The first podium of the season arrives for the Iron Dames in the FIA World Endurance Championship, at the end of a 6h of Portimão fought once again with a knife between the teeth by the girls of Iron Lynx.
Already in Sebring there had been top-level results for the pink trio in LMGTE AM, despite being at their debut with the Porsche taken this year by Proton Competition, but Sarah Bovy’s Pole Position hadn’t translated into a good result in the race only because of a mistake made by his partner Rahel Frey in the race.
This time only second place arrived in Qualifying, also due to the traffic that the Belgian found herself in front of on the last available lap; the blonde took off as always at the boarding, giving life to a stupendous tussle against Ben Keating’s Corvette for the place of honor (the Ferrari of Diego Alessi had taken the lead at that juncture), before handing over the wheel to Frey .
The hectic phases of the finale instead saw a consistent Michelle Gatting manage the last hour in the best possible way after the restart from the Safety Car, managing to put the 911 RSR-19 #85 on the third step of the podium, confirming once again that the crew all-female is one of the great protagonists and favorites of the series after what was already seen in 2022 when he was aboard Ferrari.
#85 Iron Dames Porsche 911 RSR – 19: Sarah Bovy, Michelle Gatting, Rahel Frey
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
“Second place in Qualifying was an excellent result given the high level of competition and the fact that mistakes can easily be made in Portimão. For the race we knew we had to keep our concentration very high and I think third place in the end is a good result, considering the great battles we had to fight throughout the race”, commented Bovy.
“All three of us did a fantastic job on the track and we are happy to take this result, even if we lacked a bit of pace compared to the Corvettes and Ferraris. But in the end we fought throughout the race and at Spa we will be back in action even stronger “.
Frey adds: “We raced from the heart trying to do our best, even if there were some little mistakes and therefore it wasn’t enough. But we keep pushing, clearly aware that Corvettes and Ferraris were faster. We are very happy with the podium and we took important points”.
“However, we thought we could do more, so we’ll have to avoid making mistakes in the next races, given that the commitments at Spa and, above all, Le Mans await us. The pace is there and I’m proud of the girls, we’re just a little short faster than the other cars, but victory will also come”.
#85 Iron Dames Porsche 911 RSR – 19: Sarah Bovy, Michelle Gatting, Rahel Frey
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
Gatting was also satisfied: “It’s very nice to conquer our first podium in the FIA WEC this year. We had a small taste of it at Sebring, where we were very close to getting on it. Naturally we want to be at the top, we aim to get our first victory in the World Cup this year and I am sure we will succeed. I am looking forward to continue working hard and improve.”
Deborah Mayer, founder and manager of the Iron Dames project, concludes: “I am satisfied with another extraordinary weekend for the Iron Dames. Once again, Doriane (Pin, in Top5 in LMP2, ed), Michelle, Rahel and Sarah have shown the their exceptional fighting spirit, chasing victory from the first to the last corner”.
“This willingness to follow one’s dream and never give up is the DNA of our project. These promising results are also a reward and further motivation for the whole team who work tirelessly to put the riders in the best conditions. I am very grateful to each of them. We can’t wait to tackle the rest of the season.”
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