“It was a demanding weekend for the entire team, but I’m extremely pleased that both crews managed to reach the podium,” said team CEO Tomáš Fanta when reflecting on the Dutch round, singling out the performances of Petr Lisa and Ondřej Rokos in particular. “It was their very first time racing at Zandvoort. After their initial track walk they were understandably taken aback by just how challenging and technical the circuit is, but during practice they found their rhythm. In the end, it resulted in two podium finishes. I’m proud of the whole team and would like to thank everyone for their outstanding effort,” Fanta added.
The foundations for the silver result were laid on Saturday by Rokos. “He made a perfect start and maintained an excellent pace throughout. He even managed to overtake a rival Mercedes-AMG crew,” praised his team-mate Petr Lisa. Lisa then successfully brought the charge to second place home. “I managed to keep a PRO-AM car behind me as well. In the end, it turned out to be a great result for us,” he added.
For much of the opening half of Sunday’s race, Petr Lisa was running at the front of the field. He kept Philipp Prette in his Maserati behind him — the outright winner of Saturday’s race. However, as the LP Racing driver began to turn up the pressure, the Czech racer opted to play it safe.
“I knew his car was quicker, and for tactical reasons I didn’t want to fight him for too long. I was aware that I needed to build a sensible gap for Ondra so he could comfortably bring the car home in second place. After a few battles, I therefore chose to let him go and settle into a steady pace behind him. I didn’t want to lose time or put unnecessary wear on the tyres,” Lisa explained.
In the end, less than seven tenths of a second decided that Lisa and Rokos would leave Sunday’s race with third place rather than second. “The tyres were already past their best and the car was sliding a lot towards the end. Eventually, Pascal Gibon caught Ondra and managed to pass him. We were just a fraction short, but that’s racing,” Lisa concluded.
Both drivers agree that, despite preparing on the simulator ahead of the visit to the legendary Zandvoort circuit, their first real encounter with the track was a surprise. “It was completely different. When we walked the circuit, we realised that experiencing it in real life is nothing like the simulator — especially when it comes to the banking in the corners. We tried to adapt to that as best we could. Overall, though, we’re happy with the performance we delivered,” said Rokos.
Unbreakable team spirit and a brave performance from Kraihamerová
Maťo Homola and Laura Kraihamerová also returned from the Netherlands with a podium finish in the KTM X-Bow. Although a technical issue forced the duo out of Sunday’s race, they earned the respect of their rivals on Saturday. After a dramatic qualifying crash and a start from the pit lane, the crew fought their way up to third place in the PRO-AM class.
“Laura lost control of the car at very high speed,” described Tomáš Fanta, recalling the Austrian driver’s incident during the first qualifying session at Scheivlak — a right-hand corner where GT2 cars can reach speeds of up to 220 km/h. Kraihamerová emerged unscathed, but the same couldn’t be said for the car. It was impossible to start the first race with the damaged vehicle, leaving the Czech team with a major challenge: to prepare a replacement car within two hours. In the end, they managed to do just that.
“We showed enormous moral strength — and that goes for the entire team, including the drivers,” praised Tomáš Fanta. “Even from an administrative point of view, it was challenging to get the replacement car on track, as we had to rush through scrutineering. The result we achieved exceeded all expectations. For me, it was a moral victory. I’d like to thank Tomáš Miniberger for allowing us to use his car,” Fanta added.
The situation was far from enviable for Laura Kraihamerová. “Zandvoort can be very treacherous, and there’s no room for error. I felt terrible about it. These things do happen from time to time, but it had never happened to me before, so I struggled to come to terms with it,” she admitted. The Czech team proved to be a huge support. “Everyone was amazing. They kept believing in me. It was an incredible display of team spirit. For the first time, it was a bit difficult for me to go through that section again, but gradually I felt more confident. Maťo also proved to be a fantastic teammate and really had my back,” she added.
Kraihamerová described the pace shown by the Czech KTM at Zandvoort as encouraging. “It looked very promising. Based on the lap times, it seems we were on course for a top-three finish even in the second race. It was a tough weekend, but on the other hand, also a very strong one,” said the KTM factory driver. Maťo Homola echoed her thoughts. “We managed the tyres really well, and even with a car that had been set up at short notice, our pace was excellent,” he praised.
