9. April 2018 · VLN

Marco Seefried began his 2018 season at the second round of the VLN at the Nürburgring. He shared driving duties behind the wheel of a Porsche 911 GT3 for cult team Frikadelli Racing with Felipe Fernandez Laser und Mathieu Jaminet. Despite a strong showing in free practice, technical issues on the car prevented the team from taking the chequered flag.

The problems began in the qualifying session, with the driver trio unable to attack due to drivetrain issues. They ended up 15th fastest.

“Unfortunately, we had some technical problems at the end of the qualifying session, and so weren’t able to go for one final run,” said Seefried. “What’s more, we came across some traffic during our quickest lap. I think we could have posted a time of around 8:00 minutes, which would have been good enough for the top five. Still, we were optimistic going into the race.”

Despite Seefried’s confidence, the race didn’t go to plan for the German. Ongoing technical issues caught up with the team once again, with Seefried taking over from Laser after his first stint but returning to the pits for repairs on several occasions. The team lost a great deal of time trying to locate the problem and ultimately decided to retire the car before the end of the race.

“First of all, it was great to be back on the Nordschleife,” the 42-year-old added. “It’s always great to race here in such wonderful weather and in front of a big crowd. Unfortunately, my race stint was cut short because the problems we experienced in qualifying returned. I had to come back to the pit several times and we tried everything to resolve the issues. It’s important that we find out what went wrong, especially with an eye on the qualifying race for the 24h Nürburgring. I can’t wait to get another chance in the car.

Marco Seefried will return to the driving seat of the Porsche 911 GT3 R for Klaus Abbelen’s team on 14 and 15 April for the qualifying race for the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring.

6. April 2018 · 24H Nürburgring

Marco Seefried starts the VLN Endurance Championship on 7^th April in a Frikadelli Racing Porsche 911 GT3 R. He will also be contesting the Nürburgring 24 Hours for the team from Barweiler. In addition, Seefried will be driving in the 2018 Blancpain GT Series.

The VLN season’s second race sees the stalwart returning to the Nürburgring, where he will be enhancing the cult team Frikadelli Racing in the 43^rd DMV 4-hour race and also the 24-hour and qualifying race. The 42-year-old Porsche specialist can draw on his extensive Nordschleife experience as he has regularly been on the road on the traditional Eifel circuit since 2007. In addition to driving in the VLN, he’s entered the 24-hour-race in the “Green Hell” several times and taken second place in 2010 and 2016. Now he’s aiming to top these results.

For the Blancpain GT Series, Seefried will be behind the wheel of a Lexus RC F GT3 on 22^nd April. In 2017, he already drove the European endurance series season together with the Swiss team Emil Frey Racing. This year the 2018 Endurance Championship’s calendar includes five race weekends in Italy, England, France, Belgium and Spain. Highlight of the programme will be the famous 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps.

The VLN Endurance Championship can be followed per live stream and ticker on the official homepage. The Blancpain GT Series will be internationally covered by various TV channels and all races will also be streamed on the website.

18. December 2017 · General

The 2017 season was the start of a new chapter for Marco Seefried. For the first time in his career, the Austrian-by choice was at the start of four different race series with five different vehicles. After his latest podium success in the Gulf 12 Hours in Abu Dhabi, the 41-year-old looks back on his motorsport season with pride.

The endurance specialist’s main task saw him driving  – for the first time – with the Swiss Emil Frey Racing Team and he was behind the wheel of the especially built Emil Frey GT3 Jaguar, the car used by the stalwart in all Endurance Cup races of the Blancpain GT Series. “Races weren’t always easy, but it was a really special experience. We’ve created a solid foundation for the future and learnt a great deal about the car.”

The second major challenge took place in a BMW M6 GT3. The car manufacturer took the Nordschleife expert on board the Falken Racing team. Driving the Bavarian sports car was also personal new ground for Seefried and despite the unfamiliar setting, he quickly found his former strength and finished the Nürburgring 24H in an overall eighth place.

In addition to the numerous races in Europe, Seefried was drawn to the States in 2017. Together with Magnus Racing, he gave his debut in the Audi R8 LMS during the Sprint-X GT Championship. “I love the US races,” says the Bavarian, looking back. “The tracks are quite different to those in Europe and so it’s a completely different challenge. The first season wasn’t easy, but despite all setbacks, we soon found our bearings and were already able to finalise the first podium finish in Utah.”

Seefried’s involvement in the China GT Championship also took him to the Asian continent. Together with the Team FAW T2M operated by HubAuto, the sports car specialist made his debut in the Chinese racing series. He collected a great deal of experience during the races in Zuhai and Chengdu and supported the team in the Porsche 911 GT3 R on the demanding race tracks.

The Abu Dhabi 12-hour race completed his worldwide programme. Starting from eighth on the grid, Marco Seefried and his Rinaldi team mates Norbert Siedler and Rinat Salikhov sovereignly drove the Ferrari 488 GT3 through the highly competitive field to second position.

Despite tyre damage and a lengthy safety car phase, the driver trio remained unperturbed and continually reclaimed the top position. Marco Seefried and his team mates battled till the end and eventually only just missed victory in second place.

“An eventful year lies behind me”, Marco Seefried goes on to say. “For me, 2017 was the year with the most premieres and I often had to switch my thoughts from one car or race track to another, which didn’t make things easier. Rarely has a season been so varied for me before, but I have learned a lot and am proud to have had this experience.”

1. October 2017 · Blancpain Endurance Series

Together with his teammates Jonathan Hirschi and Christian Klien, Marco Seefried scored points in the Blancpain GT Series season’s finale. Right up to the very last moment, the Emil Frey trio gave an impressive performance with numerous wheel-to-wheel battles on the Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya and after three hours finished the season in tenth place.

Marco Seefried started the last GT3 championship race from 14th on the grid after technical problems during qualifying. In an impressive start phase, the Bavarian was able to make up six positions and improve to eighth place. Due to different pit stop strategies, Seefried handed over his Emil Frey Jaguar GT3 to teammate Jonathan Hirschi in second place overall after a good hour’s driving time.

“The team gave us a superbly coordinated car and it was no problem for me to make really good ground in my stint”, said the 41-year-old, looking back at the start of the 3-hour race. “Unfortunately, Jonathan was involved in a collision after the driver change and we lost a few positions.”

In a nerve-racking final phase, his teammates managed to drive the car back into the point ranks and finish the season finale in a strong tenth place. “After the incident halfway through the race, we can be more than satisfied with tenth place”, said a happy Marco Seefried and added: “At this point, I’d also like to express my great respect for our sister car #14, which made an impressive fight from the back of the field to eleventh place!”

Even if the raceweekend outside the gates of Barcelona marks the Blancpain GT Series finale, Marco Seefried has no time to sit back and relax. As early as 5th October, the Austrian-by-choice will be tackling the penultimate round of the China GT Championship on the Chengdu International Circuit.

1. 24/03/2018    64. ADAC Westfalenfahrt
2. 07/04/2018   43. DMV 4-Stunden-Rennen
3. 14/04/2018    6h Qualifikation for 24h Nürburgring
4. 12/05/2018    24h Nürburgring
5. 23/06/2018     60. ADAC ACAS H&R-Cup
6. 07/07/2018     49. Adenauer ADAC Rundstrecken-Trophy
7. 18/08/2018     ROWE 6 Stunden ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen
8. 01/09/2018     41. RCM DMV Grenzlandrennen
9. 22/09/2018     58. ADAC Reinoldus-Langstreckenrennen
10. 06/10/2017     50. ADAC Barbarossapreis
11. 20/10/2017     43. DMV Münsterlandpokal

Team: This year Marco Seefried races in the VLN Endurance Championship as well as the 24h at the Nürburgring together with the Frikadelli Racing Team. For more than ten years the “fastest meatball in the world” has been an integral part of the VLN and enjoys cult status among many fans.

Car: This season, Marco Seefried is driving the team’s Porsche 911 GT3 R. The GT3 R features a 500 plus horsepower engine and is powered by a cutting-edge four litre flat-six unit. In developing the Porsche special attention was paid to a lightweight design and a better aerodynamiv efficiency.

*Confirmed races are highlighted bold

1. 22/04/2018     Monza (Italy) – Endurance Cup
2. 20/05/2018     Silverstone (Great Britain) – Endurance Cup
3. 02/06/2018     Paul Ricard (France) – Endurance Cup
4. 29/07/2018     24h Spa (Belgium) – Endurance Cup
5. 30/10/2018     Barcelona (Spain) – Endurance Cup

Team: Emil Frey Racing is the racing division of the Swiss vehicle retailer Emil Frey. The team from Safenwil has been involved in worldwide motorsport since the 60’s. Marco Seefried has been racing with the team in the Blancpain GT Series in 2017 already.

Car: Marco Seefried will be behind the wheel of the Lexus RC F GT3. The Swiss team’s racing car is powered by a 500+ bhp V8 engine and weighs 1.300 kg.

*Confirmed races are highlighted bold