Steve Caroli makes important progress in difficult weekend
Steve Caroli had a difficult race weekend at the Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland at the Nürburgring, but was still able to make important progress with the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup.
Three weeks after the season opener at Hockenheim, the participants in the Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland continued at the Nürburgring. The traditional circuit awaited the participants in the Porsche racing series with a complete package of Eifel weather. Rain, drying conditions, strong winds and cold temperatures made life difficult for the teams and drivers, making the set-up work more difficult. Steve Caroli once again drove a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup fielded by SEEBACH Motorsport, which he shared in the Porsche Endurance Challenge with Dominik Schraml, who commuted between Le Mans and the Nürburgring last weekend, as the veteran also competed in the Michelin Le Mans Cup as part of the legendary endurance race in France.
In the first race of the Porsche Sprint Challenge GT3, which Caroli contests as a soloist, the real estate entrepreneur from Annaberg-Buchholz in Saxony got off to a bomb start from tenth position and was able to make up a few places on the way to the first corner. But there a competitor pushed him off the racing line and another opponent hit Caroli hard in the rear area, so that after half an hour only eleventh place in the class was possible. The 2022 champion of the Porsche Endurance Challenge missed out on a top 10 result by just 11 thousandths!
On Sunday, the driver, supported by the Porsche Centre Leipzig, was able to drive a solid race. From 13th on the grid, he fought his way up to seventh position in class. For Caroli, this is the best solo result at the wheel of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup so far.
On Sunday afternoon, the one-hour race of the Porsche Endurance Challenge concluded the race weekend in the Eifel. After Schraml drove the start, radio problems hampered communication before the mandatory pit stop, so that the experienced racing driver was stuck behind the safety car. After Caroli had taken over the vehicle, the entrepreneur had to head for the pits again, as it started to rain again and the SEEBACH Motorsport team had to equip the vehicle with rain tyres. In the end, Caroli finished the race in eighth position in his class.
"The weekend wasn't easy for us, but I still don't want to see everything negatively," said Caroli. "In the second sprint race, I was able to achieve my best sprint result so far with the 911 GT3 Cup. In addition, my race speed was very good! I think that everything will turn more in our direction at the Red Bull Ring!"
The Porsche Sports Cup Deutschland will continue on the Formula 1 race track in Styria on 13 and 14 July.