Colin Bönighausen celebrates debut victory in the GT Masters

It was a huge success for 21-year-old racing driver Colin Bönighausen from Isernhagen (Lower Saxony), who celebrated his maiden victory in the GT3 championship at the opening race weekend of the ADAC GT Masters at the Red Bull Ring in Austria.

Together with his Austrian teammate Leo Pichler, Bönighausen dominated Sunday’s race. Pichler, who started second on the grid, seized an early opportunity to overtake the leader. With 26 minutes remaining, Pichler handed the car over to Bönighausen, who further extended the lead in the Porsche 911 GT3 R and gave the competition no chance, securing victory with a lead of more than five seconds.

“I didn’t expect my first win in the ADAC GT Masters so soon. It was an amazing day – the team is brilliant, and things are going really well with my teammate Leo Pichler too,” said Bönighausen enthusiastically in his first statement. It was a perfect home race for the ‘Razoon – more than racing’ team: alongside the Pichler/Bönighausen victory, Lefterov/Kastelic secured second place, completing a one-two finish.

Bönighausen had already made his mark on Friday with the fastest lap time, and secured third place on the grid in Saturday’s qualifying. In Saturday’s opening race, the duo were in contention for a podium finish, but were forced to retire early due to mechanical failure.

Following the opening weekend, Bönighausen and Pichler now occupy fourth place in the overall standings. The next round of the ADAC GT Masters will take place in three weeks’ time at Zandvoort in the Netherlands.

Picture: ADAC Motorsport & Gruppe C