Fabian Schiller set the pace for GetSpeed Team Dubai during FP1 at the GTWC Europe Sprint Cup at Misano, placing the Bronze Cup-entered #12 Mercedes-AMG at the head of a closely matched 43-car field.
Schiller produced a 1:32.868 to finish 0.317 seconds clear of Team WRT’s Charles Weerts. Andrea Frassineti completed the overall top three for Tresor Attempto Racing and led the Silver Cup order, while Winward Racing placed both of its Mercedes-AMG entries inside the top five.
Hot and dry conditions greet the field
The teams began the session in demanding summer conditions at the Misano World Circuit. The air temperature stood at just over 30°C, while the track temperature reached 52.6°C when the pit lane opened at 14:50.
Although the circuit remained dry throughout the session, the high track temperature gave teams an important opportunity to assess tyre behaviour and car balance ahead of the competitive sessions. The track temperature had fallen slightly to 51.9°C by the chequered flag at 16:10.
Race control recorded one Full Course Yellow period, but no Safety Car intervention interrupted the running. All 43 cars completed the session and appeared in the provisional classification, allowing the teams to gather valuable data during their opening preparations.
Schiller delivers the FP1 benchmark
Schiller established the quickest time in the #12 Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO, which he shares with Giuseppe Rindone. His 1:32.868 lap represented an average speed of 163.8 kilometres per hour and remained the only time below the 1:33 barrier.
The GetSpeed Team Dubai driver recorded his fastest effort shortly after 15:52, putting the Bronze Cup entry at the top of both the overall and class classifications. Schiller ultimately held an advantage of more than three tenths over his closest challenger, giving GetSpeed a strong start to its Misano weekend.
The result also underlined the pace available to the Bronze Cup runners. Three Bronze Cup entries finished inside the overall top 10, with Schiller leading Marvin Dienst and Kobey Jewiss in the class order.
Weerts leads the Pro entries for Team WRT
harles Weerts came closest to challenging Schiller, setting a 1:33.185 in the #32 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 EVO. The Belgian placed the leading Pro-class entry second overall, 0.317 seconds away from the GetSpeed Mercedes-AMG.
Weerts, who shares the car with Kelvin van der Linde, has enjoyed considerable success at Misano in previous seasons. His early pace immediately placed the #32 BMW among the leading contenders as Team WRT began its weekend preparations.
Team WRT also placed Valentino Rossi and Max Hesse sixth in the #46 BMW. Rossi recorded a 1:33.284, finishing only 0.099 seconds behind Weerts and four thousandths of a second behind the fifth-placed Mercedes-AMG.
The team’s Silver Cup entry also featured inside the top 15. Maxime Lismont and Ivan Montenegro took 13th in the #30 BMW with a 1:33.458, while the #31 Pro entry of Amaury Cordeel and Jordan Pepper finished 29th.
Frassineti Puts Tresor Attempto on Top in Silver Cup
Andrea Frassineti produced a strong performance in the #66 Tresor Attempto Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3 EVO II. He posted a 1:33.187 to claim third overall and the fastest time in the Silver Cup.
Frassineti missed second place by only 0.002 seconds and finished 0.319 seconds behind Schiller. The narrow margin between the BMW and Audi demonstrated how closely matched the leading challengers were during the opening session.
Tresor Attempto placed two further cars inside the top 21. The Gold Cup-entered #99 Audi of Dylan Pereira and Alex Aka finished 19th, while the #88 Bronze Cup car of Simon Øgaard and Carrie Schreiner completed the session in 21st.
Winward Racing places both cars inside the top five
Winward Racing enjoyed a productive opening session as both of its Mercedes-AMG entries finished among the five fastest cars.
Marvin Dienst took fourth in the Bronze Cup-entered #87 Mercedes-AMG with a 1:33.247. He finished 0.379 seconds away from the overall benchmark and 0.060 seconds behind Frassineti’s Audi.
Lucas Auer followed in fifth position in the #48 Pro-class Mercedes-AMG. Auer recorded a 1:33.280, leaving only 0.033 seconds between the two Winward Racing cars.
The result placed three Mercedes-AMG entries inside the first five positions, with Schiller leading Dienst and Auer. A fourth Mercedes-AMG, the #222 2Seas Motorsport entry driven by Jewiss and Charlie Dawson, completed the overall top 10.
Several manufacturers feature in the top 10
The leading positions featured a wide range of manufacturers, despite Mercedes-AMG securing four places inside the top 10.
Thierry Vermeulen placed the #69 Emil Frey Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO seventh with a 1:33.293. He finished only nine thousandths of a second behind Rossi’s BMW and 0.425 seconds behind the session leader.
Nicki Thiim followed in eighth for Comtoyou Racing, setting a 1:33.321 in the #7 Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO. Ricardo Feller placed the Lionspeed GP Porsche 911 GT3 R ninth with a 1:33.340, before Jewiss completed the top 10 for 2Seas Motorsport.
Only 0.526 seconds covered the first 10 cars. Mercedes-AMG, BMW, Audi, Ferrari, Aston Martin and Porsche all featured inside that group, highlighting the competitive variety at the front of the field.
Mosca sets the Gold Cup pace
Tommaso Mosca led the Gold Cup classification for AF Corse. He set a 1:33.528 in the #51 Ferrari 296 GT3 EVO, placing the car 17th overall and 0.660 seconds behind Schiller.
The #99 Tresor Attempto Audi provided Mosca’s closest class competition. Pereira recorded a 1:33.570 to finish 19th overall, just 0.042 seconds behind the AF Corse Ferrari.
CSA Racing’s #111 McLaren completed the leading Gold Cup trio in 22nd position. Arthur Rougier set a 1:33.708, leaving the car 0.180 seconds behind the class-leading Ferrari.
Fine margins define FP1 at the GTWC Europe Sprint Cup round in Misano
The competitive order remained extremely tight throughout the field. The fastest 25 cars finished within one second of Schiller’s benchmark, with the #84 Eastalent Racing Audi occupying 25th position on a 1:33.857.
Just 1.714 seconds separated Schiller from the #77 KPX Motorsport BMW at the bottom of the 43-car classification. The small gaps gave teams little room for error and suggested that minor improvements in set-up or driver performance could significantly change the order during the later sessions.
Schiller nevertheless ended FP1 with a clear advantage at the front. His lap placed GetSpeed Team Dubai at the top of the overall and Bronze Cup classifications, while Weerts, Frassineti and the two Winward Racing entries led a tightly packed group behind him.
