3rd Round at the Spanish Grand Prix

Maiden Victory for Sascha Maassen; VIP Jordi Gene Delights Home Crowds

Ex Formula 3 ace, Sascha Maassen (D), took a green light to chequered flag victory at the third round of the Porsche Pirelli SuperCup on the Circuit de Catalunya, marking the maiden win of his SuperCup career. Breathing hard down Maassen's neck in second was Stephane Ortelli (MC), who made an excellent start from third, immediately catapulting ahead of points leader Patrick Huisman, whose first gear slipped out in the fray of the start. Reigning vice-champion Oliver Mathai (D) took his first podium finish of the season.

Invited guest driver, Jordi Gene, delighted home crowds, making a fault- less debut in the unfamiliar 911 GT3 Cup Porsche. The Barcelona man finished the 14 lap sprint a remarkable 12th after starting from 15th. " I didn't expect the series to be so competitive. This is no place for amateurs. At the start I lost some places, bnut found my rhythm and began overtaking. It's fantastic fun, the cars are demanding and com- petitive. I'd love to try it again sometime."

Sascha Maassen: "My super start was half the battle won. I conserved the tyres and endeavoured to stay slightly under the tyre limit. I managed to keep Stephane at a distance, so the race was relatively relaxed. I wouldn't complain if this trend continues."

Stephane Ortelli: "These 14 laps were really tough. I tried to push Sascha, but Oliver was putting the pressure on from behind. I concentrated on keeping him at bay, and in defending my position I couldn't really make a serious attack for first place."

Oliver Mathai: "That was a rocket start. Starting from sixth I squeezed through the tiniest gap left by Maylander and Huisman and that was that. I was on my way."

Race results:

Pos     Driver/Nat              Team                            Time
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 1      Sascha Maassen/D     Eschmann-Manthey-Racing       26:49.565
 2      Stephane Ortelli/F   Porsche Center Rhein-Oberberg   + 1.932
 3      Oliver Mathai/D      Kadach Tuning                     4.556
 4      Bernd Maylander/D    Porsche Centre  Koblenz           4.988
 5      Patrick Huisman/NL   Eschmann-Manthey-Racing           5.142
 6      Jorg Bergmeister/D   Farnbacher Motorsport             6.007
 7      Altfrid Heger/D      Porsche Centre Munich            11.143
 8      Marco Werner/D       Infineon/Obermaier               11.582
 9      Bruno Eichmann/CH    Carsport-AMAG                    16.566
10      Pedro Couceiro/P     Porsche Center Rhein-Oberberg    19.799

Standings:

Pos     Driver       Points
---------------------------
 1      P. Huisman       52
 2      Maassen          50
 3      Mathai           35
 4      Ortelli          33
 5      Maylander        32
        Bergmeister      32