BES: Third and fourth in Le Castellet - HTP Motorsport in peak form Le Castellet, France, June 29th. Hard work, big success and jubilation mood: HTP Motorsport had a lot to be pleased about in the third round of the Blancpain Endurance Series (BES) at Circuit Paul Ricard in Le Castellet, France. The successful team from Saarbrücken-Ensheim, Germany secured a fantastic third place, with Sergei Afanasiev from Russia, Dutchman Stef Dusseldorp and youngster Lucas Wolf from Mörlenbach, Germany contesting the 3-hour race. Right behind them, Swiss Harold Primat, Nico Verdonck from Belgium and Maximilian Buhk from Dassendorf, Germany at the wheel of the HTP sister car grabbed fourth place. It is the best result of the season in the internationally renowned endurance series for both trios. HTP Motorsport leads the team ranking of the Blancpain GT Series, having scored 73 points. Consequently, HTP team principal Norbert Brückner was very pleased in his conversation with the press: “Third and fourth place is a fantastic success. A big compliment to our entire team. They did a great job during the weekend. Both cars battled hard for a podium finish until the end of the race. It was motorsports at its best.” The team secured the foundation for their tremendous success in the qualifying session on Saturday morning. 42 cars took part in the qualifying session to battle for the best possible grid position and the pole position for the third 3-hour race of the current season. Afanasiev, Dusseldorp and youngster Wolf at the wheel of the Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 #85 took second place with a lap time of 1:57.530 minutes. Primat, Verdonck and Buhk (1:58.158 Minuten) in the second gull-winged SLS, #84, grabbed ninth place. The race started at 7.15 p.m. Starting from ninth, Bukh carved his way through the field in the first stint. Primat took over in fourth place and was subsequently involved in a thrilling 45-minute battle with Stephane Ortelli at the wheel of the Audi. Dusseldorp and talented driver Wolf in the sister car made no mistakes in the top group. The exciting final involved a nail-biting three-way fight for third. Russian Afanasiev succeeded in the end, driving across the finish line in third place, ahead of his Belgian team-mate Verdonck. The two HTP Mercedes consigned the Sainteloc Racing Audi to fifth place in the process. On Wednesday, July 2nd the HTP team will complete a test session at Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium for the eagerly awaited 24-hour race at the end of July. Team principal Brückner is looking forward to the highlight of the season: “It will be an important and exciting race. We won last year and achieved prestigious success. And we definitely want to be as successful as possible at the 2014 event. The track is ideal for the Mercedes and we have already developed a good set-up for the Ardennes rollercoaster.” The Blancpain Endurance Series (BES) and the Blancpain Endurance Series (BSS) are separate and independent championships within the Blancpain GT Series. Overview of the next rounds in the 2014 Blancpain Endurance Series: 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium (23 to 27 July), Nürburgring (19 to 21 September). Internet: htp-motorsport.de
Posted on: Mon, 30 Jun 2014 08:27:25 +0000
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