Zandvoort BSS: Buhk and Abril win Qualifying Race, take points lead
Bentley HTP duo Vincent Abril and Maximilian Buhk took over as Blancpain Sprint Series points leaders with one race to go, as Robin Frijns spun in Turn 1 and lost a lap.
#84 Bentley Team HTP Bentley Continental GT3: Maximilian Buhk, Vincent Abril
Vision Sport Agency
By winning the Qualifying Race, Abril and Buhk have also secured pole position for Sunday's decider.
Having topped qualifying, Buhk led the field into Turn 1, while Frijns, racing alongside Christopher Mies instead of the injured Laurens Vanthoor, bogged down.
The Dutchman was scrapping for third place with the #333 Rinaldi Ferrari of Norbert Siedler into Turn 1 when he got turned around and went off in the barriers.
With the #74 Audi of Anders Fjordbach also off the track further in the lap, the safety car came out - but that did not stop from Frijns from losing a lap.
Its main rivals now out of contention, the #84 Bentley enjoyed a perfect first stint in the hands of Buhk as the German built up a strong gap before the pit window opened.
Siedler, running in third behind Audi's Nicki Thiim, decided to take the #333 car into the pits as soon as possible, handing over to guest driver Jeroen Bleekemolen.
But both Buhk and Thiim opted to cover the Ferrari's strategy by stopping the next time around, handing over to Abril and Frederic Vervisch and leaving the order unchanged.
Abril then cruised to the finish, finishing five seconds clear of Vervisch, while the #333 car picked up a drive-through penalty for failing to control the wheels during the pit stop - which led to Bleekemolen dropping behind the pair of Markus Winkelhock and Niki Mayr-Melnhof, who completed the podium.
Stephane Richelmi passed Sean Walkinshaw to claim fifth for himself and teammate Stephane Ortelli, while Walkinshaw and Craig Dolby were classified in sixth.
In the standings, Buhk and Abril now have 110 points to Frijns' 109, with Dutchman's teammate Mies starting tomorrow's race in 15th.
Having picked up only three points, Siedler is 15 points adrift and could still steal the title on Sunday.
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