The season finale of the GT Winter Series in Barcelona on Sunday, March 13, 2022 was marked by capricious imponderables, surprise successes and a very close championship battle. In the end, the Schnitzelalm Racing team with Marcel Marchewicz and Michael Sander was to take home the crown. The special concept of the GTWS brought almost 40 drivers from all over Europe to the entry lists.

Qualifying – “Quick Gaby” blows away “the big ones
After the GT Winter Series had celebrated a flawlessly sunny season so far, it suddenly rained cats and dogs in sunny Catalonia. The Teixeira family coped particularly well with these conditions. While Antonio took pole with his Ligier LMP3 prepared by Monza Garage and was flanked by the Team Thor LMP3 with Addun Gudmundsson on row one, brother Manuel made it to the second row of the grid in 4th place with the SR8. Sandwiched in between was the picture perfect matte black Bullitt Racing Aston Martin GT3 with Valentin Hasse-Clot.
Gabriela Jilkova achieved a special feat, because she left all the other cars behind her, except for the Bullitt and the three prototypes, and drove the DRAGO Racing ZvO AMG GT4, which was inferior on paper, to P5 overall! An impressive rain performance by the talented blonde.
Etienne Ploenes, starting on the RN Vision Cayman GT4 Clubsport, achieved a similar feat in the second qualifying session, as he drove to a fabulous 4th place overall and made a huge splash.

Sprint race 1 – In the wet the hour of the “small ones” strikes
In race 1, the Monza Garage LMP3 initially drove in front, but could be caught by the Bullitt Aston, which also secured the overall victory.
Still in the first lap one of the Radicals from the “Nevada Cup”, a series consisting exclusively of Radicals and other prototypes, spun and caused the first of two safety car phases, which pushed the field together again. The restart went smoothly.
“Quick Gaby” meanwhile drove her dash blithely and did not let herself be deprived of the sovereign victory in the GTS class. Only Daniel Drexel, who was racing the Razoon KTM XBOW GT4, was able to get close to her. However, it did not come to the duel, because he rolled out two laps before the end of the race. Apart from the prototypes and the two Cup Porsches of Andreas Sczepansky (Kurt Ecke Motorsport) and Ulrich Ziegler (HP Racing), Jilkova did not let anyone pass her. Bravura performance!
By the way, Marcel Marchewicz in the BMW M2 CS Racing of Schnitzelalm showed himself similarly superior. He finished immediately behind Jilkova and Ploenes, leaving all but the two fastest GT4s behind him and cementing his title claim. Meanwhile, the toughest competitor, BMW Spain, sent Nerea Martí into the race, who also proved to be a rain queen in P12 overall.
Uwe Lauer on his Die Biermacher.Racing Ferrari 488 GT3 also did very well. He got along better and better in the wet and was able to snatch P2 in the GTR class.
By the way, the most strongly occupied class was once again the so-called “Cup S”. Here Cayman GT4 Clubsport, which otherwise hardly find any fields of activity in national and international motorsports, romp around, but in the GTWS they find their own starting class. Harry Verkerk shows that it is possible to compete in the championship with a Cayman Type 981 that is no longer quite as fresh as it once was. The special GTWS points system with its approach of equal opportunities taking into account the class strength brings him to P5 in the championship table at the end. A credit to consistently good performance in a class with high performance density.

Sprint race 2 – Carrie Schreiner drives to the front in dry conditions
The sun is back in Spain – and with it the chance for some very special catch-up races. This was also the goal of Carrie Schreiner, who, together with DTM-experienced Peter Terting, lined up in the brand-new Schnitzelalm Racing AMG GT3. They had to tackle Sprint 2 from the back of the field due to a car change, but that didn’t stop Carrie from plowing through the entire field to finish her racer P3 overall and thus P1 in the GTR class (ahead of the Biermacher Ferrari and the Bullitt Aston). That was worth seeing!
Incidentally, at the start Manuel Teixera in the Radical SR8, which looked half the size, slipped past his brother Antonio in the LMP3. The joy did not last long, because Manuel came off the line and had to let brother pass again. The latter continued to pull away from the field, his victory was never in jeopardy.
In the Cup R class Andreas Sczepansky showed that his racing experience from the German Carrera Cup has left its mark. He took the class victory ahead of the well-known fast David Assfalg (HP Racing 991 Cup) and Matthias Karlowski (Classic & Speed 991 Cup). Ralf Schuchmann once again made the Cup R field colorful and ran in a good fourth place in Cup R. In terms of engine sound, his Ferrari 458 Challenge entered by Die Biermacher.Racing won the overall classification anyway.
Daniel Drexel made up in Sprint 2 for what he was unable to do in the wet due to a defect. He should be very satisfied with P3 on his KTM.
Once again the Cup S class was exciting. In the end it was once again the Teixeira name that dominated, because while the sons were beating fast lap times on prototypes, the daddy (Antonio sr.) was piloting a Cayman 981 GT4 and after many fights won his class ahead of the RFF-Racing Cayman (Patrick van den Berg) and Andrius Zemaitis in the Pro GT Motorsport Cayman 981.

Endurance with championship decision – Schnitzelalm Racing takes the crown
In Endurance, the average of the fastest laps from both qualifying sessions decides the starting grid. Here, enemy contact threatened in the 45-minute race, because the two championship leaders, Schnitzelalm Racing and BMW Spain, were right behind each other. In the race, however, both showed their professionalism and fair fights without exception. In the end Marchewicz/Sander won not only the Endurance but also the overall standings. But not without first demonstrating their driving class by finishing P11 overall and in the midst of many GT4s. Congratulations!
The ZvO duo Haub and Jilkova had hope until the end to be laughing third and still get the championship, because they pushed themselves by constant season performances on P3 of the championship table and had vital chances for the title until the Endurance – but only if the two BMWs would clear each other, which as mentioned did not happen. This left them with a P3 in the standings and victory in the GTS class, which can’t be called anything other than a great success.
Again, Schreiner/Terting started from the back and again drove to class victory. And this despite the fact that the race control had set the pit lights to red due to a technical error during Schnitzelalm Racing’s spotlessly clean pit stop, which cost the squad considerable time, but ultimately did not prevent them from winning.
Lena Knötzl achieved something almost unbelievable. She drove her very first race ever in Barcelona and promptly won the Endurance together with teammate Andreas Mayrl in the MS Racing Cayman 718. The happiness about this was written all over her face. In general, the quota of fast women at the GTWS in Barcelona was remarkably high.
Ulrich Ziegler left a special scent mark, because he drove his 991 Cup right at the front of the overall field and left several GT3 behind him, before he handed over to David Assfalg and both won the class at the end.

Recording of the livestream >>

The line-up for the spectacular Lamborghini Hurácan Super Trofeo Evo2 in the GT Winter Series continues to grow. The Polish racing team GT3 Poland will contest the entire six race weekends in the GEDLICH Racing series with one of the one-make cup cars.

The car will be driven by two-time Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe champion Andrzej Lewandowski. The Pole is regarded as one of the best amateur drivers in GT racing and has already won the Am class in the International GT Open. He has also gained a lot of experience in the GT World Challenge Europe.

Andrzej Lewandowski, who has already gained experience in the GT Winter Series in 2023, will share the car with his son Adrian Lewandowski. The father-and-son team would like to have a real word to say about the GT Winter Series title fight this winter!

For ambitious gentleman drivers and aspiring young talents, GEDLICH Racing offers the Winter Series championships in Portugal and Spain from January to March. With the established GT Winter Series for GT3 and Cup cars as well as the GT4 Winter Series and the Prototype Winter Series, the platform offers a wide range of opportunities for teams and drivers. The Formula Winter Series will be added to the calendar from February.

The season will open with a double-header in Portugal. The Winter Series will kick off on the legendary Estoril circuit from 11 to 14 January. Just one week later, the racing series will make a guest appearance on the Portimão hill and valley circuit, where Formula 1 last raced in 2021.

Events in Spain will follow in February and March. The racing series organised by GEDLICH Racing will be held in Jerez (08/02 – 11/02), Valencia (15/02 – 18/02), Aragón (29/02 – 03/03) and at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya (07/03 – 10/03).

From a team perspective, the Winter Series events offer planning security thanks to a clear political situation and simple logistics, as the journey is made by truck. Thanks to the double-header concept and a sensible sequence of dates, it is possible for participants to take part in two consecutive race weekends with one journey and a short transport route between the race tracks. In addition, the teams have the option of leaving the lorries and race cars on the Iberian Peninsula between the events, so that only one journey to and from the Winter Series is necessary, which is not only sustainable, but also saves a lot of time and money.

Entries for the respective series are still being accepted and one or two teams still have a cockpit to offer.

Over the course of the 2021/2022 season, the GT Winter Series has always presented full starting fields at all locations. The final round in Barcelona this coming weekend will top this once again, as around 40 cars will meet in Catalonia for the battle for the championship. Among them are some well-known drivers and teams. In addition, the event will be covered by a livestream from nürburgring.tv.

Championship open – decision in Barcelona
The reigning champions Robert Haub and Gabriela Jilkova (DRAGO Racing Team ZvO with AMG GT4) can still hope to continue wearing their number 1 car in the coming season. This year they stalked their way to the front of the field not so much through victories but mainly through good team performance and high consistency and are now lurking within striking distance behind the two BMW M2 CS Racing cars from BMW España and Schnitzelalm Racing, 25 points behind in P4 overall. Who will ultimately decide the race for the top spot in the standings will be decided at the F1 circuit in Catalunya.

BMW M2 CS Racing lead the standings
The concept of the GT Winter Series, through its concept of points allocation, provides that it is not necessarily the strongest car that wins the championship. In fact, two BMW M2 CS Racing lead the table. The BMW Spain team with José de los Milagros and Nerea Martí is in the lead with 182 points, only 4 points behind Schnitzelalm Racing with Marcel Marchewicz and Michael Sander, who is getting better and better. It seems quite realistic that the championship title will be awarded between the two fighting cocks. Since racing is unpredictable and the proverbial sausage is at stake for both of them, many things can still happen in the tough duel.

More Cup Porsches than in some one-make cups
Barcelona almost seems to exert a magical attraction on Cup Porsches, because no less than 10 991 and 992 Cup cars are competing in the two Sprints and one Endurance of the GT Winter Series season finale. The fast Swede Oscar Löfquist, who already showed in Estoril and Jerez that he and his Porsche 992 Cup can be reckoned with at any time in the front field, will be there again. At the same time, Kurt Ecke Motorsport is bringing along Andreas Sczepansky, a driver who has a lot of experience from the German Carrera Cup. The country duel could become exciting, whereby Sczepansky pilots a 991.2, which does not have to be however depending upon distance to the large disadvantage. With HP Racing (Assfalg/Ziegler), Laptime Performance (Martin Engelmeier) and Classic&Speed (Karlowski), there are also other internationally experienced Porsche teams on the grid. Beat Ganz from fmt in Switzerland has not yet named any names, but has entered two 991 Cup cars.
The field of the Cup-R class is made more colorful by the Ferrari 458 Challenge of the Die Biermacher Racing team. It is driven by the GTWS-known Ralf Schuchmann.

GT4 class booming
It is now well known that GT4 cars are an optimal crossover for newcomers, but also experienced and professional drivers. Thus in Barcelona drivers of all colors can be found in this class. CV Performance is sending its fast AMG GT4 into the race, while ZvO Racing is countering with two racers of the same model, with Josef Liska and Martin Toth in the cockpit alongside the aforementioned champion pairing.

Teichmann Racing and Razoon Racing will be bringing the particularly nimble X-BOW GT4 to the start, and Senkyr Motorsport from the Czech Republic will be bringing two newcomers to the field who have been extensively prepared for the task of motorsport with its “Be a racedriver” program. Rounding out the GT4 field is Kenneth Ahnelöv of Team Wileco from Sweden.
The Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport class is also booming. “These cars are very welcome here, there is even a separate class for them,” says GTWS project manager Robin Selbach. Although many of these racers are team and privately owned, there are hardly any fields of activity. The GT Winter Series closes this gap.
Leading the championship standings is RFF Motorsport with Harry Verkerk and Patrick van den Berg. With a gap of 47 points, they too are still hoping for the GTWS crown or at least one of the front places. Incidentally, they are tied on points with David Assfalg, who leads the Cup-R class. Karsten Krämer Racing, an up-and-coming team from the German Endurance Championship, is competing with three “Caymen”. Julian Netzband, one of the drivers, is also well in the running with 135 points, level on points with Harry Verkerk. Hot duels are pre-programmed here. RN Vision STS sends Etienne and Ralf Ploenes on the 718 GT4 CS into the race.

Peter Terting and Carrie Schreiner on AMG GT3
Doubly new is the AMG GT3 of Schnitzelalm Racing. First, new because just received from Team 10Q Racing, which sold its assets to Schnitzelalm on short notice. Secondly new is the sonorous driver line-up. Next to ex-DTM driver Peter Terting, Carrie Schreiner takes the wheel as one of the fastest women. The fact that the two are also a couple outside of racing is well known by now and could strengthen the driver connection even more. However, the other GT3 cars in the field won’t let the butter be taken off their bread that easily. The Bullit Racing Aston Martin GT3 with Stephen Pattrick and Valentin Hasse-Cloot wants to take the lead, as does the beautiful Biermacher Ferrari 488 GT3 with GTWS driver Uwe Lauer. New at the start is Jürgen Gerlach, who will have his Classic&Speed Porsche 991 GT3-R under his butt.

At the top it will be colorful, thanks to the prototypes
But the GT3 drivers could be in for a real challenge – from the competition in the prototype class, which is surprisingly strong in Barcelona. For the first time, the so-called “Nevada Cup”, which consists of prototypes mainly from Radical, is sending several cars into the race, including the one or other well-known fast SR8 with V8 engine and 450 hp. But also Monza Garage brings a Radical SR8 to the start, which attracts attention by low weight and plenty of engine power and therefore could have a good chance in the team-internal duel against the Ligier LMP3. In any case, the duel winner remains in the family, because both Radical and LMP are driven by the Teixera brothers.

Don’t miss the livestream
On Sunday, March 13, the GT Winter Series finale will be livestreamed. The Lifestream can be accessed at the link below. The producer nürburgring.tv will not only show all three races in full length, but also the grids and interesting articles about the current events of the GTWS. It’s worth tuning in, it starts at 11:30 am.

To the Livestream >> 

 

The Circuito de Jerez Angél Nieto, as it is called in its entirety, was the venue for Formula 1 racing until 1997, and even today, one or two international races are held there on both four and two wheels. This was also the case last weekend with the GT Winter Series, which featured a lush field of starters. There were many surprises and a few preliminary championship decisions were made.

Qualifying
In the morning qualifying it was still cold. Well, cold by Andalusian standards, because 12 degrees seemed fresh compared to the 22 degrees under the blue Jerez sky in the afternoon. Unsurprisingly, Olimp Racing put their flagship GT3 on pole, but they had to fend off Michael Joos in the 991 GT3 R first, who put in a spirited performance and led the timesheet for a long time. Karol Basz followed suit with a 1:40.8 and snatched the pole. Much to the chagrin of Joos, Basz took the time during a lap in which yellow was flashed in one sector. However, this had no consequences for Basz, as he had demonstrably taken the throttle away at the point of the yellow flag. So the pole remained. The whole thing, by the way, was not on the Audi or Ferrari he had been used to before. Basz drove AMG this time and could show that he can also go his usual speed on this machine. Joos dominated Qualy 2 without any problems, while Marcin Jedlinski moved up to the front row next to him on the very same Olimp AMG GT3.

Talking about GT3: the Porsche Centre 5 Lakes from near Munich came with their own team to enter the beautiful matt black 991 GT3 R. Jörg Dreisow showed with P3 that he can do it. He was supported in the Endurance by Manuel Lauck.

Two other drivers stood out in particular. Markus Lungstrass in the racing one Aston Martin Vantage GT4 chiselled 1:48.997 into the asphalt, while Oscar Löfquist from Sweden, who was already inspiring in Estoril, drilled his Porsche 992 Cup from Kjellin Motorsports into the field of GT3 and LMP3 and was by far the fastest in the Cup R class. In the M2 CS Racing, the home advantage of JM de los Milagros from Team BMW España was unmistakable. Not only were his lines noticeably different from others, but his lap time was the fastest turned by an M2 this weekend.

Sprint race 1
At the start of the first sprint race Basz took the lead and gradually pulled away from Joos. Although the latter kept up well, but could only wait for Basz to make a mistake, he was never really within striking distance, but in turn pulled away from the rest of the GT3 field at least as quickly. For both of them it was a rather lonely race until the flag. Behind them soon followed “Oscar” (Löfquist) with his Cup Porsche, followed at a respectful distance by Ulrich Ziegler in the HP-991.
Markus Lungstrass in his racing one Aston Martin showed enormous speed. He even kept up with the field of Cup Porsches, but unfortunately had to be cleared by Stanislav Jedlinski at the hairpin and limped to the pits – the end for him and material for plenty of discussions with the hot-blooded Jedlinski, who produced other victims this weekend besides Lungstrass.
Andreas Greiling cut a fantastic figure. The German privateer, who lives in Marbella, not only drove his 718 GT4 CS to a double pole in his class, but also kept ahead of renowned big names such as Martin Toth’s DRAGO-ZvO-AMG GT4 with start number 2.
BMW España, by the way, had already announced in advance that they regarded Jerez as their home race – both drivers and team have a particularly wealth of experience on this track. And indeed, Nerea Martí was able to stay within sight of M2 ace Marchewicz (Schnitzelalm Racing), keeping many a nominally stronger car from the GT4 classes behind her! Schnitzelalm Racing once again had three BMWs at the start of all the races.
By the way, the laughing overall winner was not Basz, but Joos, as Basz overtook under yellow and thus received a time penalty.

Sprint race 2
In the second 25-minute sprint, everything went according to plan for Michael Joos. The start-finish victory was not to be taken away from him, Marcin Jedlinski followed in his footsteps, but with a growing distance. Piotr Wira on the GoodSpeed AMG GT3 visibly got going and finished an excellent third overall. The fact that the GTR class in Jerez featured no less than three Porsche 991 GT3 R cars made for a nice picture. One of them came from the Porsche Centre 5 Lakes, a company based near Munich that is known for its racing genes. Driver Jörg Dreisow not only got pro Manuel Lauck on board, but also got on better and better with the bolide himself, engaging in duels with Klaus Horn in the second Joos car and Uwe Lauer in the picture-perfect Die Biermacher. Racing Ferrari 488 GT3. More about the PZ 5 Lakes in the Endurance Report.

Unfortunately, Javier Ibran had to start from the back of the field in his LMP3 due to an incident in the first race, but he fought his way through the field and even finished in P5 overall. That was worth seeing!
One would almost be inclined to forget the reigning champions. Not because Robert Haub and Gabriela Jilkova drove inconspicuously – on the contrary, this weekend they won everything that can be won in the GT4 class, but were always “lonely, but faster” in their top position. Haub’s gravel-bed graze on the penultimate lap did nothing to change that. Although this cost a second or two, Haub’s buffer was large enough not to jeopardise the victory. With their DRAGO Racing ZvO AMG GT4, they are slowly but surely making their way back to the top of the standings and are now hoping for the finale in Barcelona on 12 and 13 March 2022. Moritz Gisy’s performance was no less impressive. He already impressed at the race in Estoril, but now in Jerez he was able to show not only his fighting strength in the fight with Josef Liska, but also his sheer speed, which brought him P4 in the strongly occupied GT4 class.
In general, there was a lot going on in the GT4. Newcomer David Henn, who still had to find his feet a little during the free practice sessions, attacked lively, especially in the second sprint, but always remained precise and won the fight in his pack by the narrowest of margins on the last lap. His team Burgmann Racing was also happy about this.
In the M2 CS Racing Cup, José de los Milagros not only blew away the in-class competition, but also several GT4s, which underlines his driving class as well as his wealth of experience in Jerez. The spectator could see with the naked eye that he chose different lines here and there, which obviously translated into top times for him. The class win was not to be taken away from him.

Endurance
Already in the early GTWS season it could be observed that in Endurance often different winners are produced than during the sprint races. Consistency makes you fast, and so does teamwork. This was not to change in Jerez.
At the start of the 45-minute endurance race in the late afternoon in Andalusia, starting driver Manuel Lauck in the PZ 5 Lakes 991 GT3 R seemed to “forget” that it was an endurance race, so courageously did he overtake two competitors (Jedlinski/Basz and Joos/Horn) at millimetre intervals at the start and took the lead with surgical precision. Joos let him have his way and settled into P2 waiting, but never stopped building up pressure.
Ziegler and Assfalg were unbeatable in the HP Racing Cup Porsche 991 and took the win in the Cup class, but in the absence of the 992-equipped Oscar Löfquist. P2 in the class was the Cup Porsche from PZ5 Seen, in which, incidentally, the PZ boss himself, Franz Wörle, sat alongside GTWS rookie Christian Kindsmüller. The fact that he had not driven a race for years, according to his own statements, was not noticeable to him.
A safety car phase around the middle of the race made it a creative task for the teams, but also offered a number of opportunities. BMW España managed the feat of finishing sixth (!) overall in the Endurance with their M2 CS Racing, right in the middle of the Cup R field and ahead of all the GT4s! The cheers were as big as they were deserved.
A remarkable team performance was also achieved by the Dutch team Verkerk/Verkerk, who dominated their Cup S class with their RFF Racing Cayman GT4 and finished only a handful of seconds behind the superbly firing Aston Martin from racing one (Lungstrass/Pedersen).
It should also be noted that Karsten Krämer Racing had several Cayman GT4s at the start and their cars were involved in exciting battles in all the races, which always remained clean despite all the tension.

Final in Barcelona decides the championship
The conditions for the grand finale on 12 and 13 March in Barcelona could hardly be more exciting. After all, not only the championship will be decided at this round, but also the question of which driver pairing is the strongest on the Formula 1 circuit. While promoter Gedlich Racing has stated that the number of registrations is now approaching 40 cars, registrations are continuing to pour in. Once again an armada of GT3 cars is expected and once again Olimp Racing is considered one of the favourites, but will have to be careful not to deprive itself of points through driver-induced retirements.

To the results of Jerez >>

Many people can no longer imagine the GT Winter Series paddock without Olimp Racing. It therefore comes as no surprise that the Polish racing team will also be competing in the coming winter. The team, which is internationally successful in the International GT Open, will line up with an Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II and a Ferrari 296 GT3, which will make its debut in the racing series.

Stanislaw Jedlinski and Krystian Korzeniowski will take turns at the wheel of the Italian GT3 sports car. Marcin Jedlinski and former karting world champion Karol Basz will drive the Audi. The team took part in the GT Winter Series in recent years with an identical driver line-up. Marcin Jedlinski and his partner Basz won the PROAM class of the International GT Open in 2022.

In recent years, the Polish team has realised how important the GT Winter Series programme is. The races in winter keep the drivers and mechanics in rhythm. In addition, the team’s gentleman drivers become better racing drivers thanks to more track time.

Next weekend (12/13 February 2022), the Jerez GTWS event will herald the second half of the 2021/2022 edition of the season. The field could not be more colourful. No fewer than 29 race cars will be competing for the day’s victory and the GTWS championship trophy. It is close and it is far from decided who will claim the title.

Tight championship
No less than three drivers share first place in the points table of the GT Winter Series 2021/2022. Theo Oeverhaus, who has won everything there was to win so far with his CV Performance AMG GT4, is at the top of the list with 129 points, as are the two Olimp Racing drivers Karol Basz and Marcin Jedlinski, who started the season on AMG and Audi and switched to Ferrari 488 GT3 for Estoril and won again. With 120 points in the standings, they are followed by no fewer than four drivers, all piloting a BMW M2 CS Racing in the eponymous Winter Cup. Michael Sander and Marcel Marchewicz of Schnitzelalm Racing are not only tied on points with BMW España drivers Nerea Marti and José Manuel Milagros, but also have the same number of victories – it doesn’t get any closer than that.

GT4 class strength
Once again, the GT4 class is particularly well equipped. No less than 11 of these cars are on the Jerez circuit, which is not only considered to be one of the warmest in terms of weather, but also has the reputation of being the “little Spa-Francorchamps” due to its fluid layout. Reigning champions Haub and Jilkova will be competing in the number 1 DRAGO Racing ZvO AMG GT4. Their toughest opponent so far has been Theo Oeverhaus, who has been giving them a hard time all season. In Estoril, however, the champs were able to put themselves in the best possible position and make up ground. In Jerez, the ZvO riders now have the best chance to regain the championship lead, because CV Performance and thus also Oeverhaus will not start.
The young Moritz Gisy, who as a rookie has already shown a lot of spirit in his racing one Aston Martin, and three Porsches from KKrämer Racing (Julian Netzband, Pavel Fatyushin, Karl Heinz Meyer) will be back. Newcomer to the season Andreas Greiling has taken Jens Richter as second man for his MS Racing Porsche 718 GT4 CS. With him, he established himself well in the Porsche Sports Cup of Switzerland last summer and is now continuing his programme at the GTWS.
Excitement could be brought into the mix by ex-professional driver Markus Lungstrass. He shares the second racing one Aston Martin with Henrik Pedersen. We are curious to see whether this line-up can fight its way to the front in the GT4 class.
WILECO driver Kenneth Ahnelöv from Sweden competed for the first time as a racing rookie in Estoril and drove a 718. In Jerez he wants to continue his good performance. By the way, WILECO is sending two more drivers into the race, but more about that later (Cup R).

Cup R – Fights preprogrammed
The diversity in the Cup R class will be exciting, because here two Porsche 992 Cup (Ocar Löfquist, Mattias Kjellin, both Kjellin Racing) will fight against a 991.2 (Ulrich Ziegler and David Assfalg, HP Racing) as well as the venerable but still nippy 997 GT3 of Chris Hillaby, entered by Mental Motorsports Marbella. “Disturbing” the harmony is Ralf Schuchmann of Die Biermacher. Racing with the Ferrari 458 Challenge, which is not only visually and acoustically one of the most beautiful cars in the field, but with the mid-engine could be quite competitive on the winding track of Jerez de la Frontera. By the way, the two Kjellin drivers are also part of the WILECO team from Sweden. Oscar Löfquist caused a sensation in Estoril when he mixed with the big boys and finished on the podium in the overall standings!

Pardo at the front?
At the front of the field, the question will be whether Javier Ibran Pardo can take another overall win. His last success was in Estoril. For the Spaniard, Jerez is almost a home race, but at least he is very familiar with the circuit. His Ligier LMP3 entered by BE Motorsport has the necessary speed for the overall victory on paper, but as usual in racing, all components have to fit together on the day of the event for the big success to come out of it.
Olimp Racing will make it difficult for him – they have brought their famously fast Audi R8 LMS, but this time it will not be driven by the regular drivers, but by Stanislaw Jedlinski and Krystian Korzeniowski. The regular crew Karol Basz and Marcin Jedlinski, on the other hand, are on the AMG GT3, as are the two Piotrs in the field (Wira and Bednarek). Their AMG GT3 is entered by Good Speed Racing.
The salt in the soup is once again a Ferrari 488 GT3 Evo from Die Biermacher. Racing. The team, which is as good-humoured as it is well-prepared, not only advertises hop products from the Pfungstädter brewery, but is also particularly fond of serving them in the paddock after work.
A brand new addition and a feast for the eyes: the 991.2 GT3 R from the Porsche Centre 5 Lakes, driven by Jörg Deisow. In addition to its expertise in road cars, the Porsche Centre near Munich attaches great importance to its racing genes – which are to be put to the test in Jerez.

Preliminary Decisions?
As Jerez is the penultimate race of the season (the finale in Barcelona will take place on 12/13 March), it is eagerly awaited whether any preliminary decisions will be made here. Perseverance and reliability pay off in the GTWS just as much as pure speed. Our forecast: the real race for the championship title has only just begun, and the order of the standings is likely to be shaken up once again.
The two Jerez sprint races of 25 min. each will take place on Sunday, 13.3. at 12:20 and 14:50, while the 45-minute Endurance with compulsory pit stop will rise at 17:10, thus ending shortly before the Andalusian sunset.

Enrollment lists, schedules and results >>

The CV Performance Group from Mendig in Rhineland-Palatinate is one of the true perennial favourites in the GT Winter Series. In the 2022/2023 season, Simon Connor Primm only missed out on the title in the overall standings due to a retirement in the final race of the season. The Mercedes-AMG GT4 with starting number #85 drove to nine class victories in the GT4 class in 15 races this season – a truly strong record!

Christian Voß’ racing team will continue to compete in the GT4 class. The team plans to field two Mercedes-AMG GT4s in the brand new GT4 Winter Series. Once again, promising young talents will be at the wheel of the cars, who will be perfectly prepared for their next steps in motorsport in the GEDLICH Racing series.

The team will also kick off a large-scale GT3 programme in the GT Winter Series. On the Iberian Peninsula, the racing team will find the perfect conditions to familiarise themselves with the Mercedes-AMG GT3 and get to grips with the car. After the winter season, the racing team will therefore have plenty of racing and testing experience with the GT3 car from Affalterbach and will therefore be optimally prepared to compete in other racing series.

No less than 27 cars gathered in Estoril to tackle the second event of the 2021/2022 GT Winter Series season and thus the first three race rounds for the new year. In addition to a colorful field, there was above all competition density and surprising newcomers to marvel at. But also “old acquaintances” were met again on the track.

Qualy
As expected, top times were possible in the morning qualifying on still cool asphalt. And so it was once again the Olimp Racing team that dominated the action at the top. They competed with two Ferrari 488 GT3, which are a real eye-catcher next to the third car of this type (Uwe Lauer, Die Biermacher Racing). So it was Karol Basz and Krystian Korzeniowski who set the pace. Both were able to set average 1:36 times and thus even relegate Javier Ibran Pardo, who is very familiar with Estoril, to second place in his Ligier LMP3, who was nevertheless visibly satisfied with the first row of the grid. “Winning is in the race”, was his succinct comment.
In the Cup-R class Ulrich Ziegler with his Porsche 991.2 GT3 Cup stood out again, which was visibly fast and seemed to feel very comfortable at the limit. The two 992 GT3 Cup represented in the field (Sebastian Glaser and Oscar Löfquist) had a long distance duel, which Oscar decided in his favor and thus started from row 3, only slightly slower (1:40.2) than the GT3 Ferrari of Uwe Lauer in front of him.
The “GT4 terror” Theo Oeverhaus, who already took all the best times and victories in the GT4 class at the December round in Portimao, was not tired in Estoril either and whipped his CV-AMG GT4 to the top of the class with 1:43.291, even leaving two Cup-991s behind him with this performance.
BMW España entered the event in a visibly good mood and excellently prepared. Although Marcel Marchewicz of Schnitzelalm Racing remained the benchmark with his BMW M2 CS Racing, the motivated Spaniards came much closer than last time.

Race 1
At Sunday’s start to Sprint Race 1 in spring-like sunny conditions, Marcin Jedlinski was able to exploit the power advantage of his Olimp Ferrari over Javier Ibran Pardo at the start and stay in front. Not only since the legendary duels of Senna, Prost, Mansell & Co. has turn 1 in Estoril been an eye of a needle that is good for many a race jam or enemy contact. Today, however, everyone stayed “clean” and lined up neatly. Oscar Löfquist with his Wileco-992 GT3 Cup team took advantage of the situation and, starting from row 3, snatched two cars from the nominally stronger GT3 class. He actually saved this advantage until the finish and finished on the overall podium in third place, and this at his very first GTWS appearance. Chapeau! He is followed in 4th place by Johannes Kapfinger, who provided the fastest car of this type with the Huber 991.2 GT3 Cup, followed by Simon Eibl in the Laptime Porsche. By the way, Kapfinger’s first race ever, that looks like talent!
Pardo dropped back in the meantime after a mistake, but was able to fight his way back to the top and ultimately take the overall win. He underlined his driving strength by setting the fastest lap of the race with a remarkable 1:37.811.
Things were hot in the GT4 class – except for Oeverhaus. “Is in front, stays in front”, so they short description of his effort. The reigning champions (Haub/Jilkova on DRAGO Racing ZvO AMG GT4) can’t quite match the pace, but shine with good consistency and razor-sharp precision without unnecessary scuffles. It remains to be seen which of the front GT4s will be the most consistent in the long run. The championship could stand or fall with it.

In the BMW M2 CS Racing Winter Cup José de los Milagros chased off like there was no tomorrow. After impressive lap times, which were hardly inferior to those of Crack Marchewicz, they ran after the 25 min. distance in unison, not without having previously fought hard, but fair battles. By the way, BMW España will be at the start with two M2 CS Racing cars from the Jerez round on.

In the Cayman GT4 class, once again a Swedish driver from Team WILECO Driver was able to attract attention. Kennet Ahnelov outclassed the competition in his first race and finished immediately behind the reigning champions. Translated with www.DeepL.com/Translator (free version)

Race 2
The duel (better: triell) of the race was Löfquist vs. Glaser, both 992 GT3. They not only each took on the other, but also Uwe Lauer in the Die Biermacher Racing Ferrari, who could barely fend off either of them on the straights. Löfquist won first over Glaser, then over Lauer. The duel against Glaser in particular is worthy of all honors, as the latter brings the concentrated experience of the Porsche Carrera Cup Germany to the asphalt of Estoril and is thus an extremely competent racing opponent. And refreshingly upbeat at the same time.
Pardo wasn’t quite able to get going. His LMP3 is not one of the fastest on the straights, which is why one or the other Cup Porsche passed and was subsequently difficult for him to catch up again. He was stuck in the front midfield and could not really show his strengths today, although he was able to break away from the other car classes at the end.
We have become accustomed to Oeverhaus dominating the GT4 class. That Haub is not following on his heels, not to it. He fell behind at the start and only finished P3 in GT4, ahead of both AMG GT4s from CV Peformance. Van Ommen and Zakowski of Team DRAGO Racing ZvO will have to come up with something for the next round in Jerez.

A safety car phase shortly after the middle of the race due to a technical defect with loss of fluid on the Bluemle Cayman GT4 should generate additional tension, because suddenly everyone was very close together again. Just three minutes before the end of the 25-minute distance, the race was restarted and the remaining two laps promised to be explosive. While Lauer in the Ferrari did not make any moves, Glaser still had a score to settle with Löfquist, who, however, prevailed and became third overall. By the way, Glaser got pressure at the last minute from the Goodspeed AMG GT3, manned by Piotr Wira. He pushed hard at the Glaser rear but had to settle for P5.

The overall winners in Sprint Race 2 were the two Olimp Ferraris, which blew ahead from the start with fabulous times and produced a photo finish. Karol Basz is the smiling winner.

Endurance
Shortly before dusk the 45 minutes long Endurance started with a pit stop and, if two drivers share one car, a driver change. Again both Olimp-Ferraris completed row 1 and for nobody there was ever any doubt that the two would take a start-finish double victory. Far from it, as the black Olimp Ferrari dropped back and would only finish fourth behind the LMP3 of Javier Ibran Pardo. The duo of Basz/Jedlinski takes another win and manages the feat of banging out a fabulous 1:36.387 in the Endurance race. On P2 the “Die Biermacher Racing” Ferrari of Uwe Lauer runs in, who had got Francesco Lopez for reinforcement in the Endurance and who was missing in terms of fastest lap time only one second on the ace Basz, which clarified the performance of the Biermacher Ferrari.

Throughout the weekend, Johannes Kapfinger wowed us. In his first races, the 18-year-old really led the established drivers on his 991.2 Cup and won the Cup-R class together with his twin brother. Wow!

Oeverhaus, who drove the long distance alone, cleaned up again, with defending champions Haub/Jilkova securing P2. However, things got exciting around the pit stop, as the champions’ ZvO-AMG GT4 was let back into the race with more pinpoint accuracy, thereby overtaking Oeverhaus in the pits. Haub was definitely able to keep Oeverhaus busy after the restart and showed great fighting spirit until Oeverhaus finally prevailed and was able to overtake.

The fact that Kkraemer Racing is used to endurance racing is evident from the result in Endurance, as they drove their 981 GT4 CS into the midfield of the overall standings and won the Cup S class. The driver Veremenko and the team boss Karsten Kraemer, who took the wheel himself, will be happy. Everything just fit and shows that consistency and perfect pit work on the long distance bring a lot.

Mid-season and Jerez ahead
The GT Winter Series is now right at the midpoint of the season and is looking forward to two more fabulous stops. Next event will be held in Jerez, Andalusia, on February 12-13, 2022. The track, known from MotoGP and in the past Formula 1, is in top condition and inspires with its fluid track layout. It is not for nothing that it is also called “the Spa-Francorchamps of Spain.

The history of FK Performance Motorsport began on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, where the team from Bremen entered up to seven cars in the endurance races. However, the North German racing team continued to expand its programme in the GT3 and GT4 sector and won the DTM Trophy championship with Ben Green in 2021. With a BMW M4 GT3 and DTM legend Bruno Spengler, the team also claimed a victory in the 2023 ADAC GT Masters debut season at the Red Bull Ring.

Now comes the next addition to the programme of Fabian Finck and Martin Kaemena’s team, which is also represented by the letter combination FK. The North Germans will compete in the GT Winter Series with a BMW M4 GT3 during the winter months.

The BMW team wants to fight for race wins in the GEDLICH Racing series. The team would also like to use the pleasant temperatures in the winter months to further improve their understanding and the set-up for the BMW M4 GT3, which would also benefit the programmes in the other racing series in the summer months.