The brand-new project from the Buggyra ZM Racing team called FACE OFF offers fierce battles on the track, high emotion in the pits, mutual rivalry, and lots of enthusiastic support.
-- The very first duel between two teams, each consisting of a young hopeful paired with an experienced driver behind the wheel of a Mercedes-AMG GT4, took place at the Red Bull Ring over the weekend as part of the GT Cup Series.
But in all motorsport the machinery has to play its part as well – and ultimately this was why the two crews were unable to race against each other.
Young Czech racers Filip Nedoma (18) and Miroslav Mikeš (16) are taking part in this daring and unprecedented motorsport event. Both were down to race a Mercedes AMG GT4 in Austria matched with experienced professionals: Buggyra racers Adam Lacko and Martin Hudec.
Hudec replaced Aliyyah Koloc, who is taking part in the demanding Taklimakan Rally in China. However, her twin sister Yasmeen Koloc, who works as a race engineer for one of the teams, was very much present in Austria to uphold family honour.
Nedoma and Mikes are being assessed throughout the season using a specially developed internal evaluation system, whose metrics range from race performance to technical feedback and off-track development. After the first race, Team 29 (Nedoma's team) had accumulated 64 points while Team 55 (where Mikeš is a junior) totalled 18 points.
However, the Buggyra squad had its first drama before racing even began, with the reserve Mercedes-AMG GT4 having to be deployed in Austria.
The innovative FACE OFF programme has brought a healthy rivalry to the Buggyra pit wall. While Mikeš and Lack dominated the practice sessions, the races belonged to Nedom and Hudec. But even though one of the crews couldn't race, they all cheered on their rivals: underlining the fantastic team spirit in the pits.
The packed programme started with Saturday's endurance event. The Hudec-Nedoma crew finished fourth in the GT4 class. Martin Hudec commented: "In the first half, I tried to keep the podium place and to get as far away from the Porsche behind us as possible; I was quite successful in doing that. But the safety car came out twice and erased the lead again. I basically wanted to give Filip as much margin as possible to keep our podium, but in the end it turned out the way it did."
Filip Nedoma, who took over the wheel from his mentor, enthusiastically reported from the pits: "The opening race was amazing. I did a bit of rallying, but otherwise I enjoyed the whole thing!"
Unfortunately, Lacko and Mikeš did not make the finish due to a technical issue. Adam Lacko said: “From the beginning it was one big mess. Already in the formation lap we were encountering problems and when we came to the start we were about 100 metres behind everyone else. Unfortunately, our car eventually stopped running, but that's racing: we have to deal with it," said Adam Lacko.
Miroslav Mikeš didn't even get to drive. "Adam pitted early because of a technical fault, which the guys tried to solve quickly,“ he said. “By the time I was ready to go, the car was still out of action. So I didn't even complete one lap in the end.“
Sunday brought two 25-minute sprint races. In the first one, Filip Nedoma showed his class and deservedly took the trophy for the GT4 class win. "I am really happy,“ he said. “It was a great race right up to the finish. I fought tooth and nail with Owl in the Lotus. It was a tough but fair fight and we shook hands on the podium. It was a beautiful race and I'm absolutely delighted."
Sunday's second race in the GT4 category was also dominated by Buggyra. This time, Martin Hudec was on the top step. "Right from the start, it was a race full of tension,“ he said. “Even the faster cars were somewhat slow; it looked like they were weak on the brakes. I think everybody was scared because it was quite slippery. As a result, blue flags and slower cars in the corners affected the class battles a lot. But I had a great time.“
Unfortunately, the second Mercedes was missing in the sprint races due to persistent technical issues, so neither Adam Lacko nor Miroslav Mikeš took to the track.
"The guys tried all night to fix the fault on the car, but unfortunately it didn't work,“ said Adam Lacko. “There‘s still a problem that we haven't managed to identify. Mercedes told us not to risk it; and that the car could burn out completely. That’s clearly a risk to both us and the machinery, which isn’t the name of the game here. Of course we wanted to race, but unfortunately on this occasion we just couldn’t."
But naturally his fighting spirit did not leave him. “We‘re not giving up,” he added. “Technical problems are just a part of motorsport and this is also an experience that comes with any racing career. But in less than a month in Lausitz, we will definitely be back stronger than ever."
The next FACE OFF duel will be hosted by the Lausitzring in Germany from 14-15 June.
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