Bad luck denies Carrie Schreiner top ten at Salzburgring in ADAC GT Masters

Carrie Schreiner and teammate Alain Valente battled inside the top ten at the ADAC GT Masters Salzburgring round, but misfortune in both races ultimately left the Land-Motorsport duo just short of a top ten finish.

Photo credits: Gruppe C Photography

Bad luck robbed Carrie Schreiner of a better result in the ADAC GT Masters at the Salzburgring, in what was otherwise a promising outing where the Land-Motorsport duo battled within the top ten and showcased strong fighting spirit, before misfortune struck late on both race days and prevented the Saarland native from returning to the top ten.

After returning to GT3 competition following a stint in single-seaters, Schreiner shares the #68 Land-Motorsport Audi R8 LMS Evo2 with Alain Valente. The pairing has proven competitive but has been hit by misfortune in several rounds. After a very positive debut with a seventh-place finish at Lausitzring, car issues prevented them from building momentum at Zandvoort, where the Audi struggled. At the Nürburgring, they again showed encouraging speed: after a retirement due to a technical issue, Schreiner and Valente bounced back in Race 2, returning to the top ten.

At the Salzburgring – a quick and twisty circuit with little margin for error – Carrie Schreiner qualified 12th for the opening race, as ADAC GT Masters made its debut at the Austrian track.

The start of the 80-minute contest initially went well after the second formation lap, and it looked as if Schreiner could gain positions. However, she was trapped in traffic at the first chicane and dropped back to 14th place, spending the following laps attacking Gjerdrum in the Engstler Lamborghini.

After just 10 minutes, the first safety car was deployed – not for an accident, but to remove a bollard from the first chicane that had been knocked onto the track. The restart came with 64 minutes remaining. Kalus was immediately forced to serve a penalty lap for a jump start and dropped behind Schreiner.

Shortly afterwards, the first pit stop window opened. Schreiner came in for a long stop, just as Neuhofer spun into the gravel. To ensure fairness, the safety car only entered the track after the pit stop window has closed. Once Valente took over the Audi, he rejoined in 12th behind Reis.

Reis overtook Karklys, while Valente lost a place to Dörr with 45 minutes remaining. Two laps later, Fetzer was spun by Owega, allowing Valente to pass both Fetzer and the penalized Owega.

Fetzer quickly recovered and, together with Gjerdrum, overtook Valente within 10 minutes. Valente stayed close but was unable to counter before the pit window reopened. What only the team knew at the time: during his earlier attack, Valente had made slight contact with a Porsche.

During the second stop, Schreiner returned to the car. Another accident occurred in the pit window when Gjerdrum flew off at Turn 6, bringing out the safety car once more. However, Schreiner didn’t benefit from this neutralization. The earlier contact with the Porsche had caused suspension damage, leaving her steering wheel crooked. Continuing at the high-speed Salzburgring was therefore impossible, and the team was forced to retire.

Photo credits: Gruppe C Photography

For Race 2, Alain Valente lined up ninth on the grid. After the second formation lap, the field was released for the 80-minute race. Already in the first chicane there were several off-track moments, and once again a bollard was displaced, prompting the safety car on the opening lap. After cleaning, the restart came with 73 minutes to go.

At the restart, Valente battled Hanses into the first chicane. The BMW driver forced his way through, leaving little space, and Valente was forced onto the grass to avoid contact. He dropped to last place.

By the 15th minute, Valente began his recovery, overtaking Gjerdrum. At the first pit window, Land-Motorsport waited long before calling him in for his mandatory long stop, finally pitting with 57 minutes remaining. Schreiner rejoined in 13th place.

Four minutes later, the first major accident of the race occurred: Fach lost control of his Porsche under braking for Nordstein and struck the Schnitzelalm Mercedes, sending it into the gravel. The safety car was deployed while the Mercedes was recovered several laps down. At the restart with 46 minutes to go, Schreiner – then in 12th – overtook Fach on the same lap, as he was handed a lap penalty for causing the collision.

The green flag lasted only three minutes before another safety car period was called, this time due to debris on track. Fortunately, the neutralization was short, and racing resumed quickly. Several midfield collisions followed, which Schreiner was able to capitalize on to move up to 10th place.

Moments later came the scariest incident of the weekend: the race leader lost control at the paddock corner and crashed heavily into the wall. The race was red-flagged with just over 35 minutes remaining.

Once the barriers were repaired, the restart was conducted after three laps behind the safety car to allow tyre warm-up. Schreiner, however, was caught out by the cold tyres: running ninth, she spun in the first chicane and dropped back, rejoining behind the safety car train.

At the restart, she overtook Hütter and climbed to 12th place. With the second pit window approaching, she made a quick driver change, handing back to Valente. With 15 minutes remaining, he managed to overtake Neuhofer and secure 11th at the finish. It was a solid recovery, but just short of what would have been the duo’s third top ten of the season.

There won’t be much time for disappointment though, as the next ADAC GT Masters round takes place on September 13–14 at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, where Carrie Schreiner hopes to give herself a birthday present with a strong result.