+ Result, Race 1, Misano
Benjamin Lariche and Robert Consani took a controlled victory in a thrilling opening GT4 European Series powered by RAFA Racing Club outing at Misano, with their third victory of the year extending their points lead.
Lariche started the #3 Audi third on the grid and kept a close watch on the fight for the lead ahead between the pole-sitting Elite Motorsport McLaren driven by Josh Rattican and the NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG of Lluc Ibañez. Lariche was right behind the duelling leaders when he pitted for Consani, and the combination of the Frenchman’s pace, fresher tyres and sheer determination helped the Audi pass the McLaren and then hunt down the Mercedes-AMG, eventually pulling a superb pass for the win after the two cars ran side-by-side for multiple corners.
Ibañez/Alex Papadopulos were second ahead of Berkay Besler/Gabriele Piana’s Borusan Otomotiv BMW, which put on its own late charge.
Stanislav Safronov and Aleksandr Vaintrub scored their first Pro-Am win of the year, taking advantage of trouble for their rivals to grab a maximum points score in the #7 Mirage Racing Aston Martin. Jean-Mathieu Leandri and Antoni de Barn stayed clear of trouble to win in Am, stretching their lead over the #30 W&S Porsche, which suffered its own drama.
SILVER: TEAM SPEEDCAR DUO MAKE IT THREE
A controlled opening stint from Lariche laid the foundations for his team-mate’s epic late charge, with tyre conservation playing a big role in the warm conditions.
Josh Rattican made no mistake from pole position, blasting his Elite McLaren into an early lead from the chasing Ibañez and Lariche as the top three gradually pulled a gap. However, while the McLaren was in front Rattican couldn’t pull clear, with Ibañez repeatedly attacking before slipping past with a cutback out of Turn 10. Their fight meant Lariche stayed right with them when he pitted for Consani.
Lariche’s choice to hold back across the first half meant Consani rejoined with more life in his tyres than the two ahead and quickly found his way past McKenzy Cresswell, who had taken the McLaren over from Rattican, before working his way onto the tail of Papadopulos in the lead Mercedes-AMG.
When it came, the move for the lead was stunning, with the two cars running side-by-side for multiple turns before Consani got the job done around the outside of Turn 12. Papadopulos and Ibañez held second from the charging Borusan Otomotiv BMW of Berkay Besler/Gabriele Piana, which Piana had managed to work past both the L’Espace Bienvenue BMW of Ricardo van der Ende/Benjamin Lessennes and the Rattican/Cresswell McLaren to snatch the final podium spot.
Drive of the race arguably went to the sister Borusan Otomotiv car of Pedro Ebrahim and Yagiz Gedik, which made up 32 places to finish sixth, having started last.
PRO-AM: SAFRONOV AND VAINTRUB OPEN THEIR ACCOUNT
Safronov and Vaintrub’s drive to victory in Pro-Am was the only consistent thing in what became a crazy class race, as each of their rivals hit trouble.
Safronov started the #7 Aston second, worked into an early lead and never looked back, controlling the class throughout before handing to Vaintrub, who overcame a failing driver cooling system to bring the car home. Gabriela Jilkova and Cindy Gudet eventually took second, despite their Matmut Évolution Toyota taking a hit from Hendrik Still’s W&S Motorsport Porsche, which earned the points-leading car a time penalty.
Davide and Paolo Meloni completed the podium, but only after enduring their own spin after contact with a McLaren. They were helped back ahead by a raft of penalties and issues for others. Both the Chazel Technologie Course BMW of Lucas Cartelle/Lucas Sugliano and JSB Competition Porsche of Viny Beltramelli/Nicco Ferrarin picked up track limits penalties but were fourth and fifth, while Victor Bouveng/Joakim Walde’s Schubert Motorsport BMW was hit into a spin in traffic and finished sixth.
Still and Joachim Bölting’s Porsche lacked pace and came home just eighth, while the Continental Racing M4 shared by Vasily Vladykin/Mikhail Loboda was a podium contender before stopping with a technical issue.
AM: CHAZEL GAINS FROM W&S PAIN
Max Kronberg and Daniel Blickle looked comfortably on course to take the Am class points lead across the first half of this race, until the #30 Porsche suffered a hit that opened the door for Leandri and De Barn to capitalise for Chazel Technologie Course.
Kronberg led from pole through the opening stages, but contact from behind just before the pit window opened knocked the steering out and upset the car’s balance. Blickle took over but was plagued by oversteer, and did well to salvage fourth.
With their rivals struggling, De Barn took a lead he would never lose, and with it a fourth win of the year for he and Leandri. Stefan Nilsson/Mats Olsson were second for Schubert Motorsport, with Julien Ripert/Philippe Thalamy completing the podium in their Team Speedcar Audi.
Race 2 for the GT4 European Series powered by RAFA Racing Club at Misano is scheduled for 11:55 CEST on Sunday.