Teamwork at its best: New champions Ludwig and Asch

• Sons of Klaus Ludwig and Roland Asch write German motor racing history
• Asch first two-time ADAC GT Masters champion
• Ludwig: "Perfect teamwork was the key to success"

Hockenheim: Like fathers, like sons. Luca Ludwig (26, DEU) and Sebastian Asch (29, DEU) have written German motor racing history in the grand finale of the 2015 ADAC GT Masters, driving a Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 fielded by the well-respected Zakspeed outfit. The sons of the two touring car legends Klaus Ludwig and Roland Asch have followed in the footsteps of their illustrious fathers by becoming the new ADAC GT Masters champions. Asch is the first contestant in the history of the Super Sports Car League to win the drivers’ championship for a second time. “This was teamwork at its best,” said a delighted Asch on Sunday afternoon at Hockenheim. “To win the title again in a Mercedes-Benz is just amazing.” It is also title number two for law student Ludwig, who lifted the German GT Championship trophy in 2010.

During the 2015 season, the combination of Asch and Ludwig has been unbeatable. Their fathers were both team-mates in the DTM at Mercedes-Benz and also drove for Zakspeed. In the first half of the season, the Mercedes-Benz duo finished in the Top Four in eight consecutive races. By the end of the first half of the season, no driver pairing had ever accumulated more points. However, things did not go too well in Ludwig’s home race at the Nürburgring of all places, nor at the Sachsenring. But the new champions responded masterfully by notching up win number three on the penultimate weekend in Zandvoort. No other driver partnership has been able to bring anywhere near as much experience to the ADAC GT Masters as the combination of Ludwig and Asch. The experience gained from their joint total of more than 190 starts in the ADAC GT Masters meant that Ludwig and Asch rarely lost their composure, even in tricky situations.

The careers of Ludwig and Asch, both separately and in partnership, are closely intertwined with the ADAC GT Masters. Ludwig started 2009 with a bang in the Super Sports Car League. He signed up for the ADAC GT Masters without much motor racing experience but immediately won the first two races in a Corvette and was in contention for the title in his debut year. In the two years that followed, he drove one of the Audis entered by Christian Abt and was once again a championship contender. Occasional races in a McLaren and an Audi followed until the grand finale of the 2013 season when he made a guest appearance driving a Mercedes-Benz; this was to be the precursor of successes to come. With the Team Zakspeed gullwing, Ludwig was once again back on track in the 2014 season. The move was to culminate with the title win in his second season as a member of Peter Zakowski’s team. However, the road back to success in the ADAC GT Masters was a bumpy one. He went almost 1,500 days without a race win in ADAC GT Masters before success at Spa-Francorchamps in June laid the foundations for the championship triumph. “We spent last year building and did some solid work,” said Ludwig after winning the title. “We’ve made the breakthrough this year when we were the best.”

Asch’s career has many parallels with that of Ludwig. The longest-serving contestant in the series first lined up in the 2008 ADAC GT Masters campaign at the wheel of a Lamborghini, later switching to Porsche. He pulled off his masterstroke in 2012 in a Mercedes-Benz partnered by current DTM driver Maximilian Götz. The top finishes then dried up for Asch. He failed to secure podiums in 2013 whilst competing in an Audi R8 and again in 2014 with Porsche. It was only the switch back to Mercedes-Benz that put him back on course for the title this year: “I’m very proud to have won the title and also happy to have contributed another chapter to the Zakspeed success story. Zakspeed is a legendary name in motorsport, and that’s just great when it’s combined with the names Ludwig and Asch.”

Ludwig and Asch both grew up in the paddock – perhaps one reason why they both seem to have a telepathic understanding and cannot be beaten in terms of race speed or consistency. Although it is not known whether the two of them played together in the paddock when they were children, the secret of their success on the way to clinching the championship has been perfect teamwork. Both Ludwig and Asch have kept their feet firmly on the ground: “We are simply in harmony with each other and share the same approach. There is a great sense of togetherness, which is something I have never experienced before. It’s not an ego trip but teamwork. That’s what ultimately makes us so strong.”