In a damp qualifying session on Saturday morning, driver, Fabian Schiller, secured 33rd overall on the grid, and 10th in the Bronze category, but made good progress with a strong start to Race 1.
Fabian carefully avoided an incident in Turn One on the opening lap to rise to 29th and following an early Safety Car, maintained his assault through the field.
The German pilot battled hard with Haupt Racing’s Sebastien Baud and pitted from 11th overall, 26 minutes from the chequered flag, to hand the cockpit of the #81 Mercedes to team-mate Reema Juffali.
Unfortunately, a slow pitstop dropped Reema to the rear of the field, but with a competitive recovery run to the chequered flag, she climbed to 32nd to finish eighth in class.
Valencia’s rain continued on Sunday, and in a tricky second qualifying session – which was once Red Flagged – Reema secured ninth in class and lined up 36th overall on the grid for Race 2.
She expertly navigated a challenging first stint which was disrupted by two Safety Cars and one Full Course Yellow period and pitted from seventh in class after 25 minutes of running.
With Fabian back at the wheel, the team continued to make progress and slotted into the top five with an overtake on the #55 Porsche of Christopher Zöchling.
A late Safety Car period – the third of Race 2 – led to a five-minute dash to the chequered flag, and in a fighting restart, Fabian secured fourth.
With a further two overtakes on the final lap, Fabian battled onto the podium to finish second in class – a landmark result marking Theeba Motorsport’s first Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe podium.
Reema Juffali, Founder & Driver, Theeba Motorsport
“No words are needed after today. I’m speechless. We came into this weekend targeting a top-five finish, and after a tough qualifying, it all changed in the race. When Fabian got into the car, we were sixth, there was a late Safety Car, and then we had a sprint to the flag. With one lap to go a bunch of cars bundled around us, we couldn’t tell where he was on track, and coming out of the last corner, he was ahead in second. It was unbelievable, he did a great drive,and the team did a great job as well. This podium is for them and will hopefully be the first of many.”
Fabian Schiller, Driver, Theeba Motorsport
“We’ve shown some good promise over the past few races, and after a difficult start to the weekend, it feels great to come away with a podium in Race 2. The track time we lost on Friday definitely put us on the back foot, but being able to reward the team with the performance they deserve is satisfying.”
