Mettler: "I missed such a victory" 🎥

GT3 TRIUMPH WITH BENTLEY At the International GT Open in Monza, Lucerne's Yannick Mettler took the first overall victory in a GT3 race under his own steam with Italian Fabio Crestani in a Bentley. As the brief highlights show, Mettler took the lead in the Bentley at the first corner. Class victories in the VLN, 24H Series, GT3, GT4 [...]

Editorial - September 28, 2020

As the brief highlights show, Mettler took the lead with the Bentley in the first turn.

Yannick Mettler has already had plenty of class wins in the VLN, 24H Series, GT3, GT4 and Formula 3. But at the third event of the International GT Open in Monza, he was able to stand on the podium of a GT3 race for the first time as overall winner in the first race.

Up and away
The 30-year-old from Lucerne had paved the way there himself with the best qualifying time in the Bentley Continental GT3 of the Italian Lazarus team. After Mettler had taken the lead straight from pole position and maintained it until the driver change, his Italian professional partner Fabio Crestani brought the car home safely in P1 in front of the gleaming eyes of the British boss of Bentley Motorsport.

For the drivers as well as for the team and the brand a premiere in this championship.

Yannick Mettler: "After the first corner, where I got another bump from behind, I immediately tried to put some distance between us and shake the opponents out of the slipstream. Then everything really fell into place. A victory like that was still missing from my statistics."

Only in the first chicane after the start did Mettler briefly come under pressure. After that, he shook off his pursuers.

Following in the footsteps of success at Emil Frey Racing
For the professional racing driver and instructor, it was also a nice compensation for his absence from the Nürburgring 24 Hours, where he took several class wins in recent years. This year he is setting other priorities.

So far, the last Swiss winner in the International GT Open, which some teams use as a cheaper alternative to the GT World Challenge or ADAC GT Masters, was Philipp Frommenwiler.

In 2017, the man from Thurgau took four race wins and third place in the championship with Emil Frey Racing and works driver Albert Costa on Lexus. The Safenwil-based team secured these in the previous year with the two Lamborghini Huracáns in the drivers' and team standings.

Only in their own box Fabio Crestani and Yannick Mettler were allowed to show themselves without a mask with their trophies. So you can also see their joy.

Development team for Bentley
For the second race, Crestani qualified for third on the grid, which he defended until handing over to Mettler. As the previous day's winner, the duo had to stop 15 seconds longer, which dropped them to ninth. The Swiss finished fifth and third respectively in the Pro classification.

Because Lazarus had foregone the previous third event at the Red Bull Ring, the Lucerne native and his team no longer primarily have the title in their sights.

Yannick Mettler: "Of course it's bitter that we hardly have any title chances left. But we're now aiming for stage wins. In addition, we're doing important development work with Michelin tires for Bentley and M Sport. Since the first two races in Hungary and Le Castellet, where we finished fourth once each, we've completed a steep learning curve."

To what extent it will affect the further course of Yannick Mettler's career remains to be seen. More important people now know his name.