Double Podium For Bird At Nurburgring
Following on from his top five finish in the previous round at Zandvoort in The Netherlands, Cumbrian racing driver Frank Bird was on top form in round four of the ADAC GT Masters Series where he came away with a double podium from the Nurburgring in Germany.
Driving for MANN-FILTER Team LANDGRAF, Penrith-born Frank once again teamed up with 18-year-old Finnish driver Elias Seppanen for the two races in the Frank Bird Poultry Ltd-backed Mercedes AMG-GT3.
Throughout the weekend, they were continually towards the front and claimed an impressive top five position in the Free Practice Trophy which preceeded the main action. Qualifying in fourth overall and second Junior car for the opening race, Frank drove a calculated race to end up in sixth overall, but third in the Junior class he is contesting in the green and yellow liveried ‘Junior Mamba’ car.
However, better was to come in the second outing where they had qualified in fourth place on the grid. Another brilliant performance from Bird and the rest of the team saw them come home in a fantastic fourth overall and once again claimed third in the Junior class to seal their second podium of the weekend. However, had it not been for a minor technical infringement during the pitstop, for which they were penalised, it could have been a podium outright for Frank and the team.
Frank Bird: "Sixth and fourth places overall meant the best weekend so far for Elias and me in the ADAC GT Masters, so I am very satisfied. We are improving from race to race and have now been able to climb onto the Junior podium twice. In race one I had some great duels on the track and in qualifying for Sunday's race, I expected a place in the top ten. To start from third on the grid was terrific, and after the start of the race, I was even directly behind my teammate Maro Engel in second place for some corners. After that, however, I could not hold the line and took the third position. Without the penalty, we would certainly have reached the overall podium. I hope that we can maintain this performance in the next races."
Round five of the series visits the Lausitsring, again in Germany over the weekend of 19/21 August 2022.
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