Press release
Emil Frey Racing finishes GT World Challenge Europe campaign with double podium at Barcelona
- #63 crew of Aitken, Bortolotti and Costa Balboa claim third overall
- White, Lappalainen and Wishofer claim top 15 finish and third in Silver Cup
- Bitter disappointment for #19 which is taken out on the first lap
Barcelona (Spain), October 2nd, 2022
Emil Frey Racing claimed a well-deserved first Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe podium of the season as the #63 crew of Jack Aitken, Albert Costa Balboa and Mirko Bortolotti finished third in the final Endurance Cup round at Barcelona.
The trio started third on the grid after combined qualifying in the morning and were in the fight for overall victory throughout the three-hour race. Small margins decided the outcome, but Bortolotti brought the car home to secure third place at the end.
In Silver Cup, it was a third podium of the season – and third in a row – for the #14 combination of Mick Wishofer, Konsta Lappalainen and Stuart White, who finished third in class and 14th overall. But there was an early retirement for the #19 of Giacomo Altoè, Léo Roussel and Arthur Rougier who were forced out on the first lap with suspension damage.
The #14’s podium means that Emil Frey Racing finished second in the Silver Cup Endurance Cup Teams’ standings, by one point, while also securing third in the Drivers’ standings in class.
Saturday summary
Practice
Following two paid test sessions on Friday, using the baseline setup from the pre-season test at the same venue in March, the team began the official timed action with free practice on Saturday morning. The #63 conducted a qualifying simulation with Bortolotti at the wheel, with his time good enough for third at the end of the 90-minute session. Wishofer started the session in the #14, running used tyres before White took over to set the 11th quickest time. Having struggled with oversteer during the two test sessions the day before, the #19 underwent a setup tweak for practice but encountered a differential issue which got progressively worse by the end. The team elected to change the gearbox before pre-qualifying in the afternoon.
The #63 ended up just under four-tenths off the pace in third, while the #14 was the last car under a second in 11th. The #19, with its issues, finished 17th.
Pre-Qualifying
The focus for all three cars in pre-qualifying was race simulation, with the #63 completing a total of 48 laps over the course of the 90 minutes, the highest number of the entire field. Aitken began the session in the #63, with Wishofer taking the #14 out for an initial qualifying simulation. Roussel was at the wheel of the #19.
Overall, the session was promising for the #19 which made a big step forward from the morning, finishing seventh. The #14 was 11th overall and second in the Silver Cup class, with the car’s best lap being set on the 10th lap. A lack of rear grip was the main issue in the #14 while the longer-run pace from the #63 – which finished 37th – was not quite as strong as hoped for.
Sunday summary
Qualifying
The all-important three-part qualifying session took place on Sunday morning with the combined times of each driver setting the grid. Bortolotti did two laps to finish Q1 second quickest, while Wishofer put the #14 car 15th fastest. Roussel had one of his laps hampered by traffic and therefore could only manage 24th. For Q2, Aitken set the fourth quickest lap on his second effort, with White taking over the #14 to end up eight-tenths off in 15th. The #19 encountered an issue with Altoè at the wheel, leaving it 22nd. The #63 finished qualified third on the grid after Costa Balboa’s Q3 run, while the #14 secured 17th overall and fourth in Silver with Lappalainen. The #19 was 13th in the combined times, thanks to a superb fifth in Q3 from Rougier.
Race
Aitken took the start in the #63 and immediately moved up one place from his starting position to take second from the #54 Porsche on the inside of turn one. Further back, Lappalainen had a strong start and leapt three places to 14th, but there was disappointment for the #19 as Roussel received race-ending contact at the end of the lap. The rear suspension was broken after a hit from a spinning Audi, leaving the team no option but to retire the car.
The #63 maintained position throughout the opening stint, despite falling eight seconds behind the leading car, but both Aitken and the Porsche had built enough of a margin on the fourth-placed car that the places remained the same once Costa Balboa took over. Lappalainen completed his promising stint by handing over to White, who held onto third place in Silver Cup.
The second hour produced all the action as Costa Balboa reduced what started as a six-second gap to the leading Ferrari to nothing over the course of 20 minutes. Costa Balboa completed his stint by executing a sensational overtake for the lead, threading his way between the Ferrari and a lapped car to seize the position under braking for turn one. He handed over to Bortolotti at the end of the lap, but unfortunately an issue in the pits allowed the Ferrari and Porsche ahead into the final hour.
Bortolotti maximised what he could in the remaining minutes but had to settle for third position at the end of the three-hour race, fending off the #32 Audi at the flag.
White had challenged for second place in Silver but an unfortunate spin at turn one after contact with #30 Audi put him behind the Attempto Audi. He made it back into third place, and Wishofer brought the car home in the same place at the end, finishing 14th overall.
Team Quotes
Jürg Flach, Technical Director
“I am very happy that we finished on the podium at least once this year. Even after the second stint, I was maybe hoping for more than just a podium given the pace, so it is a little bit bittersweet. It was a hard fight, and we were up against two very strong cars too so we’re happy. It’s a pity the car wasn’t starting after the second pit-stop, but Mirko did everything he could to close the gap. Both Jack and Albert did a great job, especially Albert who made an impressive overtake and showed good speed on used tyres too. For sure, we are happy with second place in the Teams’ championship in Silver and third for our drivers in the #14, they did a mega job, and I am really proud of them.”
Driver quote Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO #14
Konsta Lappalainen (FIN)
“It’s a really good way to end the season for us, another podium and a strong performance. The performance has been there to win all season but we had a couple of issues at the start of the year, which cost us a lot. But third place in the championship is a great way to finish. The first lap I had contact twice and I lost a bit of bodywork at the front of the car. We were fast in clear air, but when we got stuck behind cars, that’s where we struggled a bit, but overall it was a good result.”
Driver quote Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO #19
Léo Roussel (FRA)
“Such an unfortunate race for us today, I had two contacts in the first lap. The first one was at turn one with Rossi, I put my car on the inside of the corner as I had the line, but he turned in on me and made the angle of the turn very tight. Then at the end of the lap, the Audi in front of me spun and I tried to avoid but I couldn’t and it broke the rear suspension. It’s frustrating to end the race this way, and it’s been a tough season, but that is racing.”
Driver quote Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO #63
Jack Aitken (UK)
“It is a bittersweet result for us really, because we really had a chance to fight for the win, but after the bad luck we have had this year, to come away with a podium and to be fighting in the top three all race, we have to be happy with that. At the start, I managed to get up the inside and he left the door open at turn one, which I was happy to take the chance. From there, it was about managing the tyres and we had a couple of issues to manage, with the gearbox. But the three of us were much quicker than the rest at the front, so that was really positive.”