The Matech Competition drivers of Thomas Mutsch and Romain Grosjean in their Ford GT dominated the first ever Championship Race of the new FIA GT1 World Championship at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi.
Thomas led from pole position in the main race until stopping early in the mandatory pitstop window. After an excellent pitstop by the Matech team, Romain emerged with a narrow lead over Marc Hennerici in the second-placed Phoenix/Carsport Chevrolet. On new tyres Romain was able to pull away with ease and had a lead of more than 20 seconds when the chequered flag fell after one hour of racing.
After the race Thomas said: “I want to thank the Matech Competition team who did a great job, working very hard over the winter months and really pushed hard to develop the new Ford GT1, so congratulations to everyone for achieving this first win. We have a great car and special thanks to the sponsors, especially our title partner Sintez.”This historic victory for the Matech Competition team was a fitting ending to a roller coaster weekend of emotions for the team and great way for Romain to celebrate his 24th birthday.
In testing and practice the potential of the Ford GT was shown with the Number 5 car heading the times. In Car 6 Natacha Gachnang and Cyndie Allemann, who were making their World Championship debut as an girl, all Swiss partnership, were learning the circuit and the Matech Ford GT1. “It is important to get kilometres in the car as whilst we did pre-season testing we need more time, although the car is comfortable and everything is good. I think it is better to have a technical track to get the feeling of the car and for me it is a good start.” said Cyndie. Both girls were making the most of the historic occasion. “It is nice to be here in Abu Dhabi for the first race of the new FIA GT1 World Championship which is something exciting and special.” said Natacha.
However during Qualifying on Friday the fortunes changed when Natacha had an incident at the end of the straight, the fastest part of the circuit which the drivers are approaching at over 260 km/h. At the braking point, Natacha started braking as normal. A leak was reported in the rear brake circuit, which required her to press back hard on the pedal but, while putting pressure on the brake, her foot also caught the accelerator. Although the front brake circuit continued to function correctly, the combination of factors led to Natacha failing to negotiate the corner and going down the escape road, where she hit the barriers.
Although the safety and security devices on the Matech Ford GT helped Natacha avoid more serious injuries, she still needed to be airlifted from the circuit's medical centre to Sheikh Khalifa Hospital with a double compound fracture of her right leg. Thankfully Natacha is recovering well and is due to be released from hospital on Monday. The win was the perfect tonic for all the team and especially Natacha. “We should give part of this win to Natacha and wish her a speedy recovery, but I would like to keep part of it for my birthday!” said Romain. With Romain confirming that “I enjoy working with Thomas and we make a good team”, we look forward to the next round of the FIA GT1 World Championship in Silverstone UK, travel permitting!
