Starnberg
Christian Engelhart is Southern Bavarian Circuit Champion again
Christian Engelhart has won the title of the most successful circuit pilot in Southern Bavaria for the eighth time in succession. With his successes in international GT racing in 2018, he can look back at the season with satisfaction.
Christian Engelhart lined up with Rolf Ineichen for the Grasser Racing Lamborghini team in the ADAC GT Masters. The German/Swiss duo captured pole position and a place on the rostrum in the season opener. The summer part of the season was characterized by a number of tough races. However, the entire team kept on working hard and so reaped success toward the end of the season in shape of several finishes among the top spots. 22 different winners from nine teams and five brands are clear testimony to how evenly matched the series is. In addition, twelve different drivers clocked the fastest lap in the total of 14 races. Christian even managed that twice. He and his teammate Rolf Ineichen also notched up six victories in the Pirelli Trophy rankings, more than any other pilots in the past season.
“All in all, we can be happy with how our season went in the ADAC GT Masters,” said Christian. “And especially when you consider how evenly matched the pilots were this season. We always gave our all in 2018 and in particular made extremely good advances in the second half of the season. It always feels good to lead the final race. So I had a healthy dose of motivation going into the winter break and am already working on preparations for the projects in 2019.”
In the international Blancpain GT Sprint Series, Christian and his teammate Mirko Bortolotti were title contenders up to the final race and won two races. He ultimately finished the season in fifth overall.
Christian noted: “In particular the sensational first lap in Budapest on a drying track has stuck in my memory. I stormed up from fifth to first in very tough conditions. However, there were a few other highlights this year, such as winning the 24 Hours of Zolder. I’d like to take this opportunity of thanking my loyal fans, of course my Grasser Racing team and Gottfried Grasser, as well as Lamborghini and above all my partners for their great support in the 2018 season. Now we have to prepare for next season. And there’s a lot to be done, since we have ambitious goals. But first I’m very much looking forward to a (short) breather and a wonderful and peaceful Christmas with my family. Then we start back directly on the winter program in January. I’m sure I’ll soon be able to tell you what exactly that involves.”