Ferrari Challenge: Manuela Gostner wins in Hockenheim
- RACERS
- 1 day ago
- 5 min read
Manuela Gostner claimed her first win of the 2025 Ferrari Challenge Europe season at Hockenheim with a commanding Race 1 drive from the front row, followed by a solid fifth place in Race 2 on older tyres - showcasing consistent pace across a weekend that marked the start of her championship recovery.
Manuela Gostner returned to the top step of the podium in Ferrari Challenge Europe, conquering her first win of the season at Hockenheimring after taking the lead into Turn 1 of Race 1 from second on the grid.
Among the protagonists of the Shell Cup over the last few years — where she has collected numerous victories, podiums, and consistently battled for the title — Manuela Gostner returned to Ferrari Challenge in 2025. However, her campaign began with misfortune at the season opener in Monza. The experienced Italian showed strong pace but was unable to convert her speed into results until Race 2 at Misano, where she bounced back and fought her way to a well-deserved podium — her first top-three finish of the season.
The series headed to Hockenheim in May, a venue returning to the calendar for the first time since 2022 — and where Manuela had previously secured two top-six finishes. A pre-event test helped her refamiliarize herself with the German circuit.
Following a solid test day on Friday, where she was fifth fastest, Manuela continued to improve throughout the sessions. Official practice was a strong showing for the Italian, as she went third fastest, just 0.092 seconds off Skrimpias in P1, in a session where the top three were separated by less than a tenth.
On Saturday morning, qualifying got underway. Manuela’s first quick lap was deleted for track limits, but she bounced back with a 1:44.3 banker lap, which initially put her fourth. She then improved to third with a 1:41.221 and later went provisionally fastest with a 1:40.095, before John Dhillon responded by going three tenths quicker. After a pit stop for setup changes, Manuela rejoined and went under the 1:40 mark with a 1:39.424, securing a provisional front row spot. She found further improvement with a 1:39.170 and eventually qualified second, just 0.17 seconds off pole.
Starting from the front row, Manuela made a great start in Race 1; battling side by side with Kirchmayr into Turn 1, the Austrian spun around and Gostner dropped behind NM but capitalized on a mistake in the final sector of the opening lap to retake the lead ahead of Ryndziewicz and her father, Thomas Gostner.
Once in front, Manuela pulled a 2-second gap, pushing hard to extend her advantage. Ryndziewicz closed in briefly with a strong lap on Lap 3, but Manuela responded and managed the pace effectively. Further back, NM attempted an overly ambitious move that spun Corinna Gostner, but both rejoined and the race remained green, with the former being handed a penalty for causing the collision.
As Ryndziewicz continued to chip away at the gap, he brought it under two seconds by Lap 9. With no pressure from behind, the British driver focused entirely on chasing the leader, but Manuela managed her tyres and brakes expertly in the closing minutes.
By Lap 16, the gap was down to 0.7 seconds, with Thomas Gostner over 10 seconds adrift in third. Manuela however defended brilliantly on the final lap, holding off a determined Ryndziewicz to take the chequered flag and claim her first victory of the 2025 season in a tightly contested race.
“The perfect weekend is when you win a race you’ve dominated from the very first minute and share the podium with a family member,” Manuela said, having shared the podium with her father.
“P2 on the grid after a fantastic qualifying, and then a race to remember. From the first lap, things got intense, and the very last one was full of suspense. I held my ground and crossed the line first.”
After her Saturday success, Manuela aimed to carry the momentum into Sunday — but drivers were met with very different conditions for the second qualifying session, as rain swept through the circuit.
In tricky conditions, Manuela’s first lap put her fourth, but she grew more confident with each lap. She climbed up to second with a 1:52.6, just three tenths off John Dhillon. With the track improving rapidly, she posted a 1:53.351 to remain second before pitting for a fresh set of tyres and final setup changes. On her next run, she set a 1:49.762 to take provisional pole with six minutes remaining.
It was Ernst Kirchmayr who ultimately topped the session with a 1:48.5. Manuela ran deep into Turn 2 on her final attempt and couldn't respond, ending the session in P4.
In the afternoon, the final race of the weekend took place under dry but cloudy skies. Starting from the second row, Manuela launched well and immediately moved into third, passing Skrimpias. Ahead, NM led Kirchmayr, with Manuela closely behind and ready to strike. However, a safety car was deployed on Lap 1 after Corinna Gostner received contact from Fons Scheltema at Turn 2 and was left stranded.
The race resumed at the end of Lap 2. NM made a strong restart, while Kirchmayr and Gostner were not close enough to challenge. Manuela soon started pressuring the Austrian ahead as the top three pulled away from the rest of the field.
Maciel passed Skrimpias for fourth and began to close in on the leaders. On Lap 5, another safety car was required as Scheltema’s car stopped at Parabolika due to earlier damage.
At the restart with 15 minutes to go, NM again got away well. Kirchmayr attempted a move at the hairpin but went wide and retained second. Maciel capitalized shortly after, passing Manuela for third into the Mercedes Arena. Up front, NM nearly lost control, bunching up the leaders and allowing Maciel to join the battle.
Manuela, having already used a second set of new tyres in qualifying, was now struggling on older rubber — especially on a track with significant tyre degradation. Skrimpias got ahead of her and opened a small gap. Running consistent 1:41.6s, she maintained a one-second buffer to her father Thomas.
As the final laps approached, Thomas began to close in, but Manuela held firm and crossed the line in fifth — a solid result to maximize her points haul.
The Hockenheim round, highlighted by her first win of the season, marks the beginning of a comeback in the championship for Manuela Gostner, who now sets her sights on closing the gap to the Shell Cup leaders at the next round in Brno, Czech Republic, on 31 May–1 June.