Fantastic points haul for Filipino driver Eduardo Coseteng on his ADAC GT Masters debut over the weekend. Alongside teammate Ben Green, the pair scored 2nd and 4th place finishes at Hockenheimring in Germany to bring Schubert Motorsport to 3rd in the championship standings.
The team’s strong results at the season opener did not come easy though. In Qualifying, the pair only managed P8 and P6 during the 2 sessions despite being less than a second slower than the pole sitter.
Eduardo commented on the car’s performance saying, “I think our car definitely did not suit the track due to the long wheelbase of the M4.” The team stayed optimistic, however, as he detailed, ”We managed to extract every tenth we could in qualifying and ended up having a strong car for the race.”
Indeed, that optimism helped deliver solid results for the team in Race 1. Eduardo was able to bring the #20 BMW M4 GT3 within reach of the podium during his stint and handed the car over to Green in P5 for a driver change. As per ADAC GT Masters rules, all cars must stop within a 10-min pit window for a driver change which must then be completed in 65 secs. Green then got his head down upon rejoining the track and fought for position. His aggressive driving allowed them to climb up several places en route to the chequered flag where they secured an impressive 2nd place finish. Eduardo was also awarded 1st place in the Junior Standings to open the race weekend.
The duo resumed their fight at the front in Race 2 on Sunday aiming for another podium finish. This time around, Green started the race and fought for position throughout his stint. The Britton managed to get the red-and-blue liveried BMW M4 GT3 from P6 up to P4 before Eduardo jumped into the cockpit. Showing his skill maturity, the Filipino managed keep a train of cars at behind him and soak up the pressure for half the race distance, placing just outside the podium with a 4th place finish across the line.
Even with his debut performance, Eduardo was challenged saying, “It was extremely difficult keeping cool under intense pressure. Definitely an eye-opener for me as having the least experience on the grid made it difficult.”
With their results, the pair scored 33 points during the ADAC GT Masters’ season opener placing them 3rd in the Drivers’ Standings. Being a rookie driver, Eduardo also now leads the Junior Standings tied with Team Joos’ Finn Gehrsitz.
Eduardo described his debut as “overwhelming,” as he reasoned that there are several new things he still needed to learn and the experience he needed to gain. Still, he expressed that he felt all sorts of emotions after getting a podium on his debut Carrying that momentum onto the next race, Eduardo is keeping his head down, “We did a good job in Round 1. But there are 5 more rounds and we need to keep working hard if we want to win this championship. I aim to achieve higher than 2nd place this time, going for the gold.”
The 2023 ADAC GT Masters’ next event will be at the Norisring street circuit from the 7th to 9th of July.
Eduardo Coseteng is supported by RSA Motors Libis, Petron Corporation, and Autoplus Sports.
For news and updates, follow Eduardo Coseteng Racing on Facebook or @eduardocosetengracing on Instagram.
[Photos courtesy of ADAC and Burkhard Kasan]
