ensure the atmosphere is jumping on Saturday evening. Tickets for this weekend are available at unbeatable prices, starting at € 5, and can be purchased online at adac.de/motorsport. Admission to this entertaining event is free for under 16s when accompanied by an adult.

All ADAC GT Masters races start at 13:00. International viewers can watch the qualifying and the races live on adac.de/motorsport, the new ADAC Motorsports YouTube channel youtube.com/ADACMotorsports and motorsport.tv.