SRO GT2 European Series: Imola

Race 1 (Saturday) Report:

Welcome, fans, to the first race of the season for the SRO GT2 European Series.  This is the first of a few races where GT2 will be a part of the bill for supporting GT World Challenge Europe, but the only support event for the endurance series.  We had a smallish field, but with a wide variety of GT2 cars that are ready to race.  There will be a main GT2 class and a Cup class for spec cars that race in one-make production GT championships such as Porsche Carrera Cup, Ferrari Challenge, and Lamborghini Super Trofeo.  Pro-Am and Am level drivers are set to race in this year's championship.  This is the first time yours truly has covered the GT2 cars.  So, it will be a new experience for everyone, especially me, writing about them on the blog.  The series is making it's Imola debut.

Two 50-minute races are set to take place.  Yours truly shall blog about each in one post.  Spots of rain are in the air as we join lead commentator for the SRO, David Addison, along with Ben Constanduros, for these races.  The cars are coming to the grid on a cool track.  Thick jackets and wooly hats are the order of the day.  This will see returning drivers and new names for the GT2 series.  Looking forward to seeing the new Brabham GT2 car.  This car is run by the defending champions of the series.  So, it has raced before.  Brabham Automotive Factory Racing from Australia, formed by racing legend David Brabham who comes from the legendary Brabham family.  Anders Fjordbach and Kevin Weeda are set to share the car.  

A new model, brand, and shape is ready to race.  Kevin Weeda will start the car before Anders Fjordbach takes over.  On pole, we have car #18 for LP Racing, in the hands of Michael Doppelmayr from Austria and Elia Erhart, the German.  Third on the grid, we have the Martini lookalike Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport with Gianluca Giorgi of Italy, the single driver in that car for the race.  What a gorgeous, iconic livery!  SRO boss Stephane Ratel actually drove with LP Racing in GT2 in 2021.  Elia Erhart is on pole.  He is teamed up with Michael Doppelmayr and Erhart is a former Porsche racer himself.  Alongside is PK Carsport, and the first of two cars on their team.  This is the #11 Audi R8 LMS GT2 with Stienes Longin and Nicolas Saelens.  They are following in the footsteps of their dads who were also racing drivers, Bert Longin, and David Saelens.  So, an all-Belgian duo in that car.

Elia Erhart says he was lucky to have a clean lap in qualifying with a great race car.  He is starting on slicks in the rain.  Half the track is dry and half is wet.  This is going to be a king size challenge.  Some parts dry and some parts wet.  We are not at a large track like Spa.  So, it won't be so bad, hopefully.  But it is said sector three is wet.  We see in fifth place, the #17 True Racing KTM X-Bow GT2 Concept.  There are four of these awesome cars on the grid itself and the one we are looking at is the #17 in the hands of the all-Austrian team of Klaus Angerhofer and Hubert Trunkenpolz.  The X-Bow, we have seen that car in other endurance races before.  There is no door.  The whole front of the car opens and lifts forward, like a capsule.  It is like some kind of space age vehicle.  A flying saucer or a space capsule module looking thing from a Sci Fi film.

In 2021, the KTM's were very quick.  Yours truly is covering GT2 for the first time.  So, pardon me if I am learning about it during these races.  Rain is falling.  The rain is just a drizzle right now.  Once the tires are hot, they will stick and burn through the rain.  Let' see what is going to happen.  The supercars are on their formation lap.  These cars are really for amateur racers more than anything.  13 cars are set to start.  We have a rolling start and Race Director Peter Daly will see how everything is going to work out.  New names for drivers and new cars.  KTM, Porsche, Audi, Brabham.  The rain is coming to the top of the circuit more than the bottom.  The podium end is wetter than start/finish.  Just watch out in the second and third sectors. It is greasy there, mate.

So, we have 50 minutes on the clock and there is mandatory pit stop window at halfway, between 20 and 30 minutes.  Elia Erhart and Nicolas Saelens on the front row.  Red lights, on.  Red lights, out!  Away we go!  Saelens gets the jump but Erhart, you know he wants it.  Erhart to the lead into Tamburello for the first time of asking.  Gianluca Giorgi in the Porsche will take third.  Another one of those Porsche GT2's bounding over the curbs.  That is the #911 Am ranked entry for Leonardo Gorini from Switzerland.

Watch out for wheelspin.  We saw the #15, the first of the KTM's in the hands of Kris Rosenberger deal with that right off the starting line.  Rosenberger sharing with Laura Kraihamer, so, another all-Austrian duo.  Makes sense, because KTM is an Austrian brand who have broken into car racing after years and years of making motorcycles which they still do.  Gianluca Giorgi moves his way past Nicolas Saelens.  Nico Saelens is not confident about these mixed conditions.  He is being very cautious.  Henry Hassid is moving up while Nico Saelens is going in the opposite direction.  Hassid is making a racing comeback.  The Frenchman, another driver for LP Racing in their #67 Audi R8 LMS GT2.  He was a household name in SRO competition years ago in the days of the old Blancpain Endurance Series, which is now GT World Challenge Europe.  

Rosenberger, look, running wide onto the curbs through Piratella.  Treading carefully, no doubt.  Be careful.  Wriggling all over the curbs goes another Audi, and a KTM as well.  No traction under acceleration.  Peter Guelinckx of Belgium, tiptoeing over the brow.  We talked about Stienes Longin being fastest.  Well, Steines' dad Bert Longin is teamed up with Peter Guelinckx.  Bert Longin, he is a Belgian GT racing legend and has been around this sport of GT production sports car racing a long time.  Poor old Rosenberger is dropping like a stone.  He is a rally driver, so, you would think he would have a handle on this slick track here at Imola.  That is certainly not the case.

No tire temp yet.  Nico Saelens, too, is having trouble.  Saelens in third spot right now.  The gaps are huge as we look at the first half of the field.  So, your top six has Elia Erhart, Gianluca Giorgi, Henry Hassid, Stijns Longing, Leonardo Gorini, and Klaus Angerhofer.  We are also watching Audi R8 LMS GT2 #88.  This is yet another LP Racing entry, for Luca Pirri from Italy and Angelo Negro from Hong Kong.  This is the car that Stephane Ratel raced last year.  Gorini in the Porsche wants to make a move, gets the door slammed in his face, and decides discretion is the better part of valor.

Through Acqua Minerale, and Klaus Angerhofer is right on his six.  Erhart has a gap between himself and Gianluca Giorgi before we get back to the scrap we are watching between Nico Saelens and Leonardo Gorini.  Timing and scoring is on the fritz here because we are being told that it is Stijns Longin driving the #11 PK Carsport Audi.  But that is not true.  He has 21 minutes until he steps into the car for the second half of the race.  So he is obviously suited and booted in the pit lane waiting for his turn to drive.  Gorini passes Hassid for third place.  Check that.  Gorini is fourth.  Saelens is sixth as Klaus Angerhofer makes the pass.  The cars are coming alive now.  

We are now watching in seventh place, Pierluigi Alessandri of Italy aboard the #9 Target Racing Lamborghini.  This is the Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo Evo GT2.  The Italian is sharing with Dilantha Malagamuwa, who is a veteran sports car racer from Sri Lanka.  This is the only Lambo in the field.  Elia Erhart's lead over Gianluca Giorgi has ballooned to five seconds.  Henry Hassid is next in the serial.  Meantime, we see Peter Guelinckx in the second PK Carsport Audi moving up as well.  Bert Longin will be ready to go for the second stint.  Erhart leads as the Brabham is now finally beginning to move up.  This is the #1 entry for Anders Fjordbach and Kevin Weeda that we mentioned earlier.  Giorgi meanwhile is closing in on Erhart.  He is now 4.9 seconds behind.

Improvising with racing lines, and poor old Nico Saelens just cannot get anyplace.  He is stuck between a rock and a hard place right now.  Here comes Angelo Negro as well in Audi #88.  That is one of the LP Racing cars.  The Brabham is now 11th and has gone around both of the KTM's which are down at the bottom of the pile.  Rosenberger is being followed by his teammate Stefan Rosina.  Rosina, from Slovakia, sharing with Austrian Sehdi Sarmini.  Well, at least Sarmini is racing under an Austrian license.  Angelo Negro wants by Sarmini.  No dice as Negro gets out onto the grass.  He avoided calamity there.  So, Peter Guelinckx is OK, but now, a great save by Pierluigi Alessandri.  In the middle of the corner he slithered wide and lost traction in that Lamborghini!  Holy smokes!

Elia Erhart still leading Gianluca Giorgi.  He is fighting the Audi head on.  Henry Hassid is third in the Audi.  Racing line, dry.  Offline, damp.  Gorini and Angelhofer continue their battle too.  We are checking in on these two right now.  No rain, but slick conditions.  The lead gap now 7.6 seconds as Elia Erhart stretches the margin.  Blimey.  That Porsche is quick!  Then again, under braking for Tamburello, the KTM is stronger.  The leading car will make a driver change but the second-place car won't.  Giorgi is racing Marco Solo in this event.  We've been racing for ten minutes.  The Brabham is moving up.  Angelo Negro runs wide and Pierluigi Alessandri says "grazie mille" and goes by.  

The KTM was definitely struggling at the beginning.  Contact noted between #81 and #11.  Argy bargy between the two PK Carsport entries.  Goodness gracious.  Henry Hasid is running a lonely race in third.  Hassid loses half a second alone in sector one.  Gianluca Giorgi wants to keep pushing.  Porsche has the legs in sector one, but Audi returns the favor in sectors two and three.  Driver Michael Vergers, who drove a GT2 Porsche in 2021, he said that the handling on that car is tricky to dial in.  The KTM is in the right places on the road while the Porsche is a tad more erratic but has the horsepower.  Elia Erhart continues building the gap and whistling off into the distance.

Peter Guelinckx is now sixth.  The Lambo is closing in.  We are watching both Angelo Negro and his competitor, Aurelijus Rusteika.  Rusteika is driving the #5 High Class Racing Audi R8 LMS GT2 and the Lithuanian shares that car with Michael Vergers from Holland.  Vergers is a man yours truly is quite familiar with.  He has done sports car racing and even did some stock car racing once or twice back in the day.  Rusteika is closing in on Negro.  #81 has made a gap to Nico Saelens.  Through Variante Alta they go and pit stops are coming.  Erhart will have to change over to Michael Doppelmayr.  Gianluca Giorgi will stay in the car.  Pierluigi Alessandri is pushing hard.  Peter Guelinckx is moving away from Nico Saelens.  KTM passes Porsche for fourth place as Klaus Angerhofer is moving up.

His next target is Henry Hassid as poor old Pierluigi Aleesandri spins again!  He bounces off the side of Nico Saelens and is sent on the whirligig througn Tosa.  He is back on the button with slight damage.  He was alongside and just could not make the pass without having the squeeze play applied.  Leonardo Gorini is dropping down the order, losing time to the KTM.  Angerhofer's lap times are the best of anyone right now and that KTM is running very well.  His co-driver Hubert Trunkenpolz will get into the car at the pit stop and take it to the checkered flag.  So, we are two minutes away from pit stop time continuing to watch Elia Erhart in the lead.  Elia Erhart goes purple setting fastest lap so far at 1:46.197.  

He will have one more lap before needing to pit.  Gianluca Giorgi, he can match those times being laid down by Erhart.  Fastest middle sector from Angerhofer in the KTM.  He has lapped past Rosenberger.  New fastest lap at 1:45.8 for Angerhofer.  He makes the pass late but sticks it into Rivazza.  The cars have another event, tomorrow, (Sunday).  Gianluca Giorgi is set to lap the KTM of Sehdi Sarmini.  But now the pit window opens and Sarmini dives for the pit lane.  On a greasy track, this KTM is a handful to drive.  So he wants out of that car and will hand over to Stefan Rosina to take it to the end.  You would think the circuit is more drivable by now.  Hard to say.

The slower cars are pitting and now putting the quicker drivers into the seat.  Giorgi is still flying and so is Klaus Angerhofer.  Will the leader hit the lane?  He is over the curbs through Variante Alta.  Angelo Negro out, and Luca Pirri in, in the #88 Audi for LP Racing.  Peter Guelinckx hands over to Bert Longin, and Nico Saelens hands the car to Stijns Longin.  So, dad and lad, father and son, will be racing each other on track here at Imola in the second stint.  We now get a first glimpse of the Brabham that had come into the pit lane.  Great looking race car.  Mid-engine of course.  This is another of these modern supercars.  Kevin Weeda out and 2021 GT2 champion Anders Fjordbach in.  We are used to seeing Anders Fjordbach in such prototype disciplines as World Endurance, European Le Mans Series, and the IMSA WeatherTech Championship.

Great to see the Brabham BT63 GT2 in the flesh.  This is listed as a concept car and man oh man, it looks fabulous.  The Brabham is a factory team.  They want to develop and sell more cars to race against Audi.  Leonardo Gorini remains fifth and Pierluigi Alessandri is recovering, but Klaus Angerhofer still has fastest lap as Elia Erhart stays in the lead.  That Brabham sounds great too.  It uses a 5.2-liter V8 putting out 600 horsepower.  This information from the Brabham Automotive website and the fact page about the car.  Klaus Angerhofer has uncorked fastest lap of the race and now moves up to third with Henry Hassid in the pit lane.  We have not seen the Lambo on pace yet, the #9 in the hands of Pierluigi Alessandri.  Of course, Dilantha Malagamuwa (at risk of butchering his name, again), has yet to step behind the wheel.

Hassid, the Dutchman, done with driving for this race.  Leonardo Gorini is in the lane as well.  They have different cars, an Audi and a Porsche, operating for different customers.  Elia Erhart continues on his merry way in the lead, into Rivazza.  What will we see in the second half of race one?  Anglehofer warns a rival he is on a flying lap.  Alessandri in fourth needs to pit.  The KTM is trying to unlap itself.  Stefan Rosina, former Porsche Super Cup racer, is going for it.  He has eight seconds to the Brabham.  Elia Erhart continues to lead.  He has to come in.  He will squeeze it to the very end of the pit window because he is quicker than Michael Dopplmayr.  Giorgi in the lane, he won't have to change drivers.  Michael Vergers uncorks fastest lap of the race.  Giorgi in the lane and so is Angerhofer.  Dilantha Malagamuwa is now driving the Target Racing Lamborghini, car #9.  

Malagamuwa has driven in a number of races before, having raced Lamborghini Super Trofeo, and did the inaugural Bathurst 24 Hour race, 20 years ago in a Mosler owned and run by British racer Martin Short.  It is now or never for Elia Erhart.  He has to pit.  We can see one of the Porsche's in the lane, too.  Does Erhart have the gap?  He is in the lane now.  The team waited to the last possible moment and comes to the attention of the LP Racing crew.  Michael Dopplmayr is ready to drive.  Gianluca Giorgi has to run qualifying laps to get in touch with Dopplmayr.  We are going to keep a close eye on Bert Longin as well.  As I said earlier, Bert Longin is a legend.  He has won both the Spa 24 Hours and the Zolder 24 Hours in Belgium and is a true pilot in one of these GT cars.

Longin has work to do but he is plenty capable.  The Audi's are going to be the fast cars to watch as we have less than 20 minutes to go in race one.  Giorgi knows the car and the track conditions.  Dopplmayr still coming up to speed.  Dopplmayr knows he is under pressure for dead sure.  He is on his tiptoes right now through Tosa.  Giorgi though, is bang on the money.  He is reeling in Dopplmayr hand over fist into Acqua Minerale.  He has the drive and makes the move for the lead!  Elia Erhart must be like, "how on earth did this happen?!"  Henry Hassid is going to be right on Giorgi and poor old Dopplmayr is having a spot of bother right now.  Porsche wants their first GT2 win and to steal the thunder from Audi and KTM.  Just 17 minutes left on the board.  Henry Hassid was the man with the fastest pit stop.  Race one at Imola for GT2 Europe has been a barnburner so far.  I wonder how race two will work out.

Bert Longin meanwhile moves around Leonardo Gorini, and we also have Hubert Trunkenpolz still in the picture.  He is lurking around, looking for a bite of the cherry as well.  Ditto for Michael Vergers.  He wants to make a move on Gorini as well before this race is done and dusted.  Longin and Vergers will be scrapping for the Pro Am lead.  Stijn Longin is also back there.  Into Rivazza, no dice for Vergers trying to pass Gorini.  Longin is making good his escape as well.  Dopplymayr has Trunkenpolz on his six too.  Have you ever?  No, I've never.  The Porsche has the ponies out of Rivazza compared to the other cars.  It's pretty incredible from what we've seen so far.  

Gorini has Steijns Longin right on his six down the hill.  Again, Longin Jr. knows discretion is the better part of valor in these closing moments.  Dilantha Malagamuwa is also in this scrap but is biding his time.  Both Longin's, father and son, are racing.  Bert Longin is quicker in two of the sectors but could run out of time.  Stijn Longin wants by Leonardo Gorini but just can't make it work yet.  Dopplmayr continues dropping like a stone and Longin moves by Gorini while both pass Dopplmayr.  Bert Longin on the podium, look.  Bert Longin took over from Peter Guelinckx and will start race two tomorrow.  Read on in this entry to find out more about tomorrow's race.

Bert Longin changed over from Porsche in 2021 to Audi in 2022.  Gianluca Giorgi is the overall leader but has Henry Hassid all over him like a rash.  Anders Fjordbach has uncorked the fastest first sector time.  So, he has that Brabham wound up and is giving that motorcar a very nice ride, thank you.  He is wringing everything out of that automobile.  Screaming up towards Variante Alta, Henry Hassid wants to pass Gianluca Giorgi for seventh place.  Will he be able to do it?  Oh my!  Hassid off in the grass trying to pass Giorgi.  This is the pass in the grass like the NASCAR All Star Race in 1987 at Charlotte Motor Speedway between Waltrip and Earnhardt.  Advantage to Giorgi, so, the Italian in the Porsche moves ahead.

Ten minutes to go now.  This first race is coming down to crunch time.  Knowing what we saw in GT3 in the waning moments, this will be a good one, too.  Bert Longin in third can't make up enough in ten minutes.  He has to block Vergers' advances.  Big slide for Henry Hassid through the Villeneuve chicane!  Egad!  The margin stretches out a wee bit.  This scrap will go to the wire.  Poor old Michael Dopplmayr is eighth now.  Into Tosa, the Porsche defends the line, and Hassid has the preferred line into Piratella, but not quite.  Wait.  Hassid makes it work on the inside.  Wow.  So, Audi returns to the top of the shop and Henry Hassid becomes our third leader in this motor race.  

Gianluca Giorgi is really bringing the Porsche to the fore.  Hassid got spooked by Giorgi.  Or maybe it was the other way 'round.  On the straightaway, the gap could come down, but it isn't what we thought.  Everyone has volleyed fastest lap around.  Stijns Longin is pressing Michael Vergers and so, Bert Longin will be able to get away.  Heading to the top of the circuit and drop down towards Acqua Minerale once more.  Longin knows this car while Vergers is just into an Audi GT2 for the first time this weekend.  Into Rivazza again, Longin holds on.  Five minutes to go in race one.  Vergers closing up on Longin and makes his move late on the brakes into Tamburello!

High Class Racing could win in Pro-Am.  Dilantha Malagamuwa is being reeled in by the Brabham of Anders Fjordbach.  Hassid is looking to be in the pounds seats and has grown his gap over Ginaluca Giorgi.  Maybe the tires have faded on the Porsche.  Giorgi could be tired too.  The Brabham moves past the Lamborghini and now Anders Fjordbach has cracked the top ten.  Fjordbach passes Malagamuwa through Tosa.  The father/son rivalry between the Longin's is heating up.  Son right on dad's six right now.  One more lap to go with less than two minutes to run.  Race one nearly completed.  Keep in mind, we have another to run on Sunday.  This is going to be the final lap.  Henri Hassid leads by five and a half seconds.  Giorgi not as fast as Vergers but is still pouring it on.

Vergers throwing everything at Giorgi.  Bert Longin runs ahead of his son.  This could very well be the best GT2 race we have seen.  Last year we saw High Class Racing dominate with fewer cars in the field.  This is the first GT2 race yours truly has seen.  I am liking it.  Checkered flag ready.  Henry Hassid wins race one!  Gianluca Giorgi second and Michael Vergers third.  Leonardo Gorini rounds out the top six and now we see Anders Fjordbach in the Brabham passing Michael Dopplmayr.  Poor old Dopplmayr just fell off a cliff later on in the race.  That's a darn shame.  Brabham finishes ninth.  Will they pick up the pace in race two?  You will have to read on in this post to find out more.

Race 1 winners:

Pro-Am: #5 Aurelius Rusteika & Michael Vergers     High Class Racing Audi R8 LMS GT2

Am:       #67 Henry Hassid                                          LP Racing Audi R8 LMS GT2

Race one is in the bag.  Read on and find out more about race two.  The GT2 European Cup action at Imola is far from over.

***

Race 2 (Sunday) Report

Welcome back, everyone.  When I promised more racing, I meant it.  We have race two on deck for SRO GT2 European Cup here at Autodromo Enzo E Dino Ferrari in Imola, Italy.  The sun is shining, on a chilly day in Imola.  We had a wild, lively event yesterday.  Great mix of cars and drivers.  We had a fascinating 50-minute event yesterday.  The grid for race two was not determined by yesterday's race results, but through a separate qualifying session, and of course, we will see a mandatory pit stop halfway through the proceedings.  We are set to roll on the formation lap, maybe two of them, to heat up the tires.

Once again, we join David Addison and Ben Constanduros in the commentary box, and on pit lane, Jemma Scott, to cover this motor race.  Pole position today goes to Nicolas Saelens who explains the car had a vibration in it yesterday.  Saelens knows the competition is strong including their sister car.  It is an Audi sweep in GT2 and they have also been running really well in the main game, in the GT3 class.  Hopes are it dries up according to Nico Saelens.  He will go second and Stijns Longin will be the starting driver.  We look now at one of the KTM Crossbows.  Laura Kraihamer is set to go aboard the True Racing KTM and you can see how you enter the cockpit in a KTM.  You open and push forward the clamshell canopy.  No doors on that car.

It is similar to a fighter jet in that respect except the canopy opens forward and out, not backwards and up.  A quirky car, but a quick car just the same.  We are now looking at one-time race leader yesterday, the Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport in the hands of Gianluca Girogi with the distinctive and familiar Martini lookalike stripes on it.  Yesterday's winner Henry Hassid, he will start caboose on the field.  He did not set a time in Q2 yesterday because the fuel pump in the car, packed up during his qualification run.  On the pole is this car we spoke of quite a bit in race one yesterday, if you have already read past that point in the blog entry.  This is the fantastic looking Brabham BT63 with Anders Fjordbach, the Danish ace, ready to start.  

The Brabham was up near the top of the shop yesterday.  Kevin Weeda is still getting used to the car.  We don't have any moisture on the road, but it is stone cold ambient temperature.  We are going to have ourselves a wild start here for race two.  Today's grid is oh so different compared to yesterday.  Race Director Peter Daly spoke about how the cold is affecting the tires.  He had serious discussions with Pirelli, the tire supplier.  We shall have two formation laps to warm up the tires.  Stijns Longin on pole.  Again, we have 13 cars in this race just as we did yesterday.  How will the amateur drivers improve?  Will they have more confidence?

We did not have a drop of rain yesterday.  Still, the drivers were complaining and saying the road here at Imola was like a skating rink.  The wettest place is into the runoff area at the chicane.  It is greasy there, mate.  Or it was.  Now then, we will have to see if we'll stay dry or have any rain to deal with.  The clock has now started as we aree running the second formation lap.  This is the opening lap of the motor race to get the tires hot.  Recall yesterday, we had a wonderful scrap between Bert and Stijns Longin, father and son, and Michael Vergers.  Stefan Rossina and Anders Fjordbach were scything their way through the field yesterday as well.

The Porsche drivers along with Henry Hassid, will stay in their cars and not use co-drivers.  The other ten cars in this race, they will change drivers halfway through.  Peter Daly, he is Race Director not only in SRO GT2, but also in British GT, and he is a driver in the Formula Ford open wheel series.  Michael Vergers just happens to also be the Driving Standards Advisor for the British GT Championship.  So, no question that Vergers will be minding his P's and Q's out there as he does not want to develop anything untoward in his professional relationship with Mr. Daly.  Vergers is a successful, quick driver.  He has run sports cars, stock cars, open wheel, you name it.

Picking a potential winner will be a toughie for this race.  Let's see what happens.  The main drivers start.  Here they come.  Red lights on.  Red lights out.  The lights flash green and away we go!  Vergers gets a good start and Anders Fjordbach is on the grass but gets back on the road.  They wriggle through Tambarello for the first time of asking.  Rosina is moving up in the KTM.  He wants by the Audi at Tosa and can't quite get there.  Up the hill to Piratella and already, Stijns Longin has really put a move on Rosina.  The bloke seems like he was shot from a cannon!  Bert Longin runs fifth now behind the Brabham of Anders Fjordbach.  Plunging down the hill to Acqua Minerale.  Gianluca Giorgi is next up coming towards Variante Alta.

Rossina down to the fourth place as Fjordbach wants by into Rivazza, but he overcooks it!  Poor old Anders Fjordbach is skittering through the gravel trap in the Brabham!  Fjordbach escapes his rallycross moment and is back on the button.  He'll have strewn gravel all over the place.  Uh, Anders, maybe that double espresso at breakfast was a wee bit too much, sunbeam.  The move was on, but he couldn't stop.  Michael Vergers will be cackling like a madman under his helmet, knowing he gains a place at the expense of the Dane.  That was a mistake an experienced driver like Fjordbach wouldn't make.  We've seen him run prototypes at Le Mans and at Daytona.  He's a stellar driver.  But even the best can get it wrong and have to regroup.

Race start under review by the stewards.  Vergers, into Villeneuve, may not have a happy race car.  Meanwhile, look, we have Fjordbach carving his way back into contention trying to pass the lone Lamborghini of Dilantha Malagamuwa, the Sri Lankan racer.  Laura Kraihamer is ahead.  Laura is the sister of Dominik Kraihamer, and her brother has run a lot of sports car races in the past particular aboard LMP2 cars.  In more recent time, Dominik Kraihamer has been a test and development driver for KTM.  In replay, we see that the Brabham was committed to the corner but got squeezed wide onto the grass.  Henry Hassid, yesterday's winner in class, he is 11th in the standings in Audi #67.  Vergers has uncorked a best lap in sector one.  Michal Dopplmayr is down the order and we will have to watch and see how Elia Erhart runs later.

Stefan Rosina in third, is the highest placed KTM.  Luca Pirri in the meantime aboard one of the other Audi's, he is chasing the Porsche of Leonardo Gorini.  Henry Hassid, into Rivazza, is slowly and steadily working his way through the field.  He is not scything through.  He seems to just be taking his time even though the remaining 40 minutes of this race are going to whiz by in a flash.  Noted contact between Bert Longin and Anders Fjordbach at the start.  The gap is 4.8 seconds between Stijns Longin and Michael Vergers.  That said, more purple sectors (fastest of all) are being dotted on the scoring monitor as the Pirelli P Zero tires are gaining temperature.

These cars are beasts to drive, but many of the drivers do not have the same experience level as those drivers who race in GT3 or even GT4.  They are less aerodynamically dependent than a GT3 car.  They are designed for amateur racers but they are still supercars.  Henry Hassid continues to push.  The Porsche's have the legs on the long straights compared to the other cars as you race through Rivazza and down to Tamburello.  Stienes Longin continues to lead the race by five seconds.  Anders Fjordbach has moved to sixth and uncorked the fastest lap.  Michael Vergers is also beginning to uncork quick laps.  Bert Longin is pushing to catch Stefan Rosina in the KTM.

There are KTM X-Bow's racing all over eastern Europe.  Fjordbach off into the toolies, again?  Well, he is at least partly off the road, losing the rear end of the Brabham, pushing the car to the very limit.  Henry Hassid has passed Leonardo Gorini and is now working on passing Dilantha Malagamuwa.  Fjordbach indeed did pass Gianluca Giorgi before his off-course excursion.  Malagamuwa is a popular driver in Sri Lanka and has a huge entourage of family and friends who come to see him race.  Henri Hassid and Luca Pirri in the meantime, want to pressure Malagamuwa into a mistake and move past.  

Stijns Longin is still leading, and we are close to the pit window opening.  Poor old Michal Dopplmayr is over a minute behind the leader.  Elia Erhart, when he steps into the Audi, he will really have to push to gain ground before the checkered flag.  Erhart will be praying for a safety car.  Stefan Rossina still has Bert Longin behind, and now, Luca Pirri wants to dispense with Leonardo Gorini, and does so.  Pirri sat there trying to plot his move for a wee while and finally, Gorini knew he had to give it up.  Poor old Henry Hassid is still stuck behind the Porsche, though.  Agan, he won't want that.  

These are supposed to be gentleman racers.  So, you don't want to be playing dodge 'em cars.  Stijns Longin ran a 1:43.4 for fastest lap in the race on Saturday.  Today we have already seen fastest lap lowered by Anders Fjordbach.  New lap record by Fjordbach.  He would be running better if he was not indulging in rallycross.  Fjordbach still has that Brabham absolutely going for it.  Gosh.  That V8 in the back of the Brabham sounds fabulous!  Oh dear.  Don't look now.  But Luca Pirri has joined the battle with Henry Hassid and Dilantha Malagamuwa.  Pirri wants it.  You know he won't take this one lying down.  

Pirri is the boss, and he wants by his customer.  He wants by Henry Hassid.  Dilantha Malagamuwa is also right in this thing.  We have a report that Michael Vergers has gone off the road a wee bit.  Hard to know.  We cannot see him yet.  The battle pack is spread out.  Laura Kraihamer in seventh place goes off the road and Gianluca Giorgi ahead, sails through in the Porsche on the way to complete another lap here at Imola.  We are a lap and a half away from the pit window opening.  Laura Kraihamer goes through.  Gianluca Giorgi leads Am aboard the Ebimotors Porsche.  Laura Kraihamer dives the KTM through on that pseudo-Martini livery Porsche and takes the spot away.  

Kraihamer is up to the top six as we see Giorgi's top speed at 285 and a half clicks which equals 178 miles an hour.  Whoops.  Malagamuwa spins at Tosa and has lost four spots.  Dear me.  Did he get dipped?  He was late into the turn and maybe Hassid pinched him.  He did get dipped, and so, now the car is stalled but he gets back in the race.  Henry Hassid gains a spot with Luca Pirri behind.  Pit window open in 30 seconds.  Stefan Rosina now has Bert Longin right up his tailpipe.  Rosina was pushing Vergers earlier and now is falling into Longin's clutches.  Longin gets a run and the KTM is fading fast!  Something wrong with Stefan Rosina!  He is losing speed it seems.  He is slowing.  The tire or the suspension is not damaged.  Maybe he has to recycle the electronics.  He can come into the lane and sort the deal out and do a driver change.

But he is losing places hand over fist.  Dopplmayr brings in the Audi and is done driving, so Elia Erhart will take over.  The pit lane delta is 94 seconds and anything under that will incur a penalty from the stewards.  Not sure the GT2 class has joker pit stops.  94 seconds is plenty of time.  Stienes Longin continues to lead in car #11, the PK Carsport Audi.  Michael Vergers is now second.  Longin is now leading Vergers by 3.3 seconds.  Laura Kraihamer has moved ahead of Gianluca Giorgi.  Kraihamer may have black smoke emanating from the rear of her KTM Crossbow.  She ran out of road through the Villeneuve chicane and ended up plowing through the gravel trap and she mismatched her downshift.  Elia Erhart is back in the race and has to run qualifying laps to make up0 time. 

KTM #17 in the lane.  Klaus Angerhofer has taken over from Hubert Trunkenpolz.  Michael Vergers has chopped the gap from four seconds down to 2.7 seconds.  What will the pace of the second drivers be?  We will see Aurelius Rustika scrapping with Nicolas Saelens.  That will be fascinating to watch.  Peter Guelinckx will also be in that scrap when he steps in after Bert Longin's stint is complete.  Guelinckx only started racing professionally last year after dipping his toe in in 2020 with Creventic in the 24-Hour Series.  Kevin Weeda has taken over from Anders Fjordbach in the Brabham.  Henry Hassid and Elia Erhart will be the two to watch as the pit window is still open but will close soon.  A safety car will help a few drivers out.

Leonardo Gorini in and out in the Porsche.  He is of course racing Marco Solo in that #911 entry for LP Racing.  Stefan Rosina has brought in the True Racing KTM.  Sehdi Sarmini will take over and he was not in the game at all yesterday.  He is struggling in the chilly and damp conditions and needs track time to shake the rust off.  Michael Vergers, in the meantime, is gaining on Stijns Longin.  Longin's lap times are improving as we watch Aurelius Rustika and Michael Vergers.  Vergers is behind Stijns Longin who goes up the curb at Rivazza.  Vergers seems to be racing more efficiently than Longin is.  The pit window is still open.  The mechanics will change tire pressures on the stops as well.  Vergers had handling issues at the start and now Longin is dealing with the same thing.

The gap is closing.  Despite his off-course adventures earlier, Anders Fjordbach is fourth and only 7.9 seconds behind the leaders.  So, he seems to be steadily bringing the Brabham back into the picture.  The Brabham first raced in GT2 at the tail end of 2021 at Paul Ricard in the south of France.  It is a factory-built car, designed, built, and backed by David Brabham.  It is a family effort.  The Brabham did race in the Britcar series, but now David Brabham, like his father, Sir Jack, before him, is building his own car.  Stijns Longin hits the pit lane allowing Michael Vergers to inherit P1 for the time being.  He leaves it late.  Bert Longin and Anders Fjordbach are in the lane now.  Drive through penalty for Henry Hassid, according to Peter Daly, Race Director.  

That's a strong penalty for light contact with Dilantha Malagamuwa.  Elia Erhart is on the same pace as Michael Vergers.  Hassid takes his penalty.  Everyone save for the race leader has pitted already.  Nico Saelens is back on track, using the windscreen wiper.  Not sure if rain is coming. No umbrellas.  But it is chilly at six degrees Celsius.  Kevin Weeda in the Brabham, which sings its way down the pit lane.  Michael Vergers will hand the Audi to Aurelius Rustika.  Angelo Negro is now driving the Audi.  Saelens misses the apex in the second half of the Villeneuve chicane.  Elia Erhart is pushing hard but needs a safety car as we said earlier on.  He has the speed though, that's for dead sure.  

Nico Saelens is not happy.  He is struggling to find the handling.  Drive angry?  I hope not.  Rustica is ahead of Saelens.  Aurelius Rustica has to push and keep the pace going that Michael Vergers had.  Nicolas Saelens is second and is pressing hard.  Rustica has quite the gap to make up to Saelens.  Gianluca Giorgi leads the Am division in the #7 Ebimotors Porsche.  Henry Hassid has taken his drive through penalty and has tumbled down the order.  We are now into the final 15 minutes of this event.  The final 15 minutes of GT2 racing at Imola.  The second KTM we thought would race in this event, in race two, never made it on track.  

So we never saw car #16 of Stefan Rosina and Sehdi Sarmini.  Nico Saelens has caught Aurelijus Rustika, and the Lithuanian driver will have his hands full.  Nico Saelens is calculating his next move.  Drive through penalty for speeding in the lane for #15.  Chris Rosenberg is the culprit and so, Elia Erhart will move up.  At Rivazza, these two blokes are nose to tail.  Saelens is going to pass Rusteika and he does.  Aurelijus Rustica is second and we have a car off in the gravel and it is Klaus Anglehofer in the #17 KTM which was down in 12th place.

Nico Saelens is not David Saelens' son.  He is his cousin.  Nico Saelens' dad was also involved in racing.  David Saelens' was an open wheel racer who got as far as Formula 3000 which was the top rung to Formula 1 and still is under the Formula 2 name these days.  I know I saw David Saelens also compete in some prototype racing years and years ago as well.  Yours truly has been following the sports cars for a good long while now.  Nico Saelens' dad was a motorcycle racer I believe as well.  Peter Guelinckx continues in hot pursuit of Rustica.  Nico Saelens remains ahead of Rusteika.  Elia Erthart and Henry Hasid are still locked in a battle for 12th spot I believe.  It is ninth place.

Oops.  A punctured right rear for the #9 Lamborghini as Pierluigi Alessandri is in th car, limping the car back on the grass.  That isn't Dilantha Malagamuwa driving.  He is parked up on the outside and he spun onto the grass thankfully without hitting the barriers.  There is no gap in the wall to have the marshals get to the car.  The stewards might have to throw a Full Course Yellow.  We would see the safety car out on the road, maybe.  However, under Full Course Yellow, we would still need to see a snatch vehicle to rescue the Lambo.  Aurelijus Rusteika is still in the battle for the lead and the sun has surely disappeared.  We are into the final ten minutes of the motor race now.

Under the safety car, the tires would cool down in a massive way and so will the motors.  A worn tire takes longer than a tire that is new, to get back up to temperature.  No safety car called yet.  Goodness.  So, Guelinckx is lapping quicker than Rusteika.  Yet, Rusteika remains ahead.  The marshals can keep the race going.  The drivers are the SRO's customers.  The car in strife is probably not in as dangerous a spot as we first thought.  Gianluca Giorgi is fourth overall, leading in class and he is quicker than both Guelinckx and Rusteika.  Henry Hassid wants to make his move.  Elia Erhart is now up the road as well.              

Henry Hassid has been from the back to the front, to the back, and to the front again.  Angelo Negro too has been running well.  So, yesterday's winner wants to pass his teammate and Elia Erhart has already passed them both.  Erhart's recovery drive continues.  Hassid has been from back to front to back to front.  Leonardo Gorini is closing up on Kevin Weeda.  Hassid moves to eighth place.  This has been an incredible race.  As the GT2 grid grows, the better the racing will be.  2021 had a quality lineup.  Hans Joachim Stuck, the legend, raced in GT2 in 2021.  Elia Erhart has run Porsche Carrera Cup Deutschland and German GT.  GT2 drivers can pick and choose where they race in Europe.  The opportunity to race at Imola is a good one.  Last year, now as an Am driver, the legend, Hans Joachim Stuck, raced in GT2 Europe.  Aurelius Rustieka has gone off the road, look, and Peter Guelinckx sees the open door and steps right on through.  Easy peasy lemon squeezy, that.

The next race is at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria.  But the GT2 cars will race alongside ADAC GT Masters.  Aurelius Rusteika is off the road there, look, and Peter Guelinckx has moved to second spot.  Rusteika just ran out of road into the Villeneuve chicane.  Red flag shown?  Say what?  This race has been stopped.  The race will not restart.  It is finished.  There is a car off the road.  We were seeing a great race developing.  No one has gone over the control line.  Aurelius Rusteika will stay second.  Nico Saelens will be declared the winner I believe.  Such a shame the motor race has had to be stopped.

We have to see who this accident happened.  The second GT2 race was a lot of fun to watch.  #11 wins the race.  Nico Saelens was leading but he has not officially been declared the race winner as of yet. Kevin Weeda is off the road in the Brabham and thankfully, he is OK.  Gianluca Giorgi is a class winner in Am and is in parc ferme out of the car.  Interestingly, #11 is shown in fourth place.  Aurelius Rusteika are the winners?  A time penalty is being applied to the #11.  We have to see who is winning what here.  This is not official just yet.  #11 could have had a drive through penalty and thus #11 finishes fourth.  So, Aurelius Rusteika and Michael Vergers are your winners.

Overall/Pro Am: #5 Rusteika/Vergers   High Class Racing Audi R8 LMS GT2

             Am: #7 Gianluca Giorgi           Ebimotors Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport

So, that is all she wrote from Imola in the GT2 European Series season opener.  We will see you for the next race in the third weekend in May, at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria, in support of ADAC GT Masters, in the middle of May.  A new car, a new start, and a first win for Michael Vergers and Aurelius Rusteika.  Vergers is a veteran driver who knows how the marshals are working through running the race as well as we heard in the interview.  Gianluca Giorgi wins Am and finishes on the overall podium after going off the road earlier on!  Holy smokes!  That was a wild one.  Drama all the way.

You have to feel for Steijns Longin and Nico Saelens.  They had to overtake a backmarker and that is what cost them the victory.  They lost oodles of time, unfortunately.  So, a wild race is indeed what we have seen.  So, for now, goodbye from Imola and we'll see you next time.