Bleekemolen, Kox, van Lagen: On home turf at Zandvoort in ADAC GT Masters

• Home race in ADAC GT Masters for flying Dutchmen
• Bleekemolen & Co intend to profit from knowledge of track
• Four Dutchmen in Zandvoort ADAC GT Masters line-up

The ADAC GT Masters is looking forward to returning to Zandvoort and four local drivers are raring to go in their home race. Former DTM driver Jeroen Bleekemolen (32, NL / Callaway Competition), Porsche ace Jaap van Lagen (37, NL / GW IT Racing Team / / Schütz Motorsport), ex-ADAC GT Masters champion Peter Kox (50, NL / Reiter Engineering) and Gentlemen driver Wolf Nathan (45, NL / IT GW IT Racing Team // Schütz Motorsport) all intend to use their home advantage to secure a good result on home turf. Whilst the two ADAC GT Masters races at the former Formula 1 track in the North Sea dunes constitute a home race for them, there is, however, also the question of deciding who is top dog as far as the Dutchmen are concerned.

“It will be exciting to see who has the quickest car in Zandvoort,” said Jaap van Lagen, who shares a Porsche 911 with Carrera Cup champion Kévin Estre (25, F). “But I think that Jeroen Bleekemolen and I have an advantage in view of our familiarity with the track which is very technical and quite bumpy. You have to know exactly which line to take. Plus, there are two or three turns, where you must be bang on the racing line in order to be really fast. I’ve worked in Zandvoort as an instructor for ten years and Jeroen has known the track for even longer. No one can put one over on us at Zandvoort.”

Zandvoort is a challenge not just for the drivers, but also for the YOKOHAMA tyres used in the ADAC GT Masters. Van Lagen: “The track is very hard on tyres, because the tarmac is very abrasive and puts huge demands on tyres.” Gentlemen driver Wolf Nathan is Jaap van Lagen’s team-mate in the Porsche outfit managed by Christian Schütz. Nathan lines up in Zandvoort with Greek driver Anton Wossos (48), who will be contesting his second ADAC GT Masters weekend. Porsche driver Nathan finished on the podium in the Gentlemen class at the season opener in Oschersleben and will be hoping to do it all over again in his home race.

Peter Kox is switching from the graceful Lamborghini to the much more muscular Chevrolet Camaro for his home race. He shares the muscle car with Albert von Thurn und Taxis (30, Germany), and the two ADAC GT Masters champions from 2010 intend to make the earth quake in their Yankee thunder bolt to book the Camaro’s maiden top-ten finish in the ADAC GT Masters.

Jeroen Bleekemolen is also keen on American sports car and drives a Corvette. He grew up close to the race track which was the home of Formula 1 in the Netherlands until 1985. “This is the track that I know best, and there’s no driver on earth who has posted more laps than me on it,” said Bleekemolen bullishly. “I’ve always been good at this circuit and have actually never driven a bad race there. I hope to benefit greatly from my extensive knowledge of the Circuit Park Zandvoort which should also suit our Corvette. I’m expecting a great deal from this weekend, you know.”