Jules Gounon put Boutsen VDS on top in pre-event testing at Hockenheim with a 1m38.746s lap aboard the Belgian squad's #9 Mercedes-AMG. The three-hour session ran ahead of this weekend's Sprint Cup meeting at the German venue.
Factory ace Gounon set the time with 10 minutes left on the clock, edging ahead of Ben Green (#14 Emil Frey Racing Ferrari) by a mere 0.019s. The #72 Barwell Motorsport Lamborghini was third in the hands of Patrick Kujala, topping the Bronze Cup order in the process.
Fourth overall went to the #71 AF Corse Ferrari, which returns this weekend after missing the trip to Misano. The crew of Eliseo Donno and Tom Fleming have ground to make up in the championship, and the former's time of 1m39.004s suggests they are well placed to do so.
Next up were the top two cars in the overall Sprint Cup standings: the #32 Team WRT BMW driven by Dries Vanthoor, and the #47 Winward Racing Team Mann-Filter Mercedes-AMG with Maro Engel at the wheel.
In P7, Liqui-Moly Team Engstler by OneGroup made a strong start with its newly acquired Lamborghini, leading the Gold Cup classification thanks to a 1m39.207s from Luca Engstler. The German team ran an Audi at the previous two Sprint meetings but has switched to a Huracán this weekend.
Indeed, there have been a handful of adjustments to the entry list for this event. Notably, the #88 Tresor Attempto Racing Audi has switched from Pro to the Gold Cup, with Lorenzo Patrese taking the place of Christopher Haase.
In the same class, the #21 Comtoyou Racing Aston Martin will be shared by Matisse Lismont and factory ace David Pittard, who takes the place of James Jakes. In turn, Jakes has moved to the #11 Comtoyou machine, which he will share with Răzvan Umbrărescu.
This will mark the first time that the #11 Aston Martin has raced in Sprint and brings the class to a season-high seven cars. Also of note, CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa winner Comtoyou Racing will be the biggest team on the grid with four entries.
A total of 32 cars ran in the test – the only exception was the #51 Racing Team Turkey Ferrari of Salih Yoluç and Charlies Eastwood – which saw no serious incidents or stoppages. Cars will be back on-track tomorrow at 10:50 CEST for Free Practice, followed at
15:00 by Pre-Qualifying.
> RESULT: Paid Test, Hockenheim 2024