Never a dull moment at GT Opens visit to Hockenheim at the weekend

The British based Blackthorn Aston Martin Racing team were also in action in Germany at the weekend as their events programme saw them compete in not just the Michelin Le Mans Cup Series at Silverstone but also at Hockenheim within the International GT Open Series.

Their presence was also the sole AMR Vantage GT3 at the circuit with the Polish based Good Speed Racing team electing not to attend this sixth round of the 2026 season.

 

Charles Bateman would again be joined by factory driver Jonny Adam behind the wheel of their #97 Aston Martin as they and the team looked to progress their Pro-Am class efforts in time for the final round of the season from Barcelona at the end of next month.

Racing again both a seventy-minute race on Saturday before a further sixty-minute race on Sunday, the #97 car was again part of a healthy twenty-seven car line up for the event at the former home of the German Grand Prix.

With Bateman having qualified their car P14 overall/P2 in class, he would take the opening stint to the first race under the then warm and dry track conditions as he held his class position up until the first Safety Car intervention at the fifty-three-minute mark after two cars had come together. From the restart, it was almost straight into the opening of the pit window from where Bateman would hand over to Adam from P13 overall.

 

By the end of the stops, the #97 had however dropped to seventh in class with a tough twenty-five-minute sprint still ahead of the Scot where a last lap lunge would eventually see them finishing just off the class podium in P14 overall/P4 in class.

For race two, it was Adams turn to qualify the car which he did P3 overall but pole position (naturally) within class ahead of this slightly shorter race but even before the cars reached the start line, the rain was already beginning to fall with all of the cars on slicks.

 

A first corner heavy side to side contact with another car didn’t help matters either as the #97 dropped to seventh overall just before the end of the opening lap only to spin at the final corner to end up twenty third overall. From that point, it was a slow relentless climb up the order with some easy places made up as multiple cars went off in the rain for some easy drive-by places. The pit window was bisected by an ongoing FCY which would eventually be extended to allow all to pit under the same track speed conditions.

Starting his stint from P13 overall/P5 in class, Bateman would have just fifteen minutes to complete but even that was shortened by another Safety Car intervention for a car hard off into the wall. That left just five more minutes to go but with a 50% wet and a 50% dry’ish track to deal with for the #97 car to eventually finish P12 overall /P5 in class.

The series now moves onto Monza at the end of the month.

Photo credits – Fotospeedy