With a confident performance and a controlled victory from pole position, Sean Edwards showed once again in the race in Budapest who is the driver to beat this season. With three out of five victories in the bag in 2013, ‘Team Allyouneed by Project 1’ can now go into the forthcoming summer break safe in the knowledge that everything is running according to plan. The goals that the team from Lohne set themselves before the race in Hungary have virtually all been achieved. The goal for Edwards was to win, and for Johnston to achieve a top 15 finish.
After a start that resembled a launching rocket from 21st place, Sean Johnston was able to overtake six opponents and to join in the battle for 15th position and one important championship point. Right until the final lap it looked as if Johnston would finish in the top 15, but a mistake and consequent spin resulted in him falling back to finish in 18th position. “It’s a shame, I was close to my goal. But the spin at the end meant that I didn’t quite manage it. To start the race from 21st place wasn’t what we were aiming for but my great start meant that I immediately got into the position I wanted to be in. Right up until the end, everything came together today. The car was unbelievably fast, the tyres held and I know that I can hold my own against the top drivers.” Johnston knows who he has to thank: “The heat here in Hungary is brutal and I’m annoyed about the spin. Most of all for my boys and the team who, particularly in these temperatures, gave me a perfect car all weekend.” Johnston’s performance is particularly strong when we think that, with just one year’s motorsport experience, he is competing so well against the field of experienced professional drivers. He is driving for the first time on nearly all the circuits in the racing calendar.
The highlight this weekend was again the perfect performance of championship favourite Sean Edwards; from pole position, through the fastest lap, to victory. After the fifth race in Hungary, Edwards has already bagged his third win and thereby extended his championship lead by a valuable 16 points. “It was a great feeling for me and Project 1 to win here. To crown the perfect qualifying with a win from pole position is huge. It may have seemed easy from the outside, but with these temperatures it was really hard to concentrate in the car. But despite that, I was able to control the whole race and even managed to drive the fastest lap, as demanded by my engineer, Kosta,” said the delighted winner after the battle in Budapest in temperatures of over 30°C.
Straight after the start, Edwards had to defend himself for a short time against his pursuer and winner of last year’s race, Christian Engelhart. The other championship contenders, Thiim and Ammermüller, finished the race in positions 8 and 14. “The result is great in terms of the championship and I hope we can repeat this performance in the remaining four races. Now all that’s left for us to do here is jump into the pool,” said Edwards.
Team boss Paul Schlotmann is happy with his team’s performance: “We’ve put in a great performance overall. Even the accident with our team tent on Saturday, when a helicopter that was flying too low caused our tent to lift off, couldn’t stop us. The way we dealt with the tyres in these extreme temperatures worked. The car held up and my team delivered a flawless performance. Even Sean Johnston’s little set back doesn’t weigh too heavily, because we know what he’s capable of and we’re much more interested in looking forward to what’s to come,” summed up the good-humoured boss of ‘Team Allyouneed by Project 1’.
The Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup is now taking a four week break and will resume again with the next race at the Belgian Spa-Francorchamps on 28th August 2013.
News and background information about the race and about Project 1 can be found on the Project 1 website and on Facebook, and on the partner website, racecam.de.
Racing calendar – Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup:
Spa-Francorchamps 25.08.2013
Monza 08.09.2013
Abu Dhabi 03.11.2013
Looking at the faces of ‘Team Deutsche Post by Project 1’ in the team tent on Saturday evening, to say that they were disappointed would have been putting it mildly. In qualifying, it was a case of highs and lows for Project 1. On Saturday morning, Sean Johnston achieved his first top-10 starting position in both races and more than achieved his ambitious goals. Jeffrey Schmidt qualified for starting positions 14 and 16. In contrast, championship favourite and second in the current Porsche Carrera Cup leader board, Sean Edwards, had a terrible qualifying session. A material failure in the rear wheel suspension right at the start of qualifying meant that Edwards was unable to put in any fast lap times. He therefore started in positions 34 and 32, right at the back of the field. When the current championship leader then took two confident pole positions, things were looking bleak for Edwards’ championship hopes.
The starting position for rookie Sean Johnston was, however, positive. Starting in position 10, his goal of finishing inside the top 10 and of putting in his best performance of the season was tantalisingly close. However, professional motorsport is full of hard knocks. A failure to observe a yellow flag led to a drive through penalty, leaving the 22 year old at the back of the field. “I thought that I slowed down in the sector. It’s really annoying for me and the team”. In the second race, however, he pulled out all the stops. With a brilliant race and fast lap times he took sixth place and valuable points for the rookie championship.
An overjoyed Johnston was grinning from ear to eat at the end of the race: “Wow, that was a great race. I’m over the moon and could finally show how fast I am. My team did an amazing job and the car was perfect. I’ve made a lot of work for my boys in the last few weeks and I’m so pleased to be able to deliver such a performance.” With 6th place, Johnston grabs ten points for the rookie championship and moves up to 7th position.
The second junior, Jeffrey Schmidt, who had his season highlight to date at the Lausitzring with podium position 3, was not happy with his performance in Nürnberg: “After the Lausitzring, I was obviously hoping for more, but with starting positions 14 and 16 I had to revise my ambitions. With places 9 and 13 I’ve still gained a couple of important points for the junior championship. At the forthcoming races at the Nürburgring I know my way around better and I should again be much further forward.”
Sean Edwards’ head hung low after his failed qualifying session. But giving up just isn’t something the British driver knows how to do. His performance in Saturday’s race, starting in 33rd position and finishing in 10th place, was impressive enough. What Sean Edwards delivered on Sunday, however, was a masterpiece, to which the whole paddock took their hats off. After 34 turbulent laps on the 2.3km long circuit, Edwards found himself on the podium again. With absolutely the quickest car on the track, Edwards devoured his competitors and, with fantastic overtaking manoeuvres, produced real racing and exciting motorsport.
The other drivers really didn’t stand a chance, and it’s possible he would also have overtaken the two drivers in front of him had the race lasted another couple of laps. Edwards himself was delighted with his performance: “I’m really pleased with today. After qualifying I had nothing to lose and that was my strategy. The first race was good but the second was fantastic. Thanks to my team and my engineer, who gave me a mega-fast car.” The damage to his championship hopes was also a lot less than initially feared, as his competitor Kévin Estre finished the second race without any points. Currently, Edwards is in position 3 in the championship, 17 points behind the leader.
The Porsche Carrera Cup is now beginning a 4 week summer break. The next two races will be fought by ‘Team Deutsche Post by Project 1’ on 17th and 18th August at the Nürburgring, the location of the championship race in the 24h race.
News and background information about the race and about Project 1 can be found on the website and on Facebook.
Racing calendar – Porsche Carrera Cup Germany:
Nürburgring 18.08.2013
Oschersleben 15.09.2013
Zandvoort 29.09.2013
Hockenheim II 20.10.2013
In the fourth race of the season at the Nürburgring in the Eifel, Team ‘Allyouneed by Project 1’ has cemented title favourite Sean Edwards’ lead in the championship, and has increased his lead over the driver in second place. In glorious sunshine, 25 drivers set out to drive the 13 laps of the Grand Prix circuit.
Project 1, the team from Lohne in Lower Saxony, was on the attack after the disappointment at Silverstone. The team wanted to recover, at home, the momentum of its two wins in the two opening races. Unfortunately, it wasn`t possible to achieve everything that had been planned. On Saturday in qualifying, bad luck struck favourite Sean Edwards’ team. On his quickest lap, which in the first two sectors pointed clearly to pole position, the speed limiter, which controls speeds in the pit lane, suddenly switched on. Edwards’ performance was obviously affected accordingly. “On my quickest lap I was clearly heading for pole position and then the limiter switched on. It’s really disappointing.” Every driver sets the foundation stone of a good result during qualifying. His starting position of 5th was not the end of the world in respect of his battle for the championship, but it makes it harder to win. In the race over the 5.148 km long Grand Prix circuit, there was to be no jump onto the podium.
After a turbulent race, the Project 1 driver was able to bring his racing car home in 4th place, just as at Silverstone. “Even though I always want to win, the result was ok. The car was really fast. Thanks to the team. Even after my fast spin due to Kuba Giermaziak, I was able to make up the 2 or 3 seconds and catch up with the front runners again. One more lap and I may have been able to overtake Kévin Estre. In the next race I’ll be giving it everything again.” In respect of the championship, everything is currently running to plan for Project 1 and Edwards. The only driver Edwards has lost points to, is Nicki Thiim who is now the runner-up of the championship with four points less.
Team mate Sean Johnston wanted to underline the upward trend which he has been on in the past few weeks with his best result of the season. He qualified on the ninth row of the starting grid, in 18th position, and hoped for a top 15 finish. Unfortunately, the German race was also not to be as hoped. Although the 22 year old American put in a great performance over 12 laps, he couldn`t manage a top 15 finish. “I’m really disappointed. After a crazy first lap, I was able to hold my position behind my team mate Jeffrey Schmidt in the top 15. In the second half of the race, after a collision with a tyre, I had to battle with heavy over steer. Up until the last lap it looked good, but after a braking error in turn 6, I had to let nearly the whole field past. It was really annoying, but motorsport is tough. I can just draw experience from it and learn from it.” Johnston finished the race in 19th place and hopes for a top 15 finish in the next race in Budapest.
The third Project 1 driver, Jeffrey Schmidt who, with his second Porsche Supercup guest start has got virtually no previous experience, put in a confident performance. Schmidt turned his strong result in qualifying, securing 13th position, into a 13th place finish. The 19 year old Swiss driver is satisfied with his performance at the Nürburgring: “Right at the start I had a collision; a competitor drove into the back of me, and after that the car was very difficult to drive. Ultimately, 13th place is ok, but with an undamaged car a top 10 finish would have been possible. Thanks to the team, who have supported me perfectly in my two Supercup guest starts. The car was consistently fast and, in Sean Edwards, we rookies have a top driver as a team mate, from whom we can learn and benefit a great deal.”
In the team championship, the team of team boss Paul Schlotmann is currently lying in fourth place, five points behind third place. Team boss Paul Schlotmann is content with the season so far. “Clearly, at the home Grand Prix we wanted to recapture our old form, and we had the pace for a win, but sadly luck wasn’t on our side on Saturday. That notwithstanding, I view us as working to plan, as long as Sean Edwards can continue building his championship lead. The learning curve of the two junior drivers is also pointing upwards, which underlines Project 1’s goal of training top drivers. We’re looking forward to the next race in Budapest and we’ll do everything to make sure we’re on the podium there.”
At the race in Hungary, in just under 2 weeks, the Porsche Supercup teams will again be hunting times and points.
News and background information about the race and about Project 1 can be found on the Project 1 website and on Facebook, or on the partner website, racecam.de.
Racing calendar – Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup:
Budapest 28.07.2013
Spa-Francorchamps 25.08.2013
Monza 08.09.2013
Abu Dhabi 03.11.2013
If you comprehensively win the first two races of the season, it’s understandable that you want to achieve a hat trick of three wins in a row, and if at the same time you have the chance to achieve that in your home country, then you are especially motivated. But for the team ‘Allyouneed by Project 1’ and championship favorite Sean Edwards, things turned out rather differently.
After the perfect start to the season, with the opening race victory in Barcelona and the comprehensive victory from pole position in Monaco, in Silverstone there was a fourth place. Ultimately, however, although just missing a podium place, the race was not too much of a disappointment, as Edwards gained important championship points in a still long season. After gaining third position in qualifying, attacking was the order of the day for Edwards, but unfortunately he had to wave goodbye to the plan right from the start. “Unfortunately, the clutch stuck as we started and I lost a position rather than attacking.” said Edwards, whose race after that was rather about damage limitation: “Despite the poor start, the race was ok, even though I wasn’t happy with the performance of the car. Starting in third position, we obviously wanted to push forward, but we didn`t have the pace today that we have had in the previous races, and we need to find the reason for that.” said Edwards, who is also able to take some positives from his home race: “The atmosphere with all the fans and the crowds here at Silverstone is just great and I’d have loved to give the many fans in England a British victory, but there wasn’t anything more I could do today. We’ll find the problem quickly and we’ll be back in the next race” said Edwards, after the race on his home soil. With 14 points, Edwards holds on to the championship lead and now leads with a gap of 4 points over German driver, Michael Ammermüller.
Team ‘Allyouneed by Project 1’ rookie, Sean Johnston, has returned after two years to the track where his career in motorsport began in such prominent style. Through a well-known console game, an American TV challenge offered the winner a professional career in motorsport. In the final, which naturally took place at the home of motorsport, Silverstone, it was a case of “every man for himself, only one can win”. Although Johnston only finished second, since that time he has not let anything stand in the way of his dream of becoming a professional racing driver.
Johnston would of course have gladly signed up for another second place finish, but all good things come to those who wait and the 22 year old American’s plan was very much about gaining experience. Starting in P20, Johnston was able to finish in 18th place and is satisfied with the result: “The race was tough and I gained a lot of experience today. On the second lap I lost four places and then tried to limit the damage. It’s huge to drive here at Silverstone in front of all the motorsport fans. All in all, I’m happy with the race and the weekend”.
The result of Team ‘Allyouneed by Project 1’ rookie and guest driver Jeffrey Schmidt was visibly unusable. For the young Swiss driver, who was driving the new Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Type 991 in the Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup for the first time, there was also a great deal to learn after his brilliant third place in the Porsche Carrera Cup in Lausitz: “First of all, I’d like to say a big thank you to everyone who made it possible for me to take part in my first Supercup race. The first time in a 991 is something really special and Porsche have developed a great racing car. After the tests last week, I had a good feeling about the new car, but it takes a lot of time to get used to it. Unfortunately, I had a collision at the end of the race and couldn`t finish my first race but even so it was an instructive and a good weekend here in England.”
For the team from Lohne it’s now a case of packing everything together and travelling home to prepare for the forthcoming race at the Nürburgring. The Formula 1 circus, including the Porsche supporting programme, is travelling without a break to the German Grand Prix, which will take place on 7th July. At home, Project 1 will be gathering all its strength together and will be showing everyone which is the team to beat in the championship. Paul Schlotmann considers himself and his team to be well on track: “It obviously wasn’t a perfect weekend for us but we can travel back home satisfied. Three wins in a row would have been great, but you can’t win every race. We now need to analyse the mistakes. I’m certain that we’ll be right back at the front at the Nürburgring next weekend.”
Project 1 is again planning to have three cars on the starting grid at the Nürburgring. The free practice session will take place on Friday at 4.45pm.
News and background information about the race and about Project 1 can be found on the Project 1 website and on Facebook, or on the partner website, racecam.de.
Racing calendar – Porsche Mobil 1 Supercup:
Nürburgring 07.07.2013
Budapest 28.07.2013
Spa-Francorchamps 25.08.2013
Monza 08.09.2013
Abu Dhabi 03.11.2013
Where we say in football that the match lasts for 90 minutes, we say in motorsport that the season is still long. That’s pretty much how Project 1’s situation could be described. After a moderate degree of success in the first race, we now have our goals clearly in view: driver’s title with Sean Edwards and best juniors with Sean Johnston and Jeffrey Schmidt.
At first, it didn’t look like Sean Edwards would be able to finish the weekend as the big winner. Achieving positions 3 and 2 in qualifying, and finishing the first race in 5th place, at first he appeared to be losing out to his opponents. However, the good thing about having a second race each weekend is that the drivers get a second chance and this is what Sean Edwards used on Sunday.
After a good start, the only driver who finished the race in front of him was double winner Nicki Thiim. “It was a good race for me and the team. We’ve worked hard and with second place today we’ve won a lot of important points for the Championship” said a happy Edwards, who also stayed fair. “An accident and no points are a disaster for any driver. It was me in Spielberg and here at the Lausitzring it was Kévin Estre. You don’t wish it on anybody but we’ll gladly take it. The competition stays exciting and we’re back in business.” With a total of 30 points, Sean Edwards has regained 2nd place in the Championship and at the same time has reduced the gap to leader Kévin Estre to 16 points. With ten races still left this season, there are plenty of chances to reach the top of the leader board.
Normally, people’s expectations of a rookie, a driver who is new in the Porsche Carrera Cup, are limited. Results inside the top ten are usually declared as goals and are realistic, but Jeffrey Schmidt would never have anticipated a result like he achieved today. His declared goal at the start of the weekend was a top ten finish. On Saturday, he narrowly missed his target, finishing in 12th place. What happened on Sunday, however, was a massive dream come true for the young Swiss driver. In only his 5th Porsche Carrera Cup race he found himself on the podium, finishing in 3rd place. The foundation of this fantastic result was 5th place in qualifying. From there he was on the attack, and gained 2 places during the race. “It’s absolutely crazy to have landed in 3rd place here at the Lausitzring in my fifth race. I was the only one in the first seven driving with old tyres, which made driving really difficult. Norbert Siedler, who was behind me, gave me a hard fight but I just did what my mentor Sean Edwards and our engineer Kosta have given me along the way. The car was just perfect and Project 1 have done an amazing job. A huge thank you to the team, it was just huge.” said the delighted Swiss driver, driving for ‘Team Deutsche Post by Project 1’. On the rookie leader board, Jeffrey Schmidt has gained 20 valuable points and moves to 3rd place, just 8 points behind the leader, American Connor de Phillippi.
Unfortunately, Sean Johnston didn’t have quite such a successful weekend. In the first race he finished in 18th place and in the second race the Project 1 junior driver sadly had to retire, although his hopes had been high after qualifying in 7th position: “The first race was really interesting for me and I fought hard. Unfortunately, I spun on oil and could only manage 18th place. In the second race I hoped for a lot more. I wanted to turn my seventh place in qualifying into a top result in the race, but unfortunately a broken radiator meant I had to finish the race early.
I’m really pleased for Jeffrey, Sean and the team, though, they’ve all had great results. At the Norisring I’ll be on the attack again.”
Team boss Paul Schlotmann is above all proud of the overall performance of the team and the path which Project 1 is on. “I’m pleased that, after the disappointment in Spielberg, we’ve been able to come back with a result like this. Jeffrey in particular deserves special praise. To defend himself against someone as experienced as Norbert Siedler and not to make a mistake is amazing. It shows us that Project 1 in on the right path. Sean Edwards together with Kosta is the perfect mentoring team for our two juniors. Today, the outcome of our work was third place for Jeffrey, and I’m sure that there will be many more results like that in the future.”
The Norisring in Nürnberg is seen as the Monaco of the DTM. The Porsche Carrera Cup teams and drivers will be battling for championship points there on 13th and 14th July. ‘Team Deutsche Post by Project 1’ will be on the attack again and looking to continue the improving trend.
The race can be viewed via an internet live stream on the official Porsche website.
News and background information about the race and about Project 1 can be found on the website and on Facebook.
Racing calendar – Porsche Carrera Cup Germany:
Norisring 14.07.2013
Nürburgring 18.08.2013
Oschersleben 15.09.2013
Zandvoort 29.09.2013
Hockenheim II 20.10.2013
