Muennich Motorsport Nogaro event summary

The German Team ALL-INKL.COM Muennich Motorsport starts into the season of the FIA GT1 World Championship with a podium placing – Basseng/Winkelhock in Nogaro third ahead Jäger/Pastorelli

#37 All-Inkl.com Münnich Motorsport Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3: Nicky Pastorelli, Thomas Jäger, #38 All-Inkl.com Münnich Motorsport Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3: Marc Basseng, Markus Winkelhock

Photo by: SRO

Friedersdorf/Nogaro (rol/ot)That has been a successful start into the 2012 season of the FIA GT1 World Championship for the German Team ALL-INKL.COM Muennich Motorsport from Friedersdorf on the Easter weekend (6th to 9th of April) in Nogaro (France). The racing stable from Saxony already scored a podium placing after the car change from Lamborghini (2011) to Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3. At the one hour Championship Race on Easter Monday, Marc Basseng (Neusalza-Spremberg) and Markus Winkelhock (Berglen-Steinach) finished third in the car with starting number 38 ahead their team colleagues Nicky Pastorelli (Italy/Netherlands) and Thomas Jäger (Munich) with starting number 37. At the one hour Qualifying Race on Easter Sunday (8th of April) Basseng/Winkelhock were on six and Pastorelli/Jäger on seven.

At the team rankings ALL-INKL.COM Muennich Motorsport is on the second position after two out of the 20 season runs. At the drivers ranking Basseng/Winkelhock are on the third position ahead Pastorelli/Jäger. Winners of the races in Nogaro were Stephane Ortelli/Laurens Vanthoor (Monaco/Belgium) in the Audi R8 LMS ultra ahead their team and brand colleagues Frank Stippler/Oliver Jarvis (Germany/Great Britain) from Belgian Audi Club Team WRT, which leads the team rankings at the moment.

„The season opening went better than we expected it to. That’s a great result for the whole team“, tells Marc Basseng, who is the team manager of ALL-INKL.COM Muennich Motorsport same time. „I’m proud about the outcome with the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3, after the short time for preparations in advance. We were in Nogaro since last month and developed the car continuously. But the Audis were not to beat this time.“

At the Championship Race on Easter Monday it looked like Markus Winkelhock could have fought about the second position yet at the end of the race. After he took over the Mercedes from Marc Basseng on position three after 32 minutes, he had a lag of eleven seconds to the second Audi. After about ten minutes he could cut that down the more than half and at the end there were only seven tenth. Further 1.9 seconds behind Winkelhock there were Thomas Jäger and Nicky Pastorelli in the sister car on position four at the finish line. Both Münnich duos could make up a few positions in the first half of the race and kept their positions after the pit stops.

At the Qualifying Race on Saturday (7th of April), which was held under hard conditions on the wet track, the Münnich-Mercedes had the starting positions 5 (#38) and 6 (#37). After Markus Winkelhock fell back to position ten, the crew made the second fastest pit stop of the whole field and they could make up four positions, by what Marc Basseng finished on position six with the #38 – closely followed by Nicky Pastorelli in the #37. „We were on track with wets for the first time that moment. We had to gather experience on that yet“, explains Marc Basseng.

The team manager, who started into the season together with Markus Winkelhock with the positions six and three just like last year, continuing: „Altogether we could use our experiences of the last two years at the GT1 championships as a team. Now the aim is to concentrate and to knot on to the results at the next season run.“ The next event is scheduled from 20th to 22nd of April with the races 3 and 4 in Zolder (Belgium).