Podium for Joshua at the fourth round of the ADAC Formula 4 at the 24hNBR
• Joshua Dürksenachieves second place in the first race and the fastest lap
• Teammanager Roland Rehfeld: "Joshua had a great start in the first race as usual. I expected him to make it to fourth place in the first lap, but I was wrong - he made it to third place. After a great overtaking maneuver he finally finished second. If it hadn't been for the safety car, he might still have been able to launch an attack for victory"
Joshua Dürksen started with BWT Mücke Motorsportat the last weekend in front of an impressive scenery. The fourth station of the ADAC Formula 4 season was held as part of the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring. This gave Joshua Dürksen the opportunity to dive a little into the world of endurance racing. However, he didn't lose his focus on the three ADAC Formula 4 races, which presented him some special challenges. First, the young drivers drove on the Grand Prix version of the Nürburgring and not on the sprint track they were familiar with. Fand 2nd, the Eifel weather lived up to its name: it was cold, wet and extremely uncomfortable.
At the start of the first race on Friday afternoon, the track was mostly dry. Joshua had missed the pole position for this race by only 0.020 seconds. Due to a penalty transfer of five positions he started from seventh position. After one of his almost notoriously strong starts he was already third. Towards the end of the race he fought with the runner-up, which Joshua won. The 16-year-old was unable to start an attack on the front runner because the race ended behind the safety car as rain set in. Joshua was happy about his fourth podium of the season and the fastest race lap.
The second race was held early Saturday morning in low temperatures and on a still wet track. In these conditions it was difficult to get the tires into the right working window. Joshua also started the race with a mortgage. It started from position eleven. In the second qualifying session, which was decisive for the starting grid of the second race, Joshua had relied on slicks on a still wet track. However, this tactic did not work out. In the race, he was able to limit the damage a little with ninth place and two points.
The starting grid for the third race on Saturday afternoon was based on the result of the second race and so Josh had to start from ninth position. The conditions were still cold and wet. The race was started behind the safety car and was released after about five minutes. For the drivers further back in the field the track conditions were particularly difficult. The spray created by the cars in front of them obstructed their view. Nevertheless, the BWT Mücke Motorsport pilot worked his way forward. Joshua drove a few minutes before the end of the race a little too bravely into the last corner, got into the gravel bed before the start and finish and unfortunately got stuck there.
With 110 points, Joshu now ranks fifth in the drivers' championship.
The fifth stop of the ADAC Formula 4 season is the Red Bull Ring. From 16 to 18 October, the ADAC's high-speed school will be visiting the Formula 1 and MotoGP circuit near Spielberg.
Roland Rehfeld (Teammanager):
"Joshua had a great start in the first race as usual. I expected him to make it to fourth place on the first lap, but I was wrong - he made it to third place. After a great overtaking maneuver he finally finished second. If it hadn't been for the safety car, he might still have been able to launch an attack for victory. Joshua's podium was a nice success. Unfortunately, this highlight was followed by disillusionment in the second race. We had problems getting the tires up to temperature and couldn't realize our potential. In race 3 we unfortunately saw that Joshua's ridge between top and flop is narrow. He is very fast, but makes mistakes every now and then. Our outlook for the Red Bull Ring is positive, because Joshua won for us there in the Italian Formula 4 just a few weeks ago"
Photos © BWT Mücke | GruppeC
