Rounds 13 and 14 - Norisring - Race Report

Mäki and Hülkenberg win at the Norisring.

In front of packed stands, the 25 drivers contesting the Formula BMW ADAC Championship delivered a brace of exciting races on Nuremberg's Norisring. The major surprise performance came from 17-year-old Mika Mäki of Finland, racing for the smallest team in the series. On Saturday he crossed the line first ahead of Natacha Gachnang (CHE/Josef Kaufmann Racing) and João Urbano (POR/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg). Sunday saw the championship leader Nicolas Hülkenberg (Emmerich/Josef Kaufmann Racing) prevail over Sébastien Buemi (CHE/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg), with Mäki finishing third to claim another podium place.

"Last night I just kept dreaming about my win. Today I went into the race with motivation pumping through my veins," said Mäki. The youngster from Pirkkala started from eighth place on the grid and fought his way to the front lap for lap. Mäki was backed by his mini-team consisting of his father, mother and a mechanic. "My car drove brilliantly today," he said.

Hülkenberg was another driver acutely conscious of the importance of his team: "In the race on Sunday I did a huge amount of damage when I crashed into the wall. After that, all the mechanics were working until three in the morning to make sure I could drive again," reported the Kaufmann driver.

Thanks to his sixth win of the season, Hülkenberg managed to retain his twelve-point lead over Buemi. "Of course it would be great if I could finish up as champion," said Hülkenberg taking stock of his performance so far. But that is a goal he shares with his toughest rival. "I hope that in the remaining six races my experience will stand me in good stead," countered Buemi.

Fans can certainly look forward to an exciting duel in championship races 15 and 16 at the Nürburgring (5th-7th August). Hülkenberg leads the championship standings with 207 points ahead of Buemi, who has 195. There was no change in the battle for third place. João Urbano (POR/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg, 122 points) and Chris van der Drift (NLD/Team Rosberg, 115 points) both had to drop out of Sunday's race. In the rookie rankings, Hülkenberg secured an early title with an unassailable lead of 259 points.

The only female driver in the field, Natacha Gachnang (CHE/Josef Kaufmann Racing), celebrated her best overall result at the Norisring. On Saturday she came second, leaving 23 men in her wake, while Sunday saw her claim a fifth-placed finish. The weekend had a special highlight lined up for the three top-placed drivers. Nico Rosberg, Formula BMW ADAC Champion of 2002 and current test driver for the BMW WilliamsF1 Team, presented the talented junior drivers with their trophies. ""I have very fond memories of my time in the Formula BMW ADAC Championship. The series provides the perfect training for young drivers. It was here that I laid the foundations for my Formula career," said Rosberg of his racing profession.

Race 14, placings: 1. Nicolas Hülkenberg (Emmerich/Josef Kaufmann Racing), 2. Sébastien Buemi (CHE/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg), 3. Mika Mäki (FIN/Mika Mäki) 21:52.704, 4. Nick de Bruijn (NLD/Josef Kaufmann Racing), 5. Natacha Gachnang (CHE/Josef Kaufmann Racing) 21:53.689, 6. Fabio Onidi (ITA/Eifelland Racing), 7. Markus Niemelä (FIN/Team Rosberg), 8. Marco Holzer (Bobingen/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 21:56.531, 9. Jens Höing (Berlin/Team Rosberg) 22:02.553, 10. Marco Idili (NLD/HBR Motorsport), 11. Andzej Dzikevic (LTU/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg) 22:07.866, 12. Tobias Hegewald (Waldbreitbach/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg) 22:08.528, 13. Sergio Perez Mendoza (MEX/4speed Media) 22:04.978, 14. Henri Karjalainen (FIN/Team Rosberg) 22:05.936, 15. Tim Sandtler (Bochum/ AM-Holzer Rennsport) 21:58.124, 16. Jonathan Summerton (USA/Team Rosberg) 21:55.668, 17. Johnny Cecotto jun. (Munich/Team Lauderbach Motorsport) 21:59.116.

DNF: Stefano Coletti (MCO/Eifelland Racing), Dominik Wasem (Seiboldsdorf/HBR Motorsport) 22:03.081, Harald Schlegelmilch (LVA/AM-Holzer Rennsport) 21:59.885, João Urbano (POR/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg) 21:54.903, Chris van der Drift (NLD/Team Rosberg), Martin Ragginger (AUT/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg). Pole position: de Bruijn. Fastest race lap: Hülkenberg 54.835 s. Circuit length: 50.6 km (22 laps).

Race 14, rookie placings: 1. Hülkenberg (Emmerich/Josef Kaufmann Racing), 2. Mäki (FIN/Mika Mäki), 3. de Bruijn (NLD/Josef Kaufmann Racing), 4. Höing (Berlin/Team Rosberg), 5. Idili (NLD/ HBR Motorsport), 6. Hegewald (Waldbreitbach/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg), 7. Perez Mendoza (MEX/4speed Media), 8. Cecotto jun. (Munich/ Team Lauderbach Motorsport). DNF: Coletti (MCO/Eifelland Racing), Ragginger (AUT/ADAC Berlin-Brandenburg).

Championship standings after 14 out of 20 races: 1. Hülkenberg (207), 2. Buemi (195), 3. Urbano (122), 4. van der Drift (115), 5. de Bruijn (72), 6. Gachnang (64), 7. Niemelä (47), 8. Mäki (41), 9. Holzer (40), 10. Sandtler (40), 11. Onidi (39), 12. Ragginger (37), 13. Perez Mendoza (35), 14. Summerton (32), 15. Leuchter (16), 16. Coletti (12), 17. Idili (5), 18. Vietoris (4), 19. Höing (2), 20. Cecotto (2), 21. Hegewald (2), 22. Dzikevic (2), 23. Karjalainen (2), 24. Schlegelmilch (1).

Rookie standings: 1. Hülkenberg (259), 2. de Bruijn (135), 3. Ragginger (127), 4. Mäki (117), 5. Perez Mendoza (111), 6. Coletti (86), 7. Hegewald (73), 8. Idili (71), 9. Vietoris (53), 10. Cecotto jun. (43), 11. Höing (41).