HRT: “Historic Success” in First Overall Mustang GT3 Win at ‘Ring

Photo: Gruppe C Photography/HRT

Haupt Racing Team managing director Ulrich Fritz hailed the Ford Mustang GT3’s first overall victory on the Nürburgring Nordschleife a “historic success” for his team and the Detroit manufacturer.

Vincent Kolb and Frank Stippler took the No. 6 Mustang GT3 from tenth on the grid to victory in Sunday’s four-hour ADAC Reinoldus-Langstreckenrennen round, as part of doubleheader weekend that didn’t start off in winning fashion for the German squad.

“Unfortunately, the automatic clutch system failed during Saturday’s race, which meant we couldn’t continue after the pit stop,” said Fritz.

“Nevertheless, we made perfect use of the driving time up to that point and were well prepared for the next day of racing.

“Qualifying on Sunday wasn’t easy because choosing the right tires on a drying track was a matter of luck. Due to a Code 60 phase, it was then no longer possible to improve.

“In the afternoon, we drove a very solid race. Frank laid the foundation with his outstanding start, and Vincent also impressed with fast lap times.

“In the end, it was a flawless team performance that made this victory possible. We are, of course, overjoyed about this historic success because it also shows that we are on the right track in our development program together with Yokohama.”

When asked if the landmark win on the Nordschleife  came earlier than expected, Fritz admitted they still have “a thing or two” to learn while still in its first year with the Multimatic-built car.

“It’s still a learning process where it’s all about gaining experience,” he said. “If you manage to do a flawless job in this process, as was the case on Sunday, then success can follow.

“Nevertheless, we saw on Saturday that we still have a thing or two to learn and that there is still room for improvement. Especially when it comes to tires, we still struggle more than the competition under certain conditions.

“Just because you’re learning doesn’t mean you can’t win sometimes – in fact, you never stop learning and can never be completely satisfied.

“This is especially true in motorsport: there is always something to improve. If someone had told us before the season that we would win our class at the 24h Nürburgring right away and take overall victory in the NLS, I would have signed up for that, of course.”

With the Ford Racing-supported team having an expansive schedule in Europe, which includes GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS, DTM, as well as ADAC GT Masters, Fritz said there’s still a number of objectives to achieve before year’s end.

“We want to do a good, flawless job as a team again on the final weekends,” he said.

“Ending the year on a positive note is also important for motivation — you never want to go into the winter break having lost.

“That’s why we’re aiming to take the next step in the DTM at Hockenheim and achieve our big goal in the ADAC GT Masters: to win the drivers’ and team championships.

“In the GT World Challenge, we competed for a podium finish at the Nürburgring. We want to do the same in Barcelona.”

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John