Sandro Fehr was no more nervous than usual before the morning race at the ACS Thurgau car racing days in Frauenfeld. The tension, however, was visible in his face. He proved in Ambri in 2022 that he can win, but in the previous three runs he was still missing fractions of a second. If the amateur speleologist from Rorschacherberg wanted to stay on the ball in the championship, he would have to beat the host Marcel Muzzarelli.

Victory with the crowbar
What Sandro Fehr (upper gallery, left) then conjured up on the 3.2-kilometer angular course between the 49 gates was spectacular. The semislicks from Yokohama, which perfectly matched the lightweight Suzuki Swift Sport Hybrid, emitted noises in every corner, indicating the also visibly aggressive driving style. But was it also efficient enough?

It was her. After best time in the first run, Fehr improved by half a second in the second run. This meant the first victory of the season.

Sandro Fehr: "That was with a crowbar, everywhere I was about to take off. Two or three times it even set me up. That was the very last groove according to the motto either or."

The master shows what is feasible
Fabian Eggenberger even improved by a whole second and thus fixed the second place with 0.37 behind. Marcel Muzzarelli (upper gallery center) finished the first attempt even faster than Fehr, but had touched a pylon. Although he had to drive safely and cleanly afterwards, the president of the ACS Sports Commission Thurgau, which organized the event, managed the third-best time.

With the practice from the first race, everyone went a little more briskly in the afternoon - most of all Fabian Eggenberger (upper gallery right). The champion managed a dream run with the last shot, which was one second faster than those of Fehr and Muzzarelli, who were separated by only three hundredths.

Thus, the Zurich secured the first victory in the Suzuki Cup for the newly formed Team 77, synonymous with the year of the pilots.

Fabian Eggenberger: "I had heard how aggressively Sandro drove to victory in the morning. After my first run was clean, I also tried out what was feasible and was a little faster everywhere."

Change at the top of the table
Fehr could also live very well with second place, because it meant he was once again ahead of Muzzarelli and took two more points from him. With Eggenberger's help, who had intervened in the morning race, Sandro was able to snatch the lead of the standings from the multi-champion and extend it to four points.

Marcel Muzzarelli: "Unfortunately I didn't reach my time from practice. In both races I messed up the first run a bit. I don't remember the last time I had a gate error in the first run. Now I just have to be classified twice ahead of Sandro..."

It will not be easy. Next Saturday it's off to the courage track of Bure, where Ambri double winner Patrick Flammer returns to the action and is always strong. In Frauenfeld Reto Steiner scored for the Flammer Speed Team as seventh in the first race and the surprising Alexander Ullrich (middle gallery left) as sixth in the second race. In the first Frauenfeld race, the German native of Glarus was even fifth - he has never finished so far ahead.

In fourth place, Rico Thomann (center gallery, right) missed his first podium by more than 1.2 seconds. In the fifth race of the season, the man from Winterthur would again have finished fourth instead of fifth had it not been for a scoring error. So newcomer Stefan Glanzmann (middle gallery center), who is obviously learning very quickly, was pleased to finish fourth and achieve his first top result.

Michaël Béring was somewhat at a loss. As in Ambri, the winner of the opening race in Bière had to settle for midfield positions (6th and 7th). He had not been aggressive enough and had not skied cleanly enough. Nevertheless, the man from Le Locle finds this funny and he is fully motivated for the last two races in nearby Bure and in Chamblon (June 25).

From the screen to the racetrack
In ninth place twice, Fabio Gubitosi placed right in the middle of the 17-strong field. The picture on the ranks behind also looked almost the same twice.

Salar Bahrampoori (lower gallery), best known from Swiss television, attracted special attention. The son of an emigrated Iranian and a Swiss woman with a Grisons dialect drove the "works car" from Safenwil as Suzuki brand ambassador. With an improvement from 9.78 to only 7.96 seconds behind the two race winners, the rookie did a very good job. It goes without saying that he had "mega fun". After his experiences at track days, for example with Fredy Barth, the racing bug has probably broken out in him.

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In business circles, you would call it return on investment. From a sporting point of view, Patrick Flammer's participation in the Equipe Bernoise slalom test days at the end of March/beginning of April paid off. His absence from the season opener of the Suzuki Swiss Racing Cup 2023 two weeks ago in Bière had no effect, because on the familiar airfield course in Ambri, the 31-year-old from Glarus was able to show all his routine and triumph on both race days.

Multi-competition for fractions of a second
However, it was once again a brutally close affair at the top of the two classifications, which also surprised those involved. The best have obviously moved even closer together. On Saturday, the top four were separated by just four hundredths of a second after the first race run, and after the decisive second run, the leading six-pack was not a second apart with a running time of 1'49.

The other day, on the again 2730 meter long course with 17 changed gates, a similar picture was shown with five riders in 97 hundredths. So it is not a matter of course that the winner was the same twice.

Fourth Suzuki victory in Ticino
Patrick Flammer had already won here in 2021 as the first driver with the hybrid model and once landed his first ever victory with the old Swift Sport. Now he scored full points for his own Flammer Speed Team for the first time. For the managing director of a garage in Glarus, it was the best advertising on his own behalf.

Patrick Flammer: "I just did my best and didn't put too much pressure on myself. That worked out. I was sovereign, although I was lucky that Fabian Eggenberger scored a goal shortly before the finish on the second day."

Duel at the top of the table
Next to them on the podium on both days were Sandro Fehr and Marcel Muzzarelli, only in different order (middle gallery left, podium Sunday). Fehr managed on Saturday (upper gallery left) to turn an inexplicable deficit after run 1 into second place with a second time two seconds faster, 0.14 behind Flammer and 0.15 ahead of "Muzz". The other day, Muzzarelli (top gallery, right) was just seven hundredths short of Flammer, Fehr 0.18. Both could live well with these results.

Marcel Muzzarelli: "Timing-wise, everything is so tight that the slightest mistake can have an impact. That's why I'm completely satisfied."

Sandro Fehr: "Tip-top, I didn't expect to be able to improve so much in each of the second races. You have to go all out - either you can or you can't. That was important for the championship."

Because Bière winner Michaël Béring (middle gallery center) lost many points with places 5 and 7, only Muzzarelli and Fehr are only separated by two points at the top of the table.

Michaël Béring: "My rhythm was actually good again. Unfortunately, I gave both races away in the second run in each case. I will then try to do better again in Frauenfeld."

The master wanted to do it too well
At the next two races as part of the ACS Thurgau car racing days, Fabian Eggenberger (upper gallery, center) will once again take to the wheel of the Suzuki Swift entered by Cup coordinator Christian Zimmermann. There is no question that the reigning champion wants to take revenge for the bad luck in Ambri and score full points for the first time for the new Team 77 of 1977 veterans Eggenberger, Zimmermann and Danny Krieg. The latter already practiced in Ambri as a double starter with Eggenberger, but did not get beyond the ranks 13 and 12.

Fabian Eggenberger: "On Saturday I couldn't go on tutti after two gate mistakes in the first run, so fourth place wasn't bad in the end. On Sunday I wanted to go nice and clean through the last gate combination and still hit a tutti with the rear axle. That was annoying."

Several people with potential in the midfield
Reto Steiner (middle gallery on the right), who took over from Patrick Flammer at the wheel, also gave a good performance with 6th and 4th places. The man from Schwyz will score points for the Flammer Speed Team in Frauenfeld before it's the turn of the boss again in Bure and, as in Bière, Alexander Ullrich at the end. The championship podium is still well within reach for the trio if no one makes a mistake. Rico Thomann and newcomer Stefan Glanzmann achieved good midfield positions in both races. With an exploit, they too could soon be on the podium.

Of the people in the second half of the rankings, Fabio Corezzola (bottom gallery, right) must have been the happiest on Saturday, as he finished twelfth among 16 competitors, his best result so far. After a crash into the meadow in Sunday's first run, he lacked grit thereafter. Marcel Landolt (bottom left gallery) made it into the top ten twice in tenth and ninth, while Cédric Moulin and Fabio Gubitosi (bottom center gallery) only managed this on Saturday and Sunday respectively.

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Starting from pole position, Johannes Kapfinger in the latest-generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cup fielded by Huber Racing had built up a lead of almost eight seconds all the way to the finish in the first sprint race at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, Austria (gallery left). However, because the 20-year-old from Passau had pushed the track limits too far and consequently collected ten penalty seconds, the race win went to Alexander Schwarzer. For the successful graduate of the Porsche Racing Experience from Alex Fach's championship-winning team, it was the first victory in the Swiss GT3 Cup (center gallery).

Perfect promotion to the top class
In the second race, the Kapfinger reclaimed the lead from pole setter Schwarzer on the very first lap and extended it to more than 14 seconds by the finish. Schwarzer initially slipped to fourth position, then dropped to the back of the field and then fought his way back up to ninth place.

In the drivers' standings, the junior from Germany, who won the 2022 Class 40 Group Open GT title, went straight to the top.

Johannes Kapfinger: "I'm very happy with how my first weekend in the GT3 Cup went - it was a lot of fun. In the first race I had a bit of bad luck with the track limits. Then I took a good look at it and did better in the second race. Getting through safely was the goal. Last year I drove the predecessor model with race ABS in the Open GT classification. The current 911 GT3 Cup is a completely new car and in the Class 1 classification we drive without ABS, which is a huge difference."

Strong performance by senior Peter Hegglin
Second place went to Peter Hegglin ahead of Gregor Burkard and Gian Luca Tüccaroglu. Hegglin, who at 61 years of age is no longer one of the youngest, put himself on the podium in third place after the first sprint after narrowly beating Marc Arn.

Jocelyn Langer, the second sponsored driver of Porsche Motorsport Club Suisse and Porsche Schweiz AG, finished 15th in both races. The right photo in the gallery shows the podium of race 2 with a smiling Peter Hegglin, winner Johannes Kapfinger and Gregor Burkard.

Tension behind the GT4 overall winner
The group of different racing versions of the Porsche Cayman GT4 fell prey to Patrick Hofmann (lower gallery, left) in both sprint races. He was the only competitor in Class 10 with his approximately 500-hp RS model.

It was much more exciting among the drivers of the 425-hp 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport with the so-called MR package from Manthey. In the first race, the Italian "Gioga" had his hands full keeping Patrick Schetty at bay: At the finish, the two were separated by just 0.242 seconds. In the second heat 2, Schetty then clearly prevailed against defending champion Alexandre Mottet and Markus Lietzau.

The twin brother can do it too
In the Open GT classification, veteran Enzo Calderari from Biel took the first victory in Class 23 with a 991-generation Porsche 911 GT3 R. In the second race, Patrick Dinkeldein prevailed over the entire field.

In the current 911 GT3 Cup cars with racing ABS and traction control, first place went twice to Michael Kapfinger. The twin brother of Johannes Kapfinger was the fastest of all sports cars from the Open GT group in the first sprint (center gallery).

Two winners in the new Classic classification
The Porsche Drivers Competition Suisse even-temperature competition will be divided into two classes from this season. In the Classic classification, the participants rely solely on their feeling and dispense with electronic aids such as stopwatches or timing systems. Here, Pascal Godel in his 992 GT3 (gallery on the right) first won the shorter competition over five laps, then Peter Meister dominated over the double distance. Second place in each case went to Xavier Penalba ahead of Robert Schwaller. In the newly created Chrono category, Nicolas Garski celebrated victory in each case ahead of Fide Scheer.

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The concept of the event series organized by the Porsche Motorsport Club (PMSC) has proven its worth since 2021. The Swiss one-make cup with international participation consists of the Porsche Sprint Challenge Suisse for GT racing sports cars and the Porsche Drivers Competition Suisse for drivers with road-tested production cars (center gallery).

If you don't have any racing experience yet, but would like to gain some, then "Introduction to Racetrack" is the perfect place for you. Here, he or she is gently introduced to the personal limit by instructors.

Successor to Jasin Ferati wanted
The Sprint Challenge is divided into three groups: GT3 Cup, GT4 Clubsport and Open GT. Within the groups, classification is based on the generation and specification of the vehicles. Half-hour sprint races are held separately, while endurance races over 100 miles are held in a joint field.

The top class is formed by the 911 GT3 Cup models of the latest 992 vehicle generation, which entered the Porsche Sports Cup Suisse in 2022. After Alexander Fach (2020 and 2021), last year's champion Jasin Ferati is also moving to the international arena (Carrera Cup Deutschland), so a new champion will be sought.

Two official juniors from Germany
Perhaps it will end up being one of the two new juniors sponsored by the PMSC and Porsche Switzerland (gallery left)? The 20-year-old Bavarian Johannes Kapfinger won the big Class 40 of modified GT3 Cup cars in 2022 in the Open GT group with Huber Racing and the GT Winter Series in Spain in spring 2023. On the other hand, his German compatriot Jocelyn Langer (22), who drives in the championship-winning Fach Auto Tech team, is still a barely described hand.

With runner-up Jürg Aeberhard once again concentrating on coaching private drivers and only taking the wheel occasionally, Gregor Burkhard, Alexander Schwarzer and Ernst Keller are likely to be the strongest Swiss drivers. Last season, they finished 3rd, 4th and 5th in the championship behind Ferati and Aeberhard.

Uniformity tests new in two classes
In the Porsche Drivers Competition Suisse, the aim is to reproduce one's own reference lap time as precisely as possible. Each weekend, after practice and qualifying, one shorter and one longer race are held over almost twice the number of laps.

The division into two groups is new: so-called Classic participants race exclusively by feel - cell phones, stopwatches, timing systems and the like are prohibited for them. In the Chrono classification, on the other hand, the starters are allowed to use modern aids to determine their own lap times.

Six racing weekends in Styria, southern France and Italy
While the season kicks off next weekend at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg with a double sprint, a sprint and an Endurance event are scheduled at Le Castellet and Imola as well as at Mugello. At Monza, as at Misano, the drivers can even contest two sprint races as well as a two-hour Endurance race, but this is not part of the championship. At the finale, it takes place at night.

Michael Glinski, CEO Porsche Schweiz AG (gallery on the right): "Motorsport is an inseparable part of Porsche's DNA. Many of our customers love to experience the performance of a Porsche on the race track. The Swiss one-make cup offers the perfect stage for this: it combines a professional environment with a family atmosphere."

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After the end of the second race, even before the official ranking list was out, Michaël Béring sent a prayer to heaven. The man from Le Locle was certain that he had not made a goal error and had thus achieved his first victory in the Suzuki Swiss Racing Cup, notably as the first rider ever from French-speaking Switzerland.

Yes, his dad Jean-Claude Béring, who passed away on February 14, 2020, and who was European mountain champion in GT cars in 1975 and 1976 and Swiss production car champion in 1977, would probably be proud of him. Actually, nobody had Michaël Béring in mind after Sandro Fehr and Marcel Muzzarelli had dominated the wet practice.

Changing conditions
In the first practice run on Saturday morning, Fehr set the first best time, which the runner-up topped in the second trial run. In the wet (gallery on the right), Muzzarelli achieved the fifth-fastest time of all the 140 competitors at the LOC event! By the time of the first race run in the afternoon, the 4.1-kilometer course with 77 gates had dried almost completely, so that new conditions prevailed for all 15 drivers with their Suzuki Swift Sport 48V Hybrid.

With 3'03,79 Sandro Fehr (left gallery) achieved the first best time. With about seven tenths on Muzzarelli and more than one second on Béring (center gallery), his cushion was considerable - but in the end just not big enough. Despite a slight drizzle, the man from Neuchâtel improved to 3'03.00, whereby his early starting number was at least a small psychological advantage. Despite the slight uncertainty regarding the grip conditions, the man from Grisons, who has made his home in Thurgau, was a full 1.1 seconds faster than before - which also speaks for the impeccably adhering Yokohama semislicks. On the other hand, the St. Gallen driver, who started two places behind Béring, was unable to improve.

Everything has fit
This is how Michaël Béring achieved his long-awaited first triumph in the third year of his participation with the mild hybrid model from Safenwil. Two third places in 2022 were his best results to date.

Michaël Béring: "In my head I knew I could do it, now I've also been lucky for once that everything fell into place. I think dad would be proud of me..."

Muzzarelli and Fehr, beaten by 37 and 79 hundredths respectively, congratulated him spontaneously and without envy. The leader from the first run, who was displaced to 3rd place, did not hide his disappointment, but paid respect.

Sandro Fehr: "I had counted on Muzz, but never on Michaël. He really let out a shot. It's always interesting what comes out in the end, you can never be sure."

Fourth rank for the boss
Christian Zimmermann (lower gallery, left) also showed an impressive performance. As a double starter with newcomer Patrik Gallati, the man from Glarus started last in light rain and still missed his first time by just twelve hundredths. It was enough for the coordinator of the one-make cup to secure fourth place for his newly formed Team 77. So far Chrigi has only contested one race with the new Suzuki.

Christian Zimmermann: "The routine is still missing, but it's coming slowly. After all, I've never driven on this course before. The braking points aren't right yet."

His best result was achieved by Cédric Moulin (lower gallery center) as fifth in the same second as Zimmermann.

Promising premiere by Stefan Glanzmann
Only two tenths of a second longer was Stefan Glanzmann (lower gallery on the right), who in sixth place was thus the best newcomer in the Suzuki Swiss Racing Cup 2023. So far, the 30-year-old from Huttwil was one of the winning drivers in the LOC1 on a Toyota Yaris GR also distributed by the Emil Frey Group.

Stefan Glanzmann: "Everything is new for me, the Suzuki is completely different to drive. That's why I'm satisfied with the first result. It's fun, I also feel very comfortable in the Suzuki family."

Fabio Gubitosi, active in the OPC Challenge until 2019, was pushed down to 7th place by Glanzmann in the second run. Because he also missed the targeted 3'05 time, the man from Graubünden was therefore only halfway satisfied with it.

A botched start to the season
Gauthier Henchoz, Alexander Ullrich and Rico Thomann completed the top ten within seven tenths. Having already placed far better in 2022, the latter was anything but satisfied with his start to the season.

Rico Thomann: "P4 would have been possible, but it didn't go well enough from the start. Because I hit a pylon in the first run, the pressure was too great in the second run."

Marcel Landolt, Jean-Luc Janz, Flavio Corezzola, who came much closer to the midfield, Rolf Tremp, who was beaten below value without scoring a goal, and Patrik Gallati took the other places.

The race continues on the last weekend in April with the double race at the Ambri airfield.

Photos Action: Ruedi Menzi

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After a year and a half, Ronnie Bratschi returns to the European hillclimb circuits this weekend in Saint-Jean du Gard in France. The reason for the long forced break was an engine failure during dyno tests last summer. The trained polymechanic from Altdorf therefore took time to optimize his Mitsubishi Lancer Evo VII RS in all areas. After successfully completing test drives on the circuit, nothing now stands in the way of his comeback.

Number of participants as a sticking point
As in 2021, the 36-year-old will be competing in Group 1, the most powerful touring cars in hill climbs, according to the regulations of the FIA, the International Automobile Federation. The man from Uri is deliberately holding back on predictions for 2023.

Ronnie Bratschi: "The outcome of the championship also depends on participation and is therefore not solely in my hands."

Because technical problems also affected him twice in the 2021 season, the Swiss had to settle for fifth place in the European Championship two years ago as the best driver from Group 1 and winning the "Best Performer" classification, which takes into account the overall ranking of all touring cars in each race.

Time consuming travel
Because the trips to the venues throughout Europe are enormously time-consuming, Bratschi is dependent on the goodwill of his employer in Altdorf. He therefore devotes almost all of his overtime and vacations to racing. Moreover, such a European tour can only be financed thanks to sponsors. These include the construction machinery company GIPO from Seedorf, Zurich Insurance and FASTEC AG, three internationally active companies. They are joined by tire partner Michelin, KW-Automotive Schweiz, lubricant manufacturer Motul, Eggenberger Motorenbau, Ravasicorse, Felwag, Garage Gisler and Beat Stadler Carrosserie und Spritzwerk.

Start with Czech racing license
A novelty is that the man from Uri will be driving for the Czech association ACCR from this year on.

Ronnie Bratschi: "This has various advantages for me and I am looking forward to working with ACCR. In addition, I was able to gain a first sponsor from the Czech Republic in the form of Profiko."

Only one appearance at home
In Switzerland, Ronnie Bratschi will only be seen in action at the St-Ursanne-Les Rangiers hill climb, which counts as the eighth round of the European Championship, on August 19/20 in the canton of Jura. Due to the differences in the regulations of the European Mountain Championship and the Swiss Championship, further starts in the home country do not make sense.

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Outwardly, the Suzuki Swift Sport 48V Hybrid does not show their potential. However, the running times achieved by the fastest drivers in the Suzuki Swiss Racing Cup 2022 caused amazement. If you want to get on the podium, you have to get everything in order.

Champion Fabian Eggenberger in a new team
Fabian Eggenberger did this best, but will not defend his title in the six races of the Swiss Slalom Championship. The Zurich native is increasingly taking care of his junior's kart racing in the Rotax-Max Challenge and only sporadically gets behind the wheel of the Suzuki from the new Team 77, which Christian Zimmermann and Danny Krieg form with him - all born in 1977.

All against Marcel Muzzarelli
The favorite to win the title is multi-champion Marcel Muzzarelli, who was narrowly beaten in 2022. The electoral Thurgau native from the Grisons cites reasons why he is hanging on for another year.

Marcel Muzzarelli: "It was good for me to be under pressure and to get to the point. For me, effort and return as well as the fun in the Suzuki Cup are right, so I accept the challenge again."

Known and new faces
The biggest challengers are Sandro Fehr, Michaël Béring, Rico Thomann and, in addition to Team 77, the Flammer Speed Team. Fehr was the third rider to win a race in 2022, Béring finished on the podium twice, and ex-junior mountain champion Thomann wants to make the most of his hybrid experience in a full season for the first time.

For the second Glarus team, Patrick Flammer, Reto Steiner and Alexander Ullrich are also fast people. The newcomers Stefan Glanzmann and Fabio Gubitosi, who have already won in other competitive classes, are difficult to assess.

No one goes empty handed
As before, Suzuki Switzerland will pay out generous prize money and reward everyone with starting bonuses. From the proven tire partner Yokohama there are valuable material prizes. All cars must be in original condition and firmly registered. The seven championship rounds will be held as part of the Swiss Slalom Championship. The race starts on Saturday at the Waffenplatz in Bière. You can find out everything else under the following link.

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Since the beginning of the 20th century, about 50 different races for automobiles, motorcycles and go-karts have already taken place in Ticino and the neighboring regions of the Grisons. Many have already almost fallen into oblivion.

In the elaborate book with the long title "Classiche motoristice in Ticino e nei Grigioni e storia del rally in Ticino" (Motor classics in Ticino and Grisons and history of rallies in Ticino) the reader learns everything about any events and the many racers from the two cantons. As many drivers from other cantons and from abroad often played a role or started their careers there, they are also discussed.

The 420-page book in the format 21 by 27 centimeters is only available in Italian. But the abundance of more than 1000 photos and illustrations (gallery) make it interesting even for non-linguistic readers. The author is the Ticino publicist Giorgio Keller, who already published a similar book about the Ticino GP drivers in 2019. It is published by Fontana EdizionI, Lugano at a price of 58 francs. It can be ordered by email to piloti.ticinesi@bluewin.ch or in bookstores (ISBN 978-88-8191-631-3).

Complete rally season in words and pictures
Rallyes 2022" focuses entirely on rallying, which is popular in French-speaking Switzerland. The author trio Nuno Ferreira, Sébastien Moulin and Baptiste Aebi from Sport-auto.ch not only review the past Swiss season, but also look back in French at the years 2012, 2002 and 1992.

This 176-page book in landscape format is also richly illustrated. The foreword is written by record-breaking world rally champion Sébastien Loeb, a Swiss by choice and friend of organizer Eric Jordan, who has competed in and won the Rallye du Chablais several times. Each rally report is accompanied by detailed results. In the appendix follows an interview with the new Swiss rally champion Jonathan Hirschi, an insight into the life of co-drivers and a ranking section.

The easiest way to obtain "Rallyes 2022" at a price of 68 Swiss francs is via the Sport-auto.ch homepage.

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Who will secure the title in the GT3 Cup of the Porsche Sprint Challenge Suisse: Veteran and championship leader Jürg Aeberhard or up-and-coming driver Jasin Ferati? Just nine points separated the two before the season finale in Misano, with a total of 59 points still up for grabs in the last two races.

Championship title in first GT3 season
Ferati made a strong start: The 19-year-old decided qualifying in his favor and relegated his rival to second place on the grid by half a second.

The youngster also left no stone unturned in the 15-lap sprint in his 515-hp 992-generation Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. He only allowed his rival to take the lead for a short time in the first few meters and then drove to a clear victory, including the fastest race lap.

This meant that the starting position before the final and decisive sprint run was: Aeberhard 279 points, Ferati 277. The first lap already indicated a thriller: Although Ferati started from pole position, Aeberhard initially took the lead again. However, the support driver immediately reversed this order, but always kept his pursuer on his heels.

But it was to be enough: At the finish, Ferati maintained a lead of 1.787 seconds and increased his Misano points haul to a maximum of 59, securing the championship title in his very debut year in the GT3 Cup.

Jasin Ferati: "Everything went right this weekend - from the car to the team. To win the title in my first year is such a nice feeling. I'd like to thank everyone who supported me. In both races I initially messed up the start, which was a huge stress. But I knew what I had to do. In the end, we were still able to take all the points."

Also a final duel for third place
Gregor Burkard and Alexander Schwarzer also fought an exciting duel. They were fighting for third place in the GT3 Cup group. Burkard arrived with a 17-point lead, but had to settle for fourth behind Schwarzer in the first race. The latter also took two extra points for third place on the grid and the third-fastest race lap and was unimpressed by a five-second time penalty for disregarding the track limits.

The picture was repeated in the second sprint race: Schwarzer drove unchallenged to third place, while Burkard first had to hold off Peter Hegglin and then defend his position against Marc Arn. However, fourth place was enough for the 34-year-old from Canton Zug to defend his third position in the GT3 Cup standings.

Mottet was already set as GT4 champion
In the field of GT4 sports cars, Alexandre Mottet was able to take it easy at the season finale in Misano, Italy. The title in Class 10 for the 425-hp Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport with the so-called Manthey package was no longer in reach of the French-Swiss driver (gallery on the left).

So it was Renzo Kressig who dominated the action in the first sprint race. As the best qualifier, he set the fastest race lap and even secured overall victory in this group on the 15th and final lap, as he was able to relegate the incomparably stronger RS model of Paolo Locatelli, competing in Class 19, to second place by 0.468 seconds.

Race two was a clear prey for the 500-hp 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport. Paolo Locatelli managed to beat Marc Schöni, who had taken over the Class 10 Porsche from Renzo Kressig, on the starting lap. However, Valerio Presezzi approached from behind, taking the lead in the sixth of 14 laps and defending the lead by a razor-thin margin - at the finish line, he was ahead by 0.309 seconds.

New winner in the Drivers Competition
Philippe Menotti won the first race of the Open GT group with his 911 GT3 R, while 911 GT3 Cup driver Loïc Villiger was in front in the second.

In the regularity competition of the Porsche Drivers Competition, first Marc Schöni and then Virgil Keller prevailed. Nicolas Garski, who had already been crowned champion, was no longer at the start.

Final demonstration of the juniors
The final two-hour endurance night race on the 4.226-kilometer Adria circuit, which is no longer part of any championship, was won by Patrick Dinkeldein and professional racer Marco Seefried at the wheel of a Porsche 911 GT3 R. Second place went to Jasin Ferati and Alexander Fach, the GT3 Cup title winner of the past two years (gallery right). In the Porsche Drivers Competition evenness contest, first Marc Schöni and then Virgil Keller prevailed.

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It was Nico Müller's decision to leave Audi Sport at the end of the 2022 DTM season. The future prospects at Peugeot were too tempting - keyword Le Mans. The Ingolstadt-based company was no longer able to offer them to him after turning away from the program already started with a hybrid sports prototype in favor of Formula 1 - as engine partner of Sauber Motorsport.

Saturday horror
In front of many Swiss fans in the paddock and on the grandstands, Müller would have liked to put himself in the limelight once again. In Saturday's race, which was overshadowed by two serious accidents involving several cars and fortunately did not result in any injuries (see video), the Audi R8s were at a disadvantage in terms of classification compared with their BMW and Mercedes rivals and therefore had no chance in the fight for the podium.

In addition, Müller's car was pretty badly affected by some contacts. More than 8th place was therefore out of the question.

Damage limitation at the beautiful finish
In Sunday's more sedate race, in which 20 GT3 sports cars started in beautiful autumn weather instead of 27 as on the previous day, Müller again suffered early contact with an opponent. Despite the resulting damage to the car, the Bernese driver was able to finish in sixth place.

Nico Müller: "The race became a battle after the early collision. Sixth place was thus the maximum for me. On the whole, today was a very nice end to my nine years in the DTM with lots of spectators and a very good atmosphere overall."

Less successful than in the last two touring car years
After finishing runner-up in the Audi RS4 in 2019 and 2020, Müller was unable to build on his recent successes in the 600-plus horsepower turbo touring car with the new Audi R8 Evo from Team Rosberg. As a result, he had to settle for a single victory on May 1, 2022 at Portimão - his eleventh overall in the DTM - in the GT3 era that began in 2021.

He closes the 2022 DTM as the second-best Audi driver in seventh place among 27 drivers with points. The race wins at the Motodrom Hockenheim were clinched by Austria's Lucas Auer on Mercedes-AMG on Saturday and Marco Wittmann on BMW M4 GT3 on Sunday. The championship title goes to South African Sheldon van der Linde on BMW ahead of Auer and Renè Rast (Audi).

No happy ending for Feller and Ineichen
The second Swiss Audi factory driver Ricardo Feller was one of the many accident victims on Saturday. Rolf Ineichen's drive also ended brutally in a wall, after which his Lamborghini had to be written off for the rest of the weekend.

Feller's ABT team, on the other hand, managed to repair the R8 in a night shift. On Sunday, the driver from Aargau catapulted it from the back of the field into the top ten within a few laps before a puncture set him back again.

He then finished twelfth and last without scoring any points. Feller finished his first season, which had already brought him his first DTM victory on the second weekend in Imola, in 15th position.

Ricardo Feller: "My first DTM season was very mixed. There were nice moments and not so nice moments. Luck wasn't quite on our side most of the time. Nevertheless, working with ABT Sportsline and Scherer is a lot of fun."

Final standings DTM 2022 Classification race 1 Classification race 2

dtm.com