Ferrari was a front-running producer within the first two years of the DTM’s GT3 period in 2021-22, with the factory-supported and Purple Bull-branded AF Corse squad even difficult for the title with Liam Lawson in 2021.
Nonetheless, with AF Corse leaving and being changed by Emil Frey as Ferrari’s sole consultant within the DTM, and the ageing 488 GT3 additionally making approach for the brand new 296 GT3, outcomes have been proving to be a lot more durable to attain in 2023.
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The Emil Frey/Ferrari partnership did get off to a robust be aware at Oschersleben with Aitken qualifying on the entrance row on debut after which ending third within the race, however that had began to look like a false daybreak as errors and inconsistency prevented the staff from contending for a podium once more.
That was till the fifth spherical of the season on the Lausitzring, the place Aitken, Emil Frey and Ferrari lastly lived as much as the promise they’d proven as they celebrated a powerful a powerful victory from pole place.
Other than a short interval through the pitstop part the place Lamborghini’s Mirko Bortolotti jumped him with an undercut, Aitken was by no means headed as he crossed the road 2.4s away from the sector in his blue and pink Ferrari.
It adopted the 296 GT3’s historic victory on the Nurburgring 24 Hours in Could, which was a primary for a non-German automobile on the twice-around-the-clock clock enduro since 2002.
So how was Ferrari lastly in a position to tackle German heavyweights Audi, BMW, Mercedes and Porsche in addition to fellow Italian marque Lamborghini on the Lausitzring?
In response to Emil Frey Racing boss Lorenz Frey-Hilti, the Steadiness of Efficiency modifications made within the run as much as the race have been instrumental in guaranteeing the 296 GT3 was at a par with its rivals, having beforehand struggled in a straight line.
The enhance stress of the automobile, which had fluctuated between 2.36-2.40 bar within the first three rounds, was raised to 2.425 bar on the Nurburgring, earlier than being elevated additional to 2.525 bar on the Lausitzring.
This meant that the Ferrari went from being the slowest automobile in pace traps firstly of the season to the second-best within the area, solely behind the BMW M4 GT3.
Jack Aitken, Emil Frey Racing Ferrari Ferrari 296 GT3
Photograph by: Alexander Trienitz
“There was an enormous BoP change and we fought laborious for that,” Frey-Hilti advised Autosport’s sister title Motorsport-Complete.com. “Lausitzring was the primary race, other than Nurburgring, the place we did not need to combat with blunt weapons by way of high pace.
“The automobile may be very quick within the corners. We have been subsequently disadvantaged of a lot energy that, though we have been excellent on a free lap in qualifying, we could not get off the mark within the race even firstly.
“It was usually loopy how we misplaced three or 4 locations firstly, though the response time of each drivers was excellent. The drivers simply did not have any enhance.
“In case you have no acceleration out of the corners and no high pace, we had races the place we have been 8-9km/h slower, then you definately’re preventing with blunt weapons.”
Regardless of feeling that the 296 GT3 was held again by an absence of energy within the first half of the season as a consequence of BoP, the Emil Frey staff sympathises with SRO, which is now liable for equalising the efficiency between all six automobiles within the collection.
“I do not need to complain, as a result of it is also very tough for the individuals who do the BoP, as a result of you do not have that a lot knowledge and expertise with a brand new automobile,” Frey-Hilti stated.
“And also you by no means know for positive: Is that basically the utmost or did they’ve a nasty set-up? Nevertheless it was very irritating that we did an excellent job in a few races and it nonetheless wasn’t sufficient.”
Podium: Race winner Jack Aitken, Emil Frey Racing
Photograph by: Alexander Trienitz
Ferrari’s new GT3 racer additionally suffered with brake overheating within the early rounds as a consequence of a design flaw, which meant Aitken and his team-mate Thierry Vermeulen needed to drive staggered in visitors to be able to hold the temperature inside limits.
Nonetheless, this proved to be much less of an issue for Aitken final weekend, each as a result of observe structure and the British driver’s beginning place.
“We had sure race tracks the place it was brutal,” Frey-Hilti defined. “The Norisring is an excessive engine and brake observe.
“It actually helped [at Lausitzring] that Jack was in a position to drive forward and by no means needed to drive behind one other automobile for lengthy. However even in any other case it wasn’t an enormous drawback for us on this observe as a result of there’s sufficient time between the braking zones to chill the system down.”
Aitken on his half feels he and Emil Frey have been inconsistent within the first half of the season as a result of they have been nonetheless making an attempt to know the automobile, which changed the 488 GT3 that has been in service since 2016.
Emil Frey was additionally fully new to Ferrari equipment, having beforehand campaigned Lamborghini Huracan GT3s in championships reminiscent of GT World Problem Europe and the ADAC GT Masters.
“It is regular when you’ve a brand new automobile and even a brand new staff that there’s a studying course of. We had the pace, which we noticed instantly in Oschersleben,” he defined.
“However we additionally knew that this was a observe the place the Ferrari would in all probability do fairly nicely and these ups and downs that we noticed are simply making an attempt to study the automobile.
“We additionally had some errors on my aspect and the staff as nicely. It is not been straightforward to get to a constant degree however I believe on the final spherical within the Nurburgring we confirmed an excellent tempo however we could not get the consequence, however now we’re managing to do a race mistake-free and capitalise.”