Carrie Schreiner ends GT World Challenge Europe Sprint series with double top-10 in class
Carrie Schreiner had a mixed yet promising GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup finale at Barcelona, as the German driver scored points in class in the opening race, before a stronger outing in the second race saw the Tresor Attempto driver battling in the class top three for most of her stint before finishing ninth.
Carrie Schreiner had a mixed yet promising GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup finale at Barcelona, with two contrasting races at the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, as the German driver scored points in the opening race, before a stronger outing in the second race saw the Tresor Attempto driver battling in the class top three for most of her stint.
Sharing the Audi with Sebastian Øgaard in her first full GT World Challenge Europe sprint season, Schreiner entered the final Sprint Cup round looking to build on the progress made at Zandvoort, where she returned to the points and showed a step forward in performance after a difficult run of results.
A challenging wet-weather first race left the Saarland driver with a tenth-place Bronze Cup finish, improved to a ninth place on Sunday's second race which saw the German running a very solid first stint in the opning stages, battling for the class top three.
Barcelona provided a particularly demanding conclusion to the Sprint Cup season, with heavy rain transforming the opening race into a test of both pace and car control around a circuit that already leaves little room for error. Øgaard took the wheel for the start of Race 1, lining up ninth in the Bronze Cup and 32nd overall, but the conditions were severe enough to require two formation laps before the field could finally get underway.
Despite the difficult circumstances, the start itself was unusually orderly, and the Attempto driver immediately made strong progress, gaining four positions on the opening lap while continuing to fight cars from the other classes around him, including Silver Cup champion Lucas Montenegro.
Øgaard remained outside the immediate Bronze Cup battle for much of the opening phase, but the treacherous conditions quickly began to produce incidents throughout the field. With 50 minutes remaining, the #11 car spun, while Flemming was also caught out shortly afterwards but managed to continue. The situation became considerably more serious when the #50 AF Corse Ferrari spun at the hairpin and slid back into the traffic, forcing the Verstappen Mercedes off the circuit before being struck by the second Attempto Racing Audi. Both the Ferrari and Audi were forced into retirement, bringing out the Safety Car with 45 minutes remaining.
Øgaard avoided the chaos and reached 26th overall, behind Spinelli's gold-class Lamborghini. The race restarted shortly before the pit window opened, with 37 minutes on the clock, although Øgaard lost one position to Kell during the restart. As the mandatory pit stops began, another incident involving the #55 Porsche, which spun into the gravel, further complicated proceedings. With substantial standing water remaining on the circuit and Race Control needed to ensure that the pit-stops were completed fairly, and the race was eventually red-flagged.
The remaining mandatory stops were completed under lifted parc fermé conditions, with Race Control subsequently adjusting the running order. After two laps behind the Safety Car to allow the tyres to build temperature, the field prepared for another restart, with Schreiner taking over the #88 Audi in ninth place in the Bronze Cup and 25th overall.
For Schreiner, however, the restart marked the beginning of a difficult second half of the race. The wet conditions and the heavy standing water made it particularly difficult to extract the outright pace required to fight at the sharp end of the field. Weerts moved ahead shortly after the restart and Schreiner gradually slipped down the overall order, although she responded to the difficult circumstances with an experienced and disciplined drive.
While several other competitors continued to fall victim to the conditions, Schreiner kept the Audi on track. Cars including the #222 and #12 suffered spins in her class, while the #35 BMW also ended up in the gravel with 14 minutes remaining. Schreiner’s cautious approach came at the expense of outright track position, however, and she dropped as far as 35th overall. Crucially, her consistency allowed her to gain a position within the Bronze Cup classification despite losing ground in the overall order.
Another Full Course Yellow was called with 11 minutes remaining after the #55 Porsche found itself in the gravel once again. Although the Porsche was able to recover under its own power, the field remained neutralised until just 6.5 minutes were left. Schreiner maintained her conservative approach for the final restart, but with so little green-flag running remaining she was unable to defend her position and eventually crossed the finish line 10th in the Bronze Cup.
Race 2 offered a much more encouraging starting point, with Schreiner lining up second in class and 23rd overall on a dry track. Determined to stay clear of the incidents that had repeatedly affected the field throughout the weekend, she initially focused on avoiding unnecessary risks, and this proved a wise decision.
Several cars on the outside line were forced to use the escape road, and Schreiner was overtaken by some cars taking to the escape road. The German then found herself alongside the BMW ahead exiting Turn 2, drawing level with its passenger-side door. As Schreiner's Audi moved alongside, the BMW closed the gap and made contact with the #88 car, which had already been forced onto the kerb. Schreiner was forced to make a corrective manoeuvre over the inside kerb of Turn 3, losing valuable momentum and some positions in the process.
The incident was compounded by a crash on the outside line, which brought out the Safety Car on the very first lap. By the time the field was neutralised, Schreiner had dropped to third in the Bronze Cup and 26th overall.
When racing resumed with 51 minutes remaining, Schreiner was caught between two Gold Cup competitors, with Andriolo ahead and Dorison behind. She immediately went on the attack and passed Andriolo one lap later, moving into the fight for second in class behind the Kessel Racing Ferrari. Her progress was short-lived, however, as Dorison subsequently inserted himself between the two cars, leaving Schreiner closely tucked behind but unable to find a way past.
With other cars also beginning to apply pressure from behind, Schreiner's defensive task became increasingly difficult. With 39 minutes remaining, Engstler from the Pro Cup and Stalikov from the Gold Cup both found their way past, while the Silver Cup pack also began to close in.
The #88 Audi came into the pits as soon as the mandatory pit window opened, with Schreiner handing the car over to Øgaard. The Attempto crew completed a solid stop within the required minimum stationary time, but the timing of the pit cycle meant that Øgaard returned to the track two positions lower in the class.
The Danish driver immediately began working to recover the lost ground, passing Jewis's Mercedes on his out-lap and setting off after Farfus. A Full Course Yellow was subsequently deployed for two minutes after the #2 Porsche came to a halt beside the track, with its safe position allowing recovery operations to be delayed until the pit-stop period had concluded.
Once racing resumed, however, Øgaard was unable to reproduce the pace required to move back towards the front of the Bronze Cup. Over the following ten minutes he lost a position to Jewis and another to Caribou, before Schiller also moved ahead with 7.5 minutes remaining.
The sequence of setbacks that began with the opening-lap contact ultimately left the #88 Tresor Attempto Audi R8 LMS GT3 ninth in the Bronze Cup and 34th overall at the chequered flag, but the positive takeaway from the second contest with Schreiner's genuinely promising pace in the first stages of the race.
Schreiner will now turn her attention to the final event of the GT World Challenge Europe season, with the Endurance Cup finale scheduled for Portimão from October 15 to 18. After a debut campaign repeatedly interrupted by incidents and bad luck, the German driver will be hoping to close the season with the strong result that has so often remained just out of reach.
