A weekend full of ups and downs for Iron Lynx

Today, Italian racing team, Iron Lynx, concluded its second round of this year’s European Le Mans Series (ELMS) and Ferrari Challenge campaign, in what was a weekend of two halves.   

In the ELMS at Imola, the #83 Iron Dames machine driven by Sarah Bovy, Michelle Gatting and Rahel Frey finished in eighth place in the LMGTE Am category, after showing podium-finishing pace and yet another strong opening stint by Sarah Bovy. But it was a puncture with Rahel at the wheel that sadly undid all the team’s hard work. Michelle’s late race pace showed the potential of the car but bringing the car to the finish at this point was the top priority.   

The #60 car of Claudio Schiavoni, Matteo Cressoni and Davide Rigon gained multiple places from their starting position to finish in fifth place, gaining valuable points for the team. With a tricky mid-race stint for Matteo and a drive-through penalty, the team was still able to show good pace in the hands of Davide in the latter stages.  

PREMA Racing scored yet another brilliant overall victory in the series, with Lorenzo Colombo, Louis Deletraz and Ferdinand Habsburg overcoming two mid-race penalties to take a sensational victory after showing some blistering pace. 

For the Ferrari Challenge round at Paul Ricard, it was championship leader Doriane Pin that took a commanding pole position for race one, but a late puncture took away almost-certain victory, reducing the 18-year-old to a fourteenth-place finish in what was another dominant performance.  

Onto race two, and Doriane was tasked with fighting through the field after a frustrating qualifying left the Iron Dame down in fifteenth place. But, after showing maturity and calmness during the whole race, she finished third, gaining twelve places and retaining her championship lead. 

Arno Dahlmeyer scored his first podium in the series, finishing a strong third place in race one. But, unfortunately in race two, he would finish tenth after a drive-through penalty was received when he made contact on lap one. But overall, it was an impressive weekend for the German, showing increased speed and building on his learnings from last season. 

Iron Lynx newcomer, Nigel Schoonderwoerd, scored a notable eighth place in race one, gaining five places from this his thirteenth starting spot. In race two, he continued his strong form with a second place, scoring the team’s third podium of the weekend. 

Team Principal of Iron Lynx, Andrea Piccini, said:

“Sadly, it was a frustrating race in Imola, with the Iron Dames suffering a puncture when Rahel was at the wheel, causing the team to lose a safe podium finish. Sarah did a very good qualifying and opening stint, as well as Michelle’s strong performance, so we must take positives from the pace that was shown this weekend.  

“For the #60 car, Claudio had a great opening stint with a good strategy in place. When Matteo joined the race, the car had a very unbalanced set of tyres, and made his middle stretch very difficult to drive and lost some time. Unfortunately, we had a drive-through penalty and lost about forty seconds, so when Davide entered the car, he was too far behind, and we had to settle for fifth place. 

“In Ferrari Challenge, it was great to see all drivers scoring podiums, with Doriane, Arno and Nigel showing excellent performances.   

“Doriane did a mega job to come back after being under some pressure in the qualifying session, and overall, this is a big learning experience for her going forward.  

“It’s a fantastic result for Arno and Nigel scoring their first podiums. I would say it’s been a good weekend in general, with all cars showing great pace. 

“Now we’ll head back home and have two long weeks of preparation and full focus for the big one at Le Mans.” 

The 2022 European Le Mans Series continues at the Monza Circuit in Italy for the 4 Hours of Monza on July 3rd, 2022, with the Ferrari Challenge continuing in Budapest, Hungary on July 18th and 19th, 2022.