IMOLA, Italy — Tension hung in the air at the season opener of the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland.
Huub van Eijndhoven (Team GP Elite) initially led the field. The 24-year-old Dutchman had started the one-make cup race from pole position for the first time.
However, his 375 kW (510 PS) Porsche 911 GT3 Cup had jumped the line a fraction of a second too early at the start and the race organisers imposed a penalty for this: Thus, the new “penalty lap” was used right at the start of the season. Eijndhoven had to reduce his speed to 60 km/h for 50 meters.
As a result of the short crawl, he dropped back to sixth place.
Subsequently, Ariel Levi (Team GP Elite) took the lead, also for the first time in his career.
For seven laps, the racing driver from Israel kept Dutchman Larry ten Voorde (Proton Huber Competition) at bay. The reigning Carrera Cup champion then launched a successful overtaking manoeuvre, slightly nudging Ariel Levi’s Porsche in the process. Ten Voorde crossed the finish line in first place, only to later receive a four-second time penalty.
“The penalty is absolutely fair,” said Ten Voorde, proving himself to be a fair sportsman. “I saw a gap that wasn’t as big as I expected. I sincerely apologise to Ariel that my overtaking manoeuvre went so wrong.”
Shortly after, Harry King (Allied-Racing) also squeezed past Levi, but in this case, by the rulebook.
The Briton could only take partial satisfaction in his victory.
“I would’ve preferred to have beaten Larry on the track,” he admitted. “I approached the race tactically and waited a long time for my chance to overtake Ariel. In any case, the points for the win are the perfect start to the new season.”
Ariel Levi’s joy was short-lived. During the post-race inspection, the technical stewards discovered that the tank contained less than the prescribed two litres of fuel needed for a fuel sample. Levi was subsequently disqualified.
As a result, Larry ten Voorde was classified as second, while Robert de Haan moved up to third place.
The 17-year-old from the Netherlands also secured victory in the Rookies classification in his first outing for Team75 Bernhard.
“I’ll start from third position on Sunday and hopefully make it onto the podium,” he said, looking ahead to the second race of the weekend. The best-placed ProAm driver was Sören Spreng (GP Elite). “I had a few nice duels with some rookies who are about half my age,” smiled the German driver.
Watch race two Sunday morning on SPEED SPORT 1.Â
“We witnessed an exciting season opener of the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland with a thrilling three-way battle for victory. All the drivers brilliantly showcased our one-make cup as part of the FIA World Endurance Championship,” commented Alexander Pollich, Managing Director Porsche Deutschland GmbH.
“Respect to the race organisers and the stewards, who made two consistent and understandable decisions even in this difficult situation. I’m particularly pleased about Robert de Haan’s podium finish. He is one of the youngest drivers in the Talent Pool that we support.”
Together with Alexander Pollich, Vinzenz Pflanz, Chief Business Officer (CBO) SIXT SE, which has been the title partner of the one-make cup since the start of this season, presented the winners’ trophies across the various classifications.
“With dynamism, passion and emotion set to the impressive backdrop of Imola, the first race of the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Deutschland provided a gripping experience for the fans,” he commented. “Congratulations to Harry King on his opening success on this prestigious circuit and we’re delighted that we can offer our customers in Germany the Porsche driving experience with the new vehicles in our hire car fleet.”