WestCoast Racing had a victorious weekend at Falkenberg. Despite difficult conditions, Fredrik Lestrup and Fredrik Larsson secured the second straight victory for the team in the Swedish GT series.

Fredrik Larsson took pole position but the team received a penalty when the car was found to be too light. This meant having to start the race from the last row. Fredrik Lestrup, who was to take the start and drive the first stint, therefore had to charge through the field. He made a good start and followed through with the plan, going from second to last to first in just eight minutes.

He was able to extend his lead to more than 35 seconds before the pit stop and driver change. The timing was perfect since it had started to rain and the team was able to switch to rain tyres for Fredrik Larsson’s stint.
”It went according to plan. I had no choice but to go for full attack. It really shouldn’t have been possible, but Fredrik and I make a very good driver team and we were able to make our way through the field. A great victory, our second straight win. We’re now leading the championship and we just have to keep going like this”, says Fredrik Lestrup.

Fredrik Larsson took over the wheel half way through the race and drove the final stint. He was able to maintain the lead and extend it even more until heavy rain descended on Falkenberg. Near the end of the race the conditions became too difficult to handle and the one-hour race was red-flagged with 10 minutes to go. Driving at his home-track Fredrik Larsson crossed the finish line as the winner in his first race for WestCoast Racing.
”All I had to do was get the car safely across the line. We decided that Lestrup should do the first stint and he did a very good job and gave us a good lead. I found my pace and drove inside the margins without taking any chances. Even so we were able to extend the lead. The car was really nice to drive both in the dry and in the wet and I got good feedback from the pits. Towards the end, though, it became completely undrivable, so it was the right decision to stop the race. A great victory with WestCoast Racing,” Fredrik Larsson said in summation.

In addition to the overall victory WestCoast Racing also won the GTC class with their second car, a BMW M3 GT4 driven by Richard Trange and Lars Weigl.
”A good day at the office, I have to say,” said team manager Dick Jönsson Wigroth. ”Fredrik and Fredrik did a really good job. Both cars are intact and won, and you can’t ask for anything more than that. Now it’s time for a holiday.”

The next race is at Anderstorp on the 6th and 7th of August.

Result, Swedish GT Falkenberg

WestCoast Racing is at their home track this weekend. The third race in the Swedish GT-championship is held this weekend at the fast race track in Falkenberg. WestCoast Racing has from this weekend a new driver in Fredrik Larsson, previous Carrera Cup and Indy Lights-driver, who will share the car with Fredrik Lestrup.
”This will be fun and I’m looking forward to the weekend. I think my home track will suit the BMW well and is a track where we can take advantage of the downforce in the car. It’s gonna be a fun weekend, it looks like it will be rainy which probably won’t be to our disadvantage even though the margins will be smaller,” Fredrik Larsson says.

He will share the car with Fredrik Lestrup who won the last round at Mantorp and who drove for WestCoast Racing in their first race in the German GT Masters at Nürburgring two weeks ago.
”I’m second in the championship and my goal is to be in the lead after the weekend. It will probably rain this weekend which won’t be a disadvantage. I look forward to share the car with Fredrik Larsson, he is very fast and experienced and we will be strong,” Fredrik Lestrup says.

Team manager Dick Jönsson Wigroth believes the team will have a good weekend at the home track.
”After a good weekend at Nürburgring and after our victory at Mantorp we look forward to race at home with the Z4. This will be our first race weekend with Fredrik Larsson driving for us and he and Lestrup will be a strong pairing. We are looking forward to this weekend,” he summarizes.

The race weekend will start with free practice on Friday followed by qualifying on Saturday 10:00 am followed by the one hour long race after mid day.

WestCoast Racing finished 17th in the second GT Mastersrace at Nürburgring. Fredrik Lestrup drove the first stint and took the start from 16th on the grid. After losing two spots being caught outside in the first turn Lestrup started to chase down the cars ahead and overtook several cars.
”Probably one of the best races in my career. We were among the fastest on the track and the car worked great. As soon as I caught someone I could overtake them and chase down the next one. It was a lot of fun!” Fredrik said.

Fredrik Lestrup were involved in a lot of close fights during the stint. He entered the pits a little more than 30 minutes into the race and was seventh on the track and around 12th overall including pit stops.
”The racing was crazy and unfortunately a lot of drivers didn’t really drive that smart and closed the door all the time. I could overtake them eventually but we both lost time when they were so defensive. I’m happy with my driving, I could push a lot harder today and drove faster in the race compared to qualifying. It was a good race and we got a lot of good experience for the coming races,” Fredrik finished.

Lars Stugemo took over the driving with 25 minutes left of the race and drove a safe last stint, finishing 17th overall. Two positions better than yesterday.
”Unfortunately I took a bit too long time to get up to speed when I drove out and I’m not pleased with that. After that it went well and I could find a pace matching the others in front of me. Fredrik did a strong effort and this weekend has been a good and challenging experience. WestCoast Racing is a very professional team that you also have a lot of fun with. It’s been a fun experience,” Lars concludes.

The first weekend in GT Masters netted a 17th and 19th position. Team manager Dick Jönsson Wigroth feels it’s been a valuable first weekend in GT Masters.
”We came here to watch and learn for the future and we’ve done exactly that. Fredrik and Lars kept out of problems and we will return home with an intact car that finished both races. With everything in place I’m convinced we can fight at the top, Fredrik showed there’s speed in us and the car for that in todays race. We will return home pleased and with a lot of experience from this weekend,” he said.

Result, download file Race 2 Nürburgring

Fredrik Lestrup and Lars Stugemo advanced 14 positions in the GT Masters race at Nürburgring and finished 19th from 33rd on the grid. As expected GT there was another tight and tough GT Masters race and the WestCoast drivers stayed out from trouble and steadily climbed during the race. Lars Stugemo drove the first stint and could gain a few places before handing over to Fredrik Lestrup.
”It was hard but I wanted to give Fredrik an intact car,” Lars said. ”We could take advantage of others mistakes and climb and finish with a car without any scratches. Fredrik did a great job and could gain a lot of positions for us during his stint.”

Fredrik Lestrup drove the last stint and could climb fron 30th to 19th at the finish. He was among the fastest of the race during his stint and was pleased afterwards.
”It was completely crazy and a lot of fun. I was cautious in my stint and didn’t take any risks. Despite that I could overtake quite a few cars and to gain 14 positions and finish 19th is pretty ok. The important thing today was to finish and get experience and that we did. The car felt good during the whole race and it’s in perfect order for tomorrow which is more to be said for some of the others. We will try and push a bit more tomorrow,” Fredrik says.

They will start 16th tomorrow and Fredrik Lestrup will drive the first stint. Team manager Dick Jönsson Wigroth is pleased with the teams first GT Masters race.
”Now we’ve gotten this out of the way. We finished the race with an intact car and has learned a lot which was the goal today. We have a lot to look through but it feels good to have finished our first GT Masters race without any problems,” he said.

The second race starts 12:00 tomorrow Sunday.

Result, download file GT Masters Nürburgring race 1.

As expected the qualifying at Nürburgring was challenging and exciting. WestCoast Racing drove its first qualifying in GT Masters. The 50 minute long qualifying session is divided into two parts of 20 minutes with a 10 minute break in between. The first qualifying determines the grid for the Saturday race and the second qualifying determines the grid for the Sunday race. As no driver is allowed to participate in both sessions Lars Stugemo drove the first session and Fredrik Lestrup drove the second session. WestCoast Racing will line up 33rd for the first race and 16th for the second race.
”An exciting day at work. We knew it would be tough and we have worked hard on setting the car up. There’s more time to gain but I think we did a solid job. Especially Fredrik’s time shows we are capable to to challenge here,” team manager Dick Jönsson Wigroth says.

Fredrik Lestrup qualifie 16th, one second from pole i yet another tight qualifying in GT Masters. WestCoast Racing therefore lines up 16th on the grid on Sunday.
”This is a lot of fun. I’m not entirely happy with qualifying, it feels there was more time to gain. Despite that we have a decent starting position for tomorrow and it’s great to work with WestCoast Racing. You really get a chance to develop as a driver and it’s also fun to see how much my team mate Lars improves all the time. Tomorrow it’s race day!” Fredrik says.

Lars Stugemo improved a lot in qualifying and set his best time for the weekend. He qualified 3,3 seconds from pole position which in this tight field means 33th starting position on the grid.
”It’s my best time for the weekend and a great improvement so I’m happy with that. We start some way back in the field and of course we are not happy with that but the competition is tough here. Now we have to set the car up for the race and find a good strategy for tomorrow and Sunday,” Lars said.

Result, Q1
Result, Q2