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With a new victory in class SP11 the driver-trio Andre Ibron, Franz Groß and Guido Wirtz (alias Bugs Bunny) strengthens the lead in the scoring of the BFGoodrich-Long-Distance-Touring-Car-Championship. The team “Racing Event Motorsport” stays now clearly ahead of its competitors. Though in the morning of the race day it didn’t look as if the DEGUSSA BMW could start at all. Due to the feverishly working pit crew the participation in the race was still possible.

During the first lap of the qualifying head of the team Andre Ibron crashed at the track section “Antoniusbuche” – right behind the “Döttinger Höhe”. Decelerating for the “Tiergarten” the driver hit an oil track. At 200 km/h the rear abruptly broke away to the right. “I did turn in but couldn’t compensate the lurch to the left,” said the head of the team after the accident. Like driving on soft soap the tires had no grip. At first the right rear wheel of the BMW 1 hit the beam barrier. Though the wheel suspension was broken, Andre Ibron was barely able to “limp” into the pit.

There the crew right away got to work to fix the car in time for the start. “Big thanks to “Schubert Motorsport” and the team “Black Falcon” who gave us some spare parts for the rear axle and the car body”, otherwise Andre Ibron and his team couldn’t have started at all. So there was an impressive hunt to catch up after the start from the pit lane. Starting-driver Andre Ibron chased the field. Though the rear axle generated an interesting but in motorsports less useful behaviour, the DEGUSSA BMW was nevertheless speeding.

As scheduled Andre Ibron passed the car on to Bugs Bunny. Meanwhile the team had acquired position three. The second driver struggled hard to move further ahead. “The behaviour of the car – especially in left bends - needed getting used to, but nevertheless I took pains.” Despite of restrained driving in between, Bugs Bunny gained position two and yet had the fastest lap of the race. Then at the box dramatic events took place.

Franz Groß carried over the car. Just started, the DEGUSSA BMW stopped only ten meters behind the pit gateway. The electronic system had played a bad trick on the BMW 1. Trembling minutes passed until finally the engine – after a complete restart of the system – could be activated again. So Franz Groß got on his way to achieve rank one and with an ambitious effort finally made it. At high external temperatures he then just had to drive the class-victory home. At present the team is on position 27 in the championship and within the class comfortably in the lead.

Hence the team prepares for the 24h-Race. The height of the season starts on June the 9^th. The BFGoodrich-Long-Distance-Touring-Car-Championship takes a longer summer recess and  proceeds on August the 17^th.