Ralph Boschung survived a wet, windy and wild second round of the ADAC Formel Masters at Zandvoort in Holland last weekend (May 9-11) to come away with another podium finish and strong points haul.This Swiss youngster fought back from an unlucky qualifying session to finish fourth and third in races one and two, before an accident in the third consigned him to 11th.Having coped well with the gusty conditions during Friday practice, Boschung was hopeful of a strong performance during Saturday morning’s qualifying session. After an initial delay due to heavy rain, Ralph and the rest of the drivers ventured out onto a sodden circuit. True to form the 16-year-old was immediately on the pace but was robbed of an opportunity to improve when the heavens opened once again, prompting organisers to abandon the session early.That meant he would line up sixth for the weekend’s opening race that same afternoon. But just like qualifying the weather would play a role in the outcome when a first corner accident, triggered by the difficult conditions, eliminated several front-runners.Boschung escaped unscathed but by the time the accident was cleared only six minutes remained on the clock, giving him little opportunity to improve on the fourth place he’d inherited.Race two on Sunday morning would also feature interruptions that this time worked against the LOTUS driver. A lightning getaway helped him leap from sixth to fourth initially before engaging in a three-way scrap for second with Fabian Schiller and Mikkel Jensen.It was Boschung who held the advantage when the first Safety Car was deployed, only to be slipstreamed by Schiller once racing resumed on lap nine. Having regrouped, Ralph attempted to re-pass his rival, who made contact while robustly defending the position for which he was warned by the stewards. But with another subsequent Safety Car period lasting until the chequered flag, the scrap for second would end prematurely.His second podium of the season meant Boschung began the weekend’s final race full of confidence. And having lined up fifth on the reverse grid, he again demonstrated the sort of pace necessary to finish in the top three before an over-ambitious move on Philip Hamprecht dropped him from fourth to 11th. “I was much happier with the car and it felt good all weekend,” explained Boschung. “The team has worked really hard since Oschersleben to find the right set-up and it’s clear that we’ve made some progress, even if the weather did its best to cause chaos! I was also delighted to secure another podium finish in the second race, even though I had the pace to snatch P2.“That’s why qualifying was a bit frustrating, because we know how good the car is in race trim. Starting from one of the first two rows would make a big difference so we need to find a bit more speed over one lap. Fortunately my starts have been good this weekend, which helped make up for the grid positions, but we can’t always rely on that.“I’m a bit disappointed with myself for the accident in race three though. I was just a bit too optimistic and aggressive when attempting to overtake Philip for third. I knew the pace was there but got a little impatient. I’ll learn from it.“But all in all we’ve banked some good points and now just need a clean weekend to put everything together and reap the rewards. As always my thanks go to my partners Petrol Energy, B63, Hublot, Avanthay&Partners, and Audi for their continued support.”Round three of ADAC Formel Masters takes place at Lausitzring in Germany on May 23-25.