Fabian Schiller wins final race at Oschersleben

• Very varied start to season: Three different winners in Oschersleben
• Tim Zimmermann most successful rookie with two podium finishes
• Ralph Boschung claims podium for Lotus in the team’s home race

Three races, three different winners: The Formel ADAC season opener in the etropolis Motorsport Arena Oschersleben could hardly have produced more varied results. Fabian Schiller (16, Germany, Schiller Motorsport) won the final race from Tim Zimmermann (17, Germany, Neuhauser Racing) and Ralph Boschung (16, Switzerland, Lotus).

“This victory represents a significant step forwards after a difficult weekend” said a pleased Schiller. The youngster from Schiller Motorsport started from pole position and crossed the finish line 1.177 seconds up on Zimmermann in second place. The Neuhauser Racing driver had begun the race from grid position two and attacked in Turn 1, but Schiller defended his lead to secure a supreme victory.

Nevertheless, Zimmermann has made a successful start to his first Formel ADAC season. The ADAC Sports Foundation protégé claimed his second podium of the weekend, making him the best of the eight rookies in the starting field.

First podium for Team Lotus

While the two leading drivers maintained their starting positions to the finish, Boschung had to fight for his podium. The Swiss teenager was in fourth place on the grid for the third race in Oschersleben and overtook team-mate Dennis Marschall (17, Germany, Lotus) on the third lap to give Team Lotus their first podium of the year in their home race.

Kim Luis Schramm (16, Germany, ADAC Berlin -Brandenburg e.V.) in fourth position again narrowly missed achieving his first top-three finish. After securing P4 in the second race of the season on Sunday morning, the 16 -year-old had a thrilling tussle for P5 at the start of the third race with team-mate Marvin Dienst (17, Germany, ADAC Berlin -Brandenburg e.V.). Schramm later went in pursuit of Lotus driver Marschall in the second segment of the race and overtook him on the twelfth lap.

Jensen travels to Zandvoort as overall leader

Marschall lost fifth place on the penultimate lap to Mikkel Jensen (19, Denmark, Neuhauser Racing), who overtook at the entrance to the triple turn, rounding off a successful weekend for him. The Dane won the first race on Saturday and finished runner-up in the second race.

Jensen on 49 points heads the overall standings after three of the 24 races to be run this season. The Neuhauser Racing driver has a three-point lead on Maximilian Günther (16, Germany, ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg e.V.) in second place overall in the run-up to the second race weekend at Zandvoort, Netherlands (May 9th to 11th). In the final race, the reigning vice-champion placed eighth behind team-mate Dienst.

Comments from the Top Three drivers

Fabian Schiller (16, Germany, Schiller Motorsport), Winner:
“This victory represents a significant step forwards after a difficult weekend. We struggled in the first two races with marbles left behind by other vehicles that led to oversteer and prevented better results. We made big changes to the car before the third race and tried to take a completely different direction, which brought about a significant improvement. While previously I had been unable to stay in front of the others, I now drove a controlled race and could turn the pressure on or off depending on the situation. The only tricky situation was the start itself. I actually didn’t get away too badly but would have liked my reactions to have been better. Tim got very close to me but drove fairly, giving me space.”

Tim Zimmermann (17, Germany, Neuhauser Racing), Second:
“I was already lost for words after the first podium, so another podium is absolutely incredible. I had a great race right from the start. I got away very well and was level with Fabian for a while. We even made very light contact, but I couldn’t get past him. After that, I decided to bide my time and come home safely in second place. I must admit that I was on the limit and it would have been very difficult to fight Fabian for the lead. However, I could not be happier – it's just fantastic to round off my first Formel ADAC race weekend with two podiums.”

Ralph Boschung (16, Switzerland, Lotus), Third:
“I clinched a podium for the team in the third race on our home turf, which gives me enormous satisfaction. However, we had expected a bit more overall. In the third race, I had some contact with my team-mate right at the start, damaging my car on the front off-side. Consequently, I couldn’t attack on every lap as I had to contend with bad oversteer. However, my lap times were pretty consistent and I think I got the maximum from the car.”