Car Collection Motorsport impresses with fighting spirit despite setbacks at the ALMS finale in Abu Dhabi
Despite an impressive effort, Car Collection Motorsport failed to achieve the result they had hoped for at the season finale of the Asian Le Mans Series in Abu Dhabi. Incidents, penalties and bad luck prevented a tangible result for the team’s two Porsche 911 GT3 Rs.
Team overcomes enormous challenges before the race
Even before the first metre on the Formula 1 circuit in Abu Dhabi, the team proved its commitment. After the serious accident in Dubai, the Porsche 911 GT3 R with starting number 21 had to be completely rebuilt. A new chassis was flown in from Germany and the mechanics repaired the car in record time. Thanks to this impressive team effort, ‘Hash’, Alex Fontana and Yannick Mettler were able to take part in the race. The sister car with the #12, driven by James Kell, Bashar Mardini and Nico Menzel, was also ready for the season finale.
Difficult qualifying characterised by interruptions
As in Dubai, qualifying was characterised by numerous incidents and interruptions. As a result, the drivers did not have the opportunity to set an optimum lap. The #12 had to make do with grid positions 17 and 19, while the #21 started the race from 27th and 25th place.
Strong race performance despite setbacks
The races did not bring the hoped-for luck either. On Saturday, the #12 showed a strong race to catch up and was on course for a top 10 result before two penalties dropped the car back to 15th place. The #21 also made up ground in the early stages, but lost valuable time after a spin and finished just behind its sister car in 16th place.
On Sunday, the #12 was able to make up places again with strong lap times and a perfect strategy, moving up to eighth place at times. However, another penalty due to track limits meant that it dropped back to 15th place. The #21 also showed strong pace and was strategically well positioned before Alex Fontana was hit by a competitor. A subsequent tyre failure made an unscheduled pit stop necessary, meaning that the car ultimately finished in 21st place.
Peter Schmidt, Team Principal: ‘Even if the results at the finale are obviously not satisfactory and do not reflect our true potential, we can still look back on our first season in the ALMS with some pride. Everyone in the team really gave their all at all times and we fought our way through despite all the adversity. It was a very good experience to compete at a very high level in this well-organised ACO racing series.’