After a thrilling race, Jeroen Bleekemolen (Netherlands) secured his second flag-to-flag victory in the Porsche Mobil1 Supercup. The Monaco winner crossed the finish line at the seventh championship round on the Nürburgring with just a 1.7 second advantage over the second placed Christian Menzel from the region.
Bleekemolen, a 25-year-old ex-DTM pilot, held the lead over the entire race distance, but came under pressure in the early stages of the 14-lap race. Local hero Christian Menzel got away well at the start and reached the first corner directly alongside the Dutchman. Bleekemolen’s 911 GT3 Cup car held the inside line, forcing the 36-year-old German to draw the short straw. Following the duo was the reigning Supercup champion Richard Westbrook (Great Britain) who saw the chequered flag in third. Damien Faulkner (Ireland) and Alessandro Zampedri (Italy) claimed fourth and fifth respectively.
The mid-field gave spectators an exciting show with frequent tussles for positions. Starting from fourth on the grid, Uwe Alzen (Germany) fell back to tenth after spinning in lap four. The 39-year-old Porsche stalwart gave chase with his 400 hp racing sports car and managed to catch the front group. Lap ten delivered an extra portion of suspense when Olivier Maximin (France) in ninth spun as he entered the finish straight and retired. His pursuer, Marc Basseng (Germany), used the chance and shot through to finish ninth overall. Uwe Alzen followed in tenth.
Silverstone victor Nicolas Armindo (France), who was also part of this fracas for positions, received the flag in eleventh. Record champion Patrick Huisman (Netherlands) secured twelfth.
Frank Biela (Germany), who took up an invitation from Porsche AG to man the VIP Carrera, secured 18th. For the five-time Le Mans winner this marked his second time at the wheel of the matt-black #88 Porsche on the Nürburgring, with his performance over the weekend constantly improving.
Jeroen Bleekemolen (winner): “That was a fantastic weekend for me and the team. I was first in qualifying, first in the race and turned the quickest lap. It doesn’t get much better than that. At the beginning it was not easy to stay ahead. Christian was putting me under incredible pressure. But I managed to pull away and drove home to victory.”
Christian Menzel (second): “I’m really pleased with second. Particularly here on the Nürburgring practically on my doorstep. It’s a great feeling when you can put on a good show for your fans. But I’m even more thrilled for our team, particularly after Nicolas’ win in Silverstone. We are continuing the podium-climbing tradition. The squad put in an huge effort today. Together we found an excellent set-up for the cars.”
Richard Westbrook (third): “As far as the championship is concerned I’m really happy. I took home 16 points for third place and still hold the championship lead. At this point in the season I’m satisfied. At the moment it’s all about getting those points.”
Frank Biela (18th): “The start in this Porsche was awesome. With each lap I became more and more familiar with the car. All in all my guest drive here was a great experience. I would compete again in the GT3 Cup anytime.”
Race result:
1. Jeroen Bleekemolen (NL), Golden Spike Pertamina Indonesia RT PZE, 27:20.364 minutes (146.836 kph)
2. Christian Menzel (D), tolimit, 1.796 seconds behind
3. Richard Westbrook (GB), HISAQ® Competition, 4.361
4. Damien Faulkner (IR), Lechner Racing Team Bahrain, 8.980
5. Alessandro Zampedri (I), Lechner Racing Team Bahrain, 11.815
6. Jaap van Lagen (NL), Bleekemolen Race Planet PZ Essen, 13.665
7. David Saelens (B), Team IRWIN SAS, 14.106
8. Richard Williams (GB), Racing Team Indonesia PZ Essen RA Beheer, 16.637
9. Marc Basseng (D), HISAQ® Competition, 20.692
10. Uwe Alzen (D), SPS performance, 21.778
11. Nicolas Armindo (F), tolimit, 22.518
12. Patrick Huisman (NL), Konrad Motorsport, 23.157
13. René Rast (D), MRS-Team PZ Aschaffenburg, 23.481
14. Jiri Janak (CZ), Schnbal Enigneering-LKM-Team Jebsen, 23.857
15. Lance D. Arnold (D), UPS Porsche Junior Team, 27.444
16. Marc Hynes (GB), Team IRWIN SAS, 29.348
17. Phil Quaife (GB), Racing Team Indonesia PZ Essen RA Beheer, 30.051
18. Frank Biela (D), Porsche AG, 30.660
19. William Langhorne (USA), MRS-Team PZ Aschaffenburg, 35.856
20. Emilio de Villota (E), Konrad Motorsport, 37.190
21. Michael Bleekemolen (NL), Bleekemolen Race Planet PZ Essen, 42.719
22. Mikael Forsten (FIN), Konrad Motorsport, 45.333
23. Bernhard ten Brinke (NL), HSF/Porsche Centrum Eindhoven, 45.528
24. Simon Frederiks (NL), HSF/Porsche Centrum Eindhoven, 45.965
25. Maher Algadri (RI), Golden Spike Pertamina Indonesia RT PZE, 106.115
26. Darryl O’Young (HK), Schnabl Engineering-LKM-Team Jebsen, 1 Runde
Not classified:
Martin Ragginger (A), UPS Porsche Junior Team, DNF
Olivier Maximin (F), MRS-Team PZ Aschaffenburg, DNF
Andzej Dzikevic (LT), SPS performance, DNF
Jörg Peham (A), Lechner Racing School Team, DNF
Fastest race lap:
Jeroen Bleekemolen, 2:05.129 minutes = 148.109 kph in lap 4