Centimeter duels on the occasion of the PRTC season opener at the Hockenheimring
with a double victory by local hero Tim Schestag
Hockenheimring. For the racing drivers in the Pfister Racing Touring Car Challenge (PRTC), the 2022 season got off to an early start: On the weekend of March 4th-6th 2022, the prestigious Hockenheimring GP circuit awaited the drivers. On the 4.574 km racing circuit, genuine touring car action was once again on offer, with drivers who were up for the fight.
The PRTC once more offered a large starting field which also included some newcomers. 19-year-old Simon de Mori from Austria (Hörbranz) and 17-year-old Martin Held from Germany (Berlin) made their touring car debuts and earned their first motor racing spurs.
“Real cars, real racing. That’s the motto of our racing series. We offer professionally organized races with appealing touring cars in 4 qualifying categories, at reasonable costs and with good marketing. This concept is becoming increasingly popular, and we have been pleased with the great response. Last but not least, our racing drivers put on a terrific show for the spectators. We are looking forward to the start of the season!” said organizer Andreas Pfister at the start of the racing weekend.
Robin Renz (GER) from Stuttgart made a successful start to the new racing season
All the racing cars are equipped with standard tires from TOYO TIRES, with the semi-slick Proxes R888R or RS1 Slick Proxes, which in combination with the central fielding and “rotating system” on the CHEVROLET and CUPRA racing cars (class 1 and 2) from Pfister-Racing GmbH, allow for a competitive race at affordable costs.
The winner of the 2022 Pfister Racing Touring Car Challenge (PRTC) in class 2 will receive a free test drive in the 350 hp TCR racing car.
Cold driving conditions make for challenging circumstances
The early start of the season saw the drivers welcomed with cold and windy weather conditions with temperatures around freezing, and it was necessary to find the right techniques to get the tires to the right operating temperature quickly in a good working time frame.
In the qualifying rounds to determine the starting grid, Hinrich Groeneveld (GER, Moosburg) performed the best, with his CUPRA Leon MKII DSG racing car from the ATT-Racing team securing first place in class 3.
In the consistently hard-fought class 2 with the CHEVROLET Cruze Eurocup racing cars, Robin Renz achieved the best starting position with a lap time of 2:16:812, finishing in just ahead of Tim Schestag (GER, Walldorf) and Marco Chianese (ITA) from Würzburg, who also performed well, who got starting position three.
Driving with confidence, Tim Schestag continued his series of successes in his touring car before his home crowd
The fans then found themselves eagerly awaiting the start of the first race, with a rolling “Indianapolis start.” As soon as the first lap of the race, Schestag made it clear that he wasn’t satisfied with his second place on the starting grid, driving in the slipstream of Robin Renz.
In class 3, Hinrich Groeneveld took no prisoners, and steered his CUPRA Leon MKII racing car, with its more than 300 hp, towards a class victory.
Rookie driver Martin Held took his chance to gain some initial experiences during the important racing laps, collecting points in class 1 with his CUPRA Ibiza V1 Cup racing car.
Marco Chianese (ITA, Würzburg) pulled off a strong performance in only his second racing weekend
David Stein (GER, Usingen), had “one of those days”. Due to a technical defect, he was unable to take part in either the time qualifying or the race, which cost him important points in the overall standings despite every effort of the mechanics.
During the course of the first race on the other hand, Marco Chianese managed to further improve his lap times and catch up with Dirk Ehlebracht (GER, Oberursel), which ensured a close battle for 3rd place.
At the front of the pack, Tim Schestag succeeded in taking the lead and gaining a small advantage over Robin Renz. The race then came to a temporary stop due to a “Code 60 phase” which replaced the safety car, and the drivers were forced to reduce their speed to 60 km/h, which prompted a second inspection by the race organizers after the race.
After the lifting of the Code 60 phase at the end of the race, Groeneveld took his class win. In class 2, Tim Schestag achieved another victory, coming in ahead of Robin Renz and Dirk Ehlebracht. Marco Chianese finished in 4th place ahead of Thomas Eckert (GER, Nuremberg), who completed the top 5. Marco Bedrich (GER, Cottbus) failed to reach the black-white checkered flag this time, being forced to drop out of the race as his car suffered damage to its drive shaft.
After the first battle of the new season, the racers were only able to catch their breath for a short while, with the second race of the weekend scheduled for the Sunday morning. With cold weather conditions once again, the race organizers decided to allow the drivers to complete two warm-up laps this time to get their tires up to racing temperature.
Lap-long duel for victory in race 2
The second race succeeded in surpassing the first race in terms of excitement. Robin Renz made it clear that he wasn’t satisfied with his second place finish on the day before, and set out to take the victory in the second race and prevail over Tim Schestag.
In true touring car fashion, the two drivers battled side-by-side in a lap-long duel in the motordrome, and offered the spectators touring car action at its best, with both driving their “Chevys” in a class of their own. The live-stream action was also watched by the fans at home.
Towards the rear of the pack, however, Thomas Eckert hit the throttle too early, and after spinning off course on the first curve, found himself having to play catch-up with the rest of the field.
Simon de Mori (AUT, Hörbranz) scored two points on his debut in race 2
David Stein, on the other hand, put in another positive performance in race 2. With a freshly repaired racing car, he succeeded in working his way up a few positions and into the top 5. The battle for the winners’ podium, meanwhile, turned out to be between Marco Chianese and Dirk Ehlebracht. Chianese impressed with some quick lap times, but it was Ehlebracht who ultimately put in a solid performance to notch up his second podium finish of the weekend.
The second victory was secured by Tim Schestag, who finished just before Robin Renz. The duel between the two drivers from Baden-Württemberg in Germany is certainly a taste of the further fight for the championship.
In the other finishing positions, it was Marco Bedrich, Simon de Mori and Thomas Eckert who secured the coveted PRTC Class 2 points.
The touring car action in the PRTC will be continuing on May 13th-15th 2022 at the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben (GER), and is certain to offer another round of exciting motor racing.
