Historic victory: Alessio Picariello wins Race 1 at Hockenheim

• Win number 13 makes Alessio Picariello most successful Formel ADAC driver of all time
• After P2 finish: Maximilian Günther clear favourite for championship runner-up spot
• Champion Picariello: “I am very proud to have become the most successful driver in the history of Formel ADAC”

Hockenheim – For Alessio Picariello (20, Belgium, ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V.), the final weekend of the 2013 season at Hockenheim could hardly have got off to a better start. The young Belgian, who secured the title ahead of time at the Slovakia Ring two weeks ago, won the first of the three races scheduled for the iconic track in Baden-Württemberg. Over the course of two seasons – 2012 and 2013 – the 20-year-old has won 13 races, which means he has now broken the record set by former champion Richie Stanaway in the 2010 season.

“With the exception of the Lausitzring, I’ve now won on every track this season, and I’m really pleased about that,” said Picariello after securing this historic win – his eleventh of the 2013 campaign. After a keenly contested start, Picariello overtook pole-setter Maximilian Günther (16, Germany, ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V.) on the third corner and from then on never looked in trouble as he cruised home for the victory. At the chequered flag, the sixth champion in the history of the series had built up a 1.3-second lead over his second-placed team-mate, Günther.

Günther well-placed to take runner-up trophy

After securing his eleventh podium of 2013, ADAC Sports Foundation protégé Maximilian Günther is looking odds-on favourite to claim the runner-up spot in the championship. The rookie occupies second place in the standings on 238 points – 33 ahead of Jason Kremer (18, Germany, Schiller Motorsport) who finished Race 1 in sixth position. With only 40 points still up for grabs, Günther could get his hands on the silverware as early as Race 2 on Sunday morning (live streaming on adac.de/motorsport at 10.55am CEST). He will once again be starting from pole position.

Joining the two drivers from team champions Mücke Motorsport on the podium was Ralph Boschung (16, Switzerland, KUG Motorsport) in third place. The Swiss junior was the beneficiary of a collision between Marvin Dienst (16, Germany, Neuhauser Racing) and Fabian Schiller (16, Germany, Schiller Motorsport) shortly after the start. As a result of this same incident, local favourite Dienst had to retire. Schiller was able to continue on his way and crossed the line in fifth place.

Beer charges upfield to P4

Series newcomer Schiller was involved in lively scraps with team-mate Kremer and Neuhauser Racing driver Nicolas Beer (17, Denmark, Neuhauser Racing) for virtually the full duration of the race. The Danish youngster first overtook ADAC Sports Foundation protégé Kremer on the hairpin section of Lap 9 and then pipped Schiller for P4 on the final lap.

The trio of Beitske Visser (18, Netherlands, Lotus), Stefan Riener (18, Austria, Neuhauser Racing) and Mikkel Jensen (18, Denmark, Lotus) also provided a rich vein of entertainment for the fans for the full 14 laps. The Danish driver got off to a magnificent start from P14, and promptly set his course for a points finish. In front of him, Visser and Riener veered back and forth in a slipstream battle for seventh place, until the Red Bull junior ultimately prevailed. Her Lotus team-mate lost out in the encounter, having to settle for ninth place ahead of Indy Dontje (20, Netherlands, Lotus).

Comments from the Top Three drivers

Alessio Picariello (20, Belgium, ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V.), Winner:
“ I’m very proud to have become the most successful Formel ADAC driver of all time with this win. I was very disappointed with the penalty I received in the third race at the Slovakia Ring, and that just made me all the more motivated for Hockenheim. With the exception of the Lausitzring, I’ve now won at every track we’ve raced on this year. I focused on getting off to a good start, which I managed to do, but Maximilian then regained the lead on the first corner. It took a mistake by him for me to get back in front. After that, it was a matter of maintaining the gap and looking after the tyres. When I saw that Maximilian’s front wing was damaged, I eased off on the accelerator and was no longer driving at the limit.”

Maximilian Günther (16, Germany, ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V.), Second:
“I’m delighted to be back on the podium. This result is an important step towards finishing the season as runner-up. The decisive passing manoeuvre happened as early as the first lap. Alessio got off to a better start, and forced me to the outside on the first corner – that cost me precious time. It also put him in a better position and allowed him to get past a few moments later. I was involved in a collision with Fabian Schiller on the hairpin bend. He was leaving me hardly any space, and I took a knock on the left side of my front wing. The damage didn’t produce any noticeable effect, though, and the car still felt all right. I even managed to catch up to Alessio once again, but the distance that had built up from the incident with Schiller was too much to overcome for first place.”

Ralph Boschung (16, Switzerland, KUG Motorsport), Third:
“I’m very happy to have taken third place, as it didn’t look likely at first. My start left some things to be desired and cost me one place. Still, the general confusion of the first lap allowed me to pull off a couple of passing manoeuvres against Beitske Visser and Marvin Dienst, moving me up to third place. I considered attacking for second place, but decided instead to save my tyres for the upcoming races. My performance has improved considerably over the second half of the season. This is in large part due to the experience I’ve gained over the extensive number of Formel ADAC races.”