Lead Münnich Motorsport drivers Esteban Guerrieri and Yann Ehrlacher endured a frustrating first race in the FIA World Touring Car Cup (WTCR) on the Nürburgring Nordschleife when both drivers were on the receiving end of contact.
Guerrieri had qualified in fourth for the first race but was spun out by BRC Racing’s Gabriele Tarquini after just two corners, dropping the Argentine to the rear of the field with suspension damage.
“It’s frustrating not to score points today,” said Guerrieri. “The build-up to qualifying was strong and I was able to do a good time to start on the second row.
“I made a decent start and then Gabriele Tarquini spun me around and damaged my suspension, so that was my race over after just a few seconds.
“It’s a shame because I’m sure I could have stayed with the leading pack through most of the lap and finished in the top five.”
Similarly, Ehrlacher – who was second in the points standings heading into the event – was turned around at the second corner after making contact with fellow Honda racer Tom Coronel, who in turn knocked Benjamin Lessennes and who ultimately collected Ehrlacher after failing to control the slide on his Civic.
“There’s not much to say really,” said Ehrlacher. “I was hit coming out of Turn 2, lost all my momentum and dropped to something like 26th or 27th place. I recovered to 19th in three laps, which isn’t bad at a track like this where there’s only one or two overtaking places.
“I’m sure I would have been much further up the grid had I not had to slow on my final qualifying lap for yellow flags and lose a lot of time, but that’s racing.
“We have another qualifying session tomorrow and two races on Saturday, so I’m aiming for two strong results.”
Münnich Motorsport Team Manager Dominik Greiner admitted that it hadn’t been the best start to the event for his team, which also saw James Thompson finish last in 22nd after struggling with a lack of experience of the circuit.
“After a pretty positive qualifying session with Esteban, this race was not an ideal start to our home event,” admitted Greiner. “Esteban was taken out by Gabriele Tarquini and Yann was also hit at the second corner.
“We radioed both drivers and asked if they felt it was safe to continue. Yann said yes, so he did.
“James is a Nürburgring rookie and wasn’t helped by mixed weather conditions in practice that stopped him getting the experience he needed. We aim to bounce back strongly tomorrow.”