Manuela Gostner's pace unrewarded at the Nürburgring

Manuela Gostner's strong pace at the Nürburgring went unrewarded as she was involved in two collisions through no fault of her own, missing out on podium finishes in both Ferrari Challenge Europe Shell Cup races.

Photo credits: Ferrari Races

Manuela Gostner's pace went unrewarded at the Nürburgring, as the Italian racer was involved in two collisions, none of her own making, taking her out of contention for front-running positions in both Ferrari Challenge Europe Shell Cup races.

The German round of the Prancing Horse one-make series unfortunately broke Gostner's streak of podium finishes at every previous round this year, including race victories at Jerez and Portimão. At the previous double-header at Circuit Paul Ricard, Gostner secured two runner-up finishes, which moved her into second place in the drivers' standings.

After a long summer break, Ferrari Challenge Europe returned to action at the iconic Nürburgring circuit, where Manuela aimed to keep her podium streak alive, despite it being her first time racing at the track.

The Reparto Corse RAM driver had a test session the week preceding the sixth round of the championship but would need to familiarize with the circuit and find a good setup.

Additionally, practice sessions were marked by rain, cold, and fog—the typical Nurburgring weather. Gostner improved her times in each session, but the rain made it difficult to set up the car and build confidence amid disrupted sessions.

The track proved tricky on Friday in qualifying, but Manuela managed to set the fourth fastest time in Q1 with a 2:00.309, just three-tenths of a second off pole position in a closely contested session. In Q2, she nearly matched her time with a 2:00.388, securing P7 on the grid for Race 2.

Kessel Racing secured a 1-2 on the grid for Race 1, with Henry Hassid leading Ernst Kirchmayr at lights out. Manuela defended against Lewandowski but was hit hard at Turn 1 when a car slowed ahead and more cars plowing into the back of her #193 Ferrari 296 Challenge. Gostner could initially continue, albeit down to eleventh place.

While Kirchmayr snatched the lead from Hassid, more chaos behind promoted Ritzi and Weiland to the top five. Manuela continued but with damage, falling to P17 overall and eventually pitting at the end of lap two. Both Hassid and Lewandowski received drive-through penalties for incidents at the start.

Despite losing one lap, Manuela Gostner rejoined in P18 overall, retaining P11 in the Shell Cup class; her focus switched on finishing the race and collect valuable experience ahead of Sunday's Race 2. Despite running a lonely race one lap down, she clocked some encouraging lap times and made up ground, finishing P11 in class but unable to catch the top ten in her class.

"Unfortunately an early race contact forced me into an unexpected pit stop", Gostner commented. "Once I was back on track, it was difficult to stage a real comeback in such a short race. I finished in P11, but I’m looking forward to making up for it in Race 2."

Photo credits: Roberto Viva

On Sunday, under sunny skies, Manuela started from P7 on the grid, hoping for redemption and a podium finish.

The start was typical of the Nürburgring first hairpin, with some bumping at Turn 1 - but this time Manuela survived and moved up to sixth. Hassid, Dhillon, and Tibor Valint led the Shell Cup class, while Gostner kept close to the battle for fourth between Andreas Ritzi and Andrzej Lewandowski.

Manuela waited patiently for her chance, which came on lap 5 when Ritzi and Lewandowski collided, sending both into the gravel and triggering a safety car. Gostner moved up to fourth, looking to maximize the opportunity.

After the restart, Gostner kept a close distance to Valint while holding off Nussbaumer. She extended her gap over Nussbaumer by lap 10, keeping her pace steady. A battle between Nussbaumer and Weiland behind allowed her to extend her gap.

In the final laps, Manuela closed in on Valint, getting within a second of the Hungarian. She made her move on the last lap at Turn 1, passing him - although Valint came back and hit Gostner into turn 2, damaging both cars. Manuela dropped to P12, eventually limping across the finish line in P18 overall.

Valint received a 10-second penalty for the incident. Henry Hassid took back-to-back victories, followed by Dhillon and Nussbaumer.

"This weekend hit hard, in every sense. Despite a strong recovery in Race 2, moving up from P7 and aiming for a podium, I was pushed off track by another competitor on the final lap. It’s tough to end the weekend like this after all the effort, but I’ll use this as fuel for the next race."

Autodromo Enzo and Dino Ferrari in Imola, Italy, will host the final round of the Ferrari Challenge Europe season, together with the Ferrari World Finals, on 16-20 October.