Mathias Lauda had been due to start his first race since 2020 from pole position after his surprise qualifying success. Around an hour before the start, however, came a major setback: an unusual engine note was detected while the PRC WPR66 was being warmed up, with subsequent checks revealing a loss of compression in the second cylinder.
Pedrazza Racing Cars consequently decided to withdraw Lauda’s car from the opening race. The team is now working to get the prototype ready in time for Sunday’s second race.
Klien leads early before technical problems cost him time
With Lauda unable to start, Christian Klien went into the race as an even stronger favourite. The former Formula 1 driver and Interwetten brand ambassador took the lead at the start ahead of Marco Fink and Marco Werner.
Klien ran into technical trouble early on and went into the run-off area. The Austrian initially dropped to fourth before heading into the pits shortly afterwards, where it emerged that he was having difficulty selecting a gear.
The team managed to carry out a temporary repair and Klien returned to the track several laps down. He later had to come back into the pits, bringing his challenge for the leading positions to an early end.
Saturday therefore unfolded differently than Klien and Lauda had hoped. The outlook for Sunday is more positive, though: Pedrazza Racing Cars is likely to face a long night as the team does everything possible to resolve the technical issues on both cars and give the two Austrians another chance to go head-to-head on track.
Fink controls the race
At the front, Marco Fink took full advantage of the problems affecting the two Austrians. The German moved into the lead and controlled the race from there.
Marco Werner initially stayed within striking distance but was unable to put the leader under pressure in the closing stages. Fink maintained his pace all the way to the finish and eventually extended his advantage over Werner to more than eight seconds.
After 25 minutes, Fink took victory ahead of Werner. It was already the German’s fourth win in the five races held so far this season, having previously claimed two victories at Hockenheim and another at the Nürburgring.
Jérémy Siffert provided one of the surprises of the race by completing the podium in third, with Andreas Fiedler finishing fourth.
Wigroth impresses after early spin
One of the standout performances behind the leading group came from Emma Wigroth. The 20-year-old Swede suffered an early setback with a spin but fought her way back through the field.
Her battle with the vastly more experienced Franz Konrad was particularly entertaining. Wigroth came out on top in the clash of generations and eventually finished an impressive fifth. Sven Barth followed in sixth, with Konrad, Benjamin Hotz, Gian Carlo Pedetti and Diego Romanini completing the top ten.
The second race of the Interwetten Sports Car Challenge follows on Sunday. Another 25-minute sprint is scheduled to start at 14:05, and Pedrazza Racing Cars will use the time in between to get both cars ready and make the long-awaited Klien-Lauda duel possible after all.
