Corvette dominates ADAC GT Masters qualifying at Nürburgring

• Corvette in pole position for both ADAC GT Masters races in the Eifel
• Diego Alessi and Jeroen Bleekemolen take pole position
• Extremely competitive field: one second covers 17 vehicles from six different manufacturers

Corvette returns to the ADAC GT Masters with a bang after the summer break. Pole position for both races on Saturday and Sunday at the Nürburgring went to drivers of the legendary American sports car. Diego Alessi (41, Italy/Callaway Competition) brought home his Corvette in pole position for Saturday’s race. Former DTM driver Jeroen Bleekemolen (31, Netherlands, Callaway Competition) secured pole position for the second race on Sunday.

Key facts, Nürburgring (sprint configuration), Races 7 and 8

Length: 3.618km
Weather: 33 degrees, sunny
Pole Position Race 1: Diego Alessi (Callaway Competition, Corvette GT3 Z06.R), 1:25.920 min
Pole Position Race 2: Jeroen Bleekemolen (Callaway Competition, Corvette GT3 Z06.R), 1:25.650 min

Thrilling three-way battle for pole position in Saturday’s race

Corvette, BMW and Porsche fought tooth and nail for first starting position in Saturday’s race as temperatures hit a very summery 33 degrees at the Nürburgring. Simon Knap (24, Netherlands/DB Motorsport) in the BMW Z4 and Corvette driver Alessi exchanged the lead several times, until Porsche protégé Michael Christensen (22, Denmark/Tonino powered by Herberth Motorsport) in his first ADAC GT Masters start since the 2011 season claimed P1 in the Porsche 911. The Danish driver thought he had done enough to secure pole when, three minutes before the end of qualifying, Alessi beat his best time yet again and consigned Christensen to second place. “I like the Nürburgring very much. I achieved pole position here last year,” said Alessi after his third pole position in the ADAC GT Masters. “The track temperature dropped slightly during qualifying. I carefully observed what the thermometer was doing, as every degree counts and then I went back out again just before the end and improved my time.”

Knap and Andreas Wirth (28, Germany/Callaway Competition) in another Corvette share the second row on Saturday. They are followed by Maximilian Buhk (20, Germany/Polarweiss Racing), winner of the 24 Hours of Spa last weekend in the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 and Christer Jöns (26, Germany/Prosperia C Abt Racing) in the fastest Audi R8.

Bleekemolen achieves second ADAC GT Masters pole at Nürburgring

Jeroen Bleekemolen went into the lead right at the start in the second qualifying session that decided the grid positions for Sunday’s race. Both his team-mate Christian Hohenadel (36, Germany/Callaway Competition), Porsche driver Sean Edwards (26, Great Britain/Farnbacher Racing) and Dominik Baumann (20, Austria/PIXUM Team Schubert) tried to beat the Dutchman’s fastest time. However, Bleekemolen beat his own best time yet again to secure pole. “I’ve already driven every version of the Corvette imaginable but this is the first time here at the Nürburgring that I’ve lined up in the GT3,” said Bleekemolen after qualifying. “The car runs fantastically well. We were very quick even in practice, which makes me feel confident about the two races, since my team-mate Toni Seiler has been very fast here so far.”

This is Bleekemolen’s second pole position in the ADAC GT Masters. The Dutchman took his first pole position in 2007 when the Super Sports Car League premiered at the Nürburgring. Baumann in the BMW will be sharing the front row with Bleekemolen on Sunday. Sean Edwards in the Porsche and Christian Hohenadel in a Corvette will head up the second row. Sports car ace Jörg Müller (43, Germany/PIXUM Team Schubert) in the BMW Z4 will be in fifth position on the grid and Nicolas Armindo (31, France/Team Geyer & Weinig, Schütz Motorsport) will start the race from P6 in a Porsche 911. The two championship leaders Christopher Mies (24, Germany) and René Rast (26, Germany/both Prosperia C Abt Racing) had a tough qualifying session and will be in grid positions eleven and 14 in their Audi R8.

The 2013 ADAC GT Masters will once again be contested over 16 rounds on eight race weekends throughout the year. All 16 races of the ADAC GT Masters will be shown on free-to-air TV station kabel eins. The live broadcasts to audiences in Germany, Austria and Switzerland commence at 12 noon on both the Saturday and the Sunday. The Super Sports Car League is being hosted by two new venues this time: the Formula 1 circuit at Spa-Francorchamps and the Slovakia Ring in Slovakia.

Tickets for all ADAC GT Masters races start at €20 and can be purchased online at www.adac.de from any ADAC branch office, and online at www.eventim.de or from one of more than 20,000 Eventim outlets throughout Europe.