Two Top Five finishes on ADAC GT Masters debut
The switch from Porsche brand cups to the ADAC GT Masters – one of the world’s most popular GT championships – has already shown itself to be a canny move for Jeffrey Schmidt. This first weekend bodes well for the future. In front of more than 20,000 race fans, the Montaplast by Land-Motorsport driver and his team-mate Christopher Haase twice finished in the Top Five at Oschersleben. The points haul from the season opener is impressive: Schmidt and Haase are fourth in the championship on 20 points, just six behind the leaders. In the Junior standings, Schmidt shares the lead with Ricky Collard of the UK on 40 points apiece.
In mild temperatures and sunshine, the Motorsport Arena at Oschersleben laid on a spectacular show. And making an impressive debut was Jeffrey Schmidt, who posted the sixth-fastest time in the first qualifying of his ADAC GT Masters career. The Swiss 23-year-old got off to a superb start in Race 1. After the first turn, he was already up to fourth and thereafter stayed in touch with the Top Three until the mandatory pit stop for change of driver. In Race 2, Schmidt drove the second stint to a fifth-place finish. He had to cope with severely degraded tyres but still defended his position valiantly to the finish line.
Jeffrey, two P5 finishes on your debut. Congratulations on getting your ADAC GT Masters career off to such a brilliant start!
Many thanks. I am satisfied with the outcome of the weekend. In the first race, I took the start stint. I got off the line pretty well and was able to overtake two opponents. Up until the pit stop, I held on to fourth place. Here in the Motorsport Arena Oschersleben, it’s generally quite difficult to overtake. I drove a faultless race and handed over the car to my team-mate in fourth place.
After that, you dropped back one position. How did that happen?
On the lap we had intended to make our pit stop, there was an accident. I had to slow down and lost almost 1.5 seconds. These 1.5 seconds were enough for our sister car, which had been behind us up to that point, to overtake in the pit stop time window. So after our stop, we were only fifth. It’s frustrating when you lose out on a potential podium in this way. All the same, fifth place is good result for me.
You passed your first qualifying test with flying colours. How was it for you?
It was all new to me. Unfortunately, I was unable to make optimum use of the new tyres because I was stuck in the middle of a bunch of cars that kept braking heavily, which made a perfect lap virtually impossible. I then dropped back in the course of the quali and eventually set my fastest time on the tenth lap, which was outside the optimum range. This time was enough for sixth place – it would not have been possible to do more on the used tyres. Next time, we have to take care to position ourselves better in qualifying. Otherwise the potential of the fresh tyres is simply frittered away.
In the second race, you took over for the second stint. How did the second half of the race go for you?
We were never going to finish any higher than fifth. In terms of straight-line speed, we were simply unable to keep up with the other makes of car. After the pit stop, we really only pursued a strategy of holding on to our position and shielding ourselves to the rear. I succeeded in doing that. Although we had by no means dominated on Saturday, we were given 10 kilos of additional weight on Sunday, which really slowed us down. That was a pity, and it handed the other manufacturers an advantage.
You leave Oschersleben as joint best Junior driver. How much does it mean to you sharing the lead in the Junior standings with Ricky Collard?
The standard in the Junior class is phenomenally high. In the ADAC GT Masters, everyone who is under 25 years old and not a works driver automatically qualifies for the Junior classification. Consequently, this covers drivers who have already been contesting the series for several years. It’s a good feeling to be on top of the Junior standings alongside Ricky Collard. Even so, my main focus is on the general classification where my ambitions are clearly defined.
In just under three weeks, you will be competing at the Lausitzring (19th – 21st May). How do you rate your chances there?
We still have a lot of work to do. We will be testing at the Lausitzring next week. I have many good memories of the circuit. It was at the Lausitzring that I had my first podium finish in the Porsche brand cups. It would be great if I could also get my first ADAC GT Masters podium there. The DTM and the Porsche Carrera Cup will also be on the programme of events, and I’m looking forward to meeting up with a lot of familiar faces.
