• #13 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Team Zakspeed Mobil Krankenkasse Racing wins race 2 
• #22 and #70 Mercedes-AMG GT3s round out the podium in a 1-2-3
• 2nd place for #22 Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT in race 1

The fourth ADAC GT Masters race weekend was the most successful for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport to date in the current season. In the Sunday race at Lausitzring, the teams made it a clean sweep of the podium for Mercedes-AMG. Jules Gounon (FRA) and Igor Walilko (POL) secured victory with the #13 Team Zakspeed Mobil Krankenkasse Racing entry followed by Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT (#22) with drivers Maro Engel and Luca Stolz (beide GER) and MANN-FILTER Team LANDGRAF HTP/WWR (#70) with Raffaele Marciello (ITA) and Maximilian Buhk (GER). Engel and Stolz had also finished in second place in the first race of the weekend on Saturday. Marciello and Buhk, meanwhile, also racked up valuable championship points and moved up to within three points from the leaders in the standings.

In qualifying on Sunday morning, the Mercedes-AMG GT3s shone with fast lap times, already laying the foundation for an impressive success. With the #13 Team Zakspeed Mobil Krankenkasse Racing car, Jules Gounon (FRA) claimed pole position, rewarding his team for working overtime during the night. Following an incident on Saturday, the crew had been working on the car to get it race ready again until 5am.

Maro Engel (GER) qualified Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT car in third place. Maximilian Buhk initially ended up in fifth position with the #70 car and was promoted one place further up on the grid following a penalty for an opponent.

Things were looking even better after the start of the race: Gounon had a good getaway and defended his lead in a commanding way while Engel moved up into second in the first corner whereas Buhk also worked his way up, gaining one place on the opening lap following intense position fights. As a result, three Mercedes-AMG GT3s were leading the field of the GT cars. As the first stint went on, the trio gradually extended its lead over its rivals.

Thanks to a quick driver change within the set time window from Gounon to Igor Walilko (POL), the margin of the #13 Mercedes-AMG GT3 against its two fellow Mercedes-AMGs increased after the mandatory pit stops. Celebrating his 24^th birthday on Sunday, Walilko seamlessly built on the dominant performance of his experienced partner and extended the lead. However, a safety car intervention bunched up the field again going into the final part of the race. At the restart with six minutes remaining, Walilko defended his lead against rival Stolz and eventually was first across the finish line. With the second victory of the season for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport, he gave himself the best possible present at the same time. Behind Stolz, Marciello secured third place, rounding out the triple success.

Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT finishes in second place of race 1

In the action-packed Saturday race, marked by multiple safety car interventions and a longer interruption, Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT and MANN-FILTER Team LANDGRAF HTP/WWR showed a strong performance. With the #22 car, Luca Stolz reacted quickly from third place on the grid and made up one position, slotting in right behind the leader. Marciello held on to fourth place in the turbulent opening part. Until the pit stops at the halfway point, positions remained unchanged.

Maro Engel took over from Stolz and initially had to defend his position from the charging driver in third place until the race was interrupted for 40 minutes. Jules Gounon had lost oil due to damage on the #13 car for which he wasn’t at fault, so that the track had to be cleaned first. The restart with 21 minutes remaining then saw the field complete four laps behind the safety car. Once this had pulled in, Engel immediately put the leader under pressure. However, another safety car intervention stopped his attempts to attack just a little bit later.

In the three laps of racing that remained, Engel was no longer able to make a successful move. His eventual second place was the fourth podium success for Mercedes-AMG Motorsport in the current ADAC GT Masters season. Having taken over from Marciello, Maximilian Buhk drove fourth place for the yellow-and-green mamba home in a commanding way, securing himself and his teammate further valuable points for the drivers’ standings.

Jules Gounon, Team Zakspeed Mobil Krankenkasse Racing (#13): “I am massively happy about today! With pole position in the morning, things already got off to a superb start and it couldn’t have ended any better than with this victory. This is the deserved reward after the bad luck we had yesterday. Thanks to the team and to Igor. Thanks also to Mercedes-AMG for the support and the strong car!”

Igor Walilko, Team Zakspeed Mobil Krankenkasse Racing (#13): “I can hardly find words to describe my feelings. In qualifying, Jules already did excellent groundwork with pole position, I just had to bring it home. Saturday wasn’t an easy day for us, but this success for the entire team is even more beautiful as a result. First, second and third place for Mercedes-AMG, we achieved the maximum score. I am overjoyed, this is the best birthday present I could have wished for!”

Luca Stolz, Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT (#22): “This weekend really was fun. We had the necessary pace right away. A pair of second places, that is quite a decent result. It was about time, too, to strike back after a rather patchy first half of the season. The team is doing its utmost for us day and night, so therefore, I am happy that we were able to thank them with two trophies. Now, we want to carry the momentum for the next races and be in contention at Sachsenring as well. The first win of the season is our goal.”

Maro Engel, Mercedes-AMG Team Toksport WRT (#22): “With a pair of second places, it was a super weekend for us. The team has done a fantastic job and gave us a great Mercedes-AMG GT3. The 1-2-3 for Mercedes-AMG on Sunday was an undisputed highlight, of course. Achieving a success like that in such a hard-fought series is something really special. Thanks to everybody in Affalterbach and to our teams who have made this possible!”

Raffaele Marciello, MANN-FILTER Team Landgraf – HTP WWR (#70): “For the championship, this was a very important weekend for us as we have been able to score many valuable points. On Sunday, we had a minor issue with a shock absorber, so with third place, we really got the best possible result out of it. Now, it is about using the momentum and building on these achievements.”

Stefan Wendl, head of Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing: “Three Mercedes-AMG GT3s in the first three places, that is a great success for us. The level in ADAC GT Masters is getting higher year after year, so the result from the Sunday race has to be acknowledged even more. For the drivers and teams who already have been achieving enormous things all season long, it is a nice reward. At the same time, this 1-2-3 is giving us a boost for the second half of the season in which we will now be attacking for the championship lead with two teams.”