Kronberg and Blickle dominate home race at Nürburgring – Championship lead secured
W&S Motorsport celebrated a perfect weekend in the AM class at the GT4 European Series home race at the Nürburgring. Max Kronberg and Daniel Blickle won both races convincingly and took over the championship lead. In the Pro-AM class, Hendrik Still and Joachim Bölting fought for important points, while Daniel Nilsson and Edvin Hellsten delivered consistent performances.
Qualifying: Double pole position in AM class
The weekend began with mixed feelings for W&S Motorsport. Max Kronberg secured pole position in the AM class during the first qualifying session, while Hendrik Still achieved a strong second place in Pro-AM and finished eighth overall. Daniel Nilsson completed the starting lineup with 11th overall and third in Pro-AM.
In the second qualifying session, Daniel Blickle repeated his teammate’s success and also secured pole position in the AM class. Joachim Bölting endured a difficult session and had to settle for 10th in Pro-AM, while Nilsson achieved ninth in Pro-AM.
Race 1: Class victory after commanding performance
The first race brought the weekend’s first highlight. Max Kronberg led the AM class commandingly from the start and handed the car over to Daniel Blickle in a promising position. Blickle managed the gap professionally and brought home the first class victory.
“This weekend was our home race and expectations were high,” Blickle explained. “It didn’t start very well for me and I wasn’t in a good mood on Friday. But we analyzed a lot and worked extensively with Marvin, our coach.”
In the Pro-AM class, Hendrik Still and Joachim Bölting experienced a difficult first race. Still fought his way through the field courageously but had an excursion into the gravel and was later involved in a collision at the final corner. The duo finished ninth in class.
Daniel Nilsson and Edvin Hellsten delivered a solid performance, finishing 19th overall and eighth in Pro-AM. “We had some issues in the first race, which was unfortunate, and lost a few positions. But we kept fighting,” Hellsten reported.
Race 2: Second class victory completes perfect weekend
The second race confirmed Kronberg and Blickle’s dominance in the AM class. Once again they led from pole position and gave their competitors no chance at the class victory.
“On Saturday we managed to secure both pole positions in class and everything changed from there,” Blickle beamed. “We did an excellent job and were able to dominate the races. We maintained our speed, stayed strong and made no mistakes. In the end we scored 52 points, the maximum possible.”
Hendrik Still and Joachim Bölting showed significant improvement in the second race, finishing fourth in Pro-AM. Still remained determined: “We extracted the maximum from our position and came very close to the podium. It was a good race considering where we started from.”
Daniel Nilsson and Edvin Hellsten completed the team’s results with 19th overall and sixth in Pro-AM. “For the second race we made some adjustments to the car to improve handling,” Hellsten explained. “The car became much better and we could fight and collect some points. The overtaking moves were great fun.”
Team principal celebrates AM Cup triumph
Team principal Daniel Schellhaas was thrilled about the AM class dominance: “The AM class was fantastic. Two pole positions, two victories, maximum points – we completely turned the championship around. The guys focused on themselves and did their job. I’m very proud of them.”
Regarding the Pro-AM situation, Schellhaas added: “The first Pro-AM race was really weak and we had a difficult start to the race, plus we picked up track limit penalties. We really made life difficult for ourselves and left points on the table. In the second race the drivers gave everything they had, but due to our starting position there simply wasn’t more possible.”
Outlook for Barcelona
With their double victory, Kronberg and Blickle took over the lead in the AM championship, while Still and Bölting now trail by seven points in Pro-AM.
“For Barcelona we now have an excellent position to win the championship,” Blickle looked ahead optimistically. Still showed his fighting spirit: “Now we need to focus on Barcelona and go full attack to take the championship.”
Hellsten added: “We’ll take the experience and what we’ve learned to Barcelona.”
The home race at the Nürburgring was a weekend of extremes for W&S Motorsport: triumph in the AM class with championship leadership secured and setback in Pro-AM. Barcelona will be decisive for both title fights.
