Schubert Motorsport driver Sandro Holzem sets best time of the day in a BMW M4 GT3 Evo. Razoon – more than Racing completes highest total of 181 laps.
Sandro Holzem (21/Polch/Schubert Motorsport) set the first best time of the 2026 ADAC GT Masters season. The BMW driver clocked the fastest time of 1:29.631 minutes at the official test day on15th April at the Red Bull Ring. “We noticed from the outset that the car’s basic set-up was good. For that reason, we only made a few adjustments and tried some things out,” said Sandro Holzem, feeling well prepared for the opening round of the ADAC GT Masters season at the same venue from 24th to 26th April. “We have the package and know that we are both fast enough. We will do our best to win the title at the end of the season.” Team-mate and twin Juliano had set the second-fastest time of the morning, although the duo only headed onto the track later on in the session, following work on the BMW M4 GT3 Evo.
It was an overcast day at the Red Bull Ring. After rain during the night, the track dried consistently over the course of the morning. However, the track temperature never rose above 14.5 degrees. Second place, 0.103 seconds slower than Holzem, went to rookie Colin Bönighausen (21/DEU/Razoon - more than Racing). Team-mate Leo Pichler (24/AUT) had previously clocked the fastest time of the morning in the Porsche 911 GT3 R. “We took full advantage of the half dry, half wet conditions this morning to get a good feel. After all, we know from last season that there is a good chance we might be faced by similar conditions on the race weekend,” said Pichler. The duo was also the most industrious, completing 181 laps over the course of the day.
Rounding out the top three was Pichler’s compatriot Kiano Blum (18/AUT/Haupt Racing Team) in a Ford Mustang GT3. The rookie missed out on top spot by 0.194 seconds. Leyton Fourie (20/ZAF/FK Performance Motorsport) landed the second BMW in fourth place. The top five was completed by Emil Gjerdrum (18/NOR/Haupt Racing Team) in another Ford.
Newcomers Comtoyou Racing were also hard at work, amassing no fewer than 170 laps. Jamie Day (20/GBR) and Baudouin Detout (25/FRA), at the wheel of an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 Evo, made full use of the damp conditions in the morning, before focussing on multiple long runs and qualifying simulations. “We worked on the set-up of the car, and the day went really well,” said rookie Detout. “At the moment, nobody knows what anyone else is doing, and we can hardly wait for qualifying to finally see how we are really doing.”
In contrast, HGL Racing decided not to go out in the wet. The Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo 2 of the second new team has undergone extensive modifications since the winter tests, so the team opted not to take any risks on a damp track in the morning. Despite this, they managed to complete all their scheduled tasks and driver Simon Connor Primm (21/Großschirna) feels well prepared for the season opener. “We have established a good basis, but we obviously still need to make a few tweaks, then we can make a bit more progress. However, we have managed to run through our programme without any issues so far. We did not have any problems with the cool temperatures. In fact, I hope we have similar conditions on the opening race weekend.”
Tickets for the opening round of the ADAC GT Masters, which forms part of the DTM programme at the Red Bull Ring from 24th to 26th April, start at € 49 and are available from dtm.com. Any fans wishing to follow the Austrian event at home can look forward to live coverage on free-to-air TV station Sport1. All the races will also be streamed on Sport1.de, Joyn, ServusTV On and Youtube.com/ADACMotorsports.
