Leon Köhler (Nebulus Racing by Huber) scored his first win of the season at race five of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland at the Red Bull Ring (Austria). The German won the action-packed race on Saturday at the wheel of his 510 PS Porsche 911 GT3 Cup ahead of Larry ten Voorde (Team GP Elite) from the Netherlands and Porsche Junior Ayhancan Güven (Phoenix Racing) from Turkey. “What a great feeling! The decisive factor was that I managed to get ahead of Ayhancan Güven at the start. The two safety car phases made things gripping at times, but I stayed focused. I’m incredibly pleased with this victory,” said Köhler.

The 32-strong Carrera Cup field experienced a special race in Styria: Thanks to the implementation of hygiene measures, up to 3,000 spectators were allowed to witness the race run as support to the ADAC GT Masters live from the grandstand for the first time this season. Porsche Junior Güven set the fastest qualifying time and took up the race from pole position. Köhler, however, got the better start and snatched the lead at the first corner. Ten Voorde also catapulted off the line and overtook Güven. The safety car, a fully electric Porsche Taycan Turbo S, intervened twice and bunched the field together. Köhler kept his cool at both restarts, with the 21-year-old crossing the finish line in first place after 19 laps ahead of ten Voorde. Köhler is the fourth driver to win a Carrera Cup race this season after ten Voorde, Güven and Laurin Heinrich (Germany/Van Berghe Huber Racing).

The fight for second place turned into a hefty exchange between ten Voorde, Güven and Heinrich. In the final phase of the race, mere fractions of a second separated the trio. Ultimately, ten Voorde prevailed. “The duels were tough but fair – that’s exactly what the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland stands for. Obviously, I would’ve liked to win but I wasn’t quite quick enough,” concluded ten Voorde. Positions three and four went to Güven and Heinrich, the best driver from the one-make cup’s talent pool programme. “Unfortunately, I didn’t get off the line well. Afterwards, it got really competitive among the leading pack. I had the speed but Larry ten Voorde skilfully defended himself,” said Güven.

As the best rookie, Bastian Buus (Denmark/Allied-Racing) secured fifth place ahead of Max van Splunteren (Netherlands/GP Elite). Christopher Zöchling competes in front of home crowds this weekend: Driving for Fach Auto Tech, the Austrian driver took the flag in seventh place. Eighth went to Julian Hanses (Germany/HRT Performance). In the ProAm class, Carlos Rivas (Black Falcon Team Textar) celebrated his fifth win of the season. The Luxembourger won his class head of Kim Hauschild (Germany/HRT Motorsport) and guest driver Clément Mateu (France/Pierre Martinet by Alméras).

After round five of the season, ten Voorde maintains his lead in the overall standings. The 24-year-old ranks first with 106 points ahead of Heinrich (94 points) and Köhler (75 points). Race six of the Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland on the Red Bull Ring takes off on Sunday at midday local time.

Result race 5, Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland
1. Leon Köhler (Germany/Nebulus Racing by Huber)
2. Larry ten Voorde (Netherlands/Team GP Elite)
3. Ayhancan Güven (Turkey/Phoenix Racing)
4. Laurin Heinrich (Germany/Van Berghe Huber Racing)
5. Bastian Buus (Denmark/Allied-Racing)
6. Max van Splunteren (Netherlands/GP Elite)
7. Christopher Zöchling (Austria/Fach Auto Tech)
8. Julian Hanses (Germany/HRT Performance)
9. Dorian Boccolacci (France/Martinet by Alméras)
10. Jesse van Kuijk (Netherlands/Team GP Elite)

Points standings after 5 of 16 races
Drivers’ classification
1. Larry ten Voorde (Netherlands/Team GP Elite), 106 points
2. Laurin Heinrich (Germany/Van Berghe Huber Racing), 94 points
3. Leon Köhler (Germany/Nebulus Racing by Huber), 75 points