Gian Luca Tüccaroglu finished the season in the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Germany with a strong seventh-place finish in the final race. After an unfortunate Saturday and a technical issue, Gian Luca once again demonstrated his potential on Sunday. Starting from ninth on the grid, he fought his way up to fourth place and at times even closed in on the podium.
The season finale at the Hockenheimring once again had everything that makes motorsports great: close battles for position, technical setbacks, and challenging conditions that required the right instinct. For Gian Luca Tüccaroglu and Team75 Bernhard, this marked the end of an intense season marked by ups and downs.
Qualifying: 14th place and 9th place
The starting positions for the last two races of the season were determined in qualifying. In the first qualifying session, Gian Luca finished in 14th place. For the second race, he secured a much better starting position by finishing ninth.
This laid a solid foundation for Sunday's season finale. Now the challenge was to translate that pace into results on the track during the race.
Race 1: Early Lead, Technical Problem
Unfortunately, the first race took an unfortunate turn early on for Gian Luca. As early as the first lap, the front right side of the car was struck. This damaged the steering gear, preventing Gian Luca from driving under normal conditions for the remainder of the race.
Under these circumstances, it was difficult to make the most of our potential. In the end, we finished in 16th place—a disappointing result that didn't live up to what was possible that weekend.
But there wasn't much time left to dwell on it. The focus was already on the final race of the season. And there, Gian Luca was set to show once again what he was capable of.
Race 2: Up to Fourth Place with the Right Tire Choice
Sunday began with challenging conditions. It had rained shortly before the race, the track was wet, and choosing the right tires was correspondingly difficult. While some drivers initially opted for rain tires, Gian Luca chose slicks—and with that, a strategy that required patience and confidence in his own judgment.
As the race progressed, the track gradually dried out. The slicks were getting into their optimal operating window, and Gian Luca was able to make the most of his tires’ potential. With a strong performance, he worked his way up the field one position at a time and was even in fourth place at one point. This suddenly put him right in the thick of the battle for the top spots, and he was even briefly in contention for a podium finish.
By the time Gian Luca was in fourth place, track conditions had already returned to being relatively dry. The decision to switch to slicks was thus paying off more and more—and his comeback made it clear just how fast the Porsche 911 Cup really was.
But the race remained challenging. With conditions still difficult, Gian Luca veered off the track and ended up in the gravel trap. As a result, he lost several positions and had to rethink his strategy for catching up.
Despite this setback, he kept fighting and finished the race in seventh place. It was a strong result to end the season, underscoring his pace and determination in the final race. The tire choice and his comeback to fourth place demonstrated that Gian Luca can be competitive even under changing conditions.
Congratulations to the new champions
The final race at Hockenheim also saw the final decisions made in the championship standings of the Porsche Sixt Carrera Cup Germany.
We congratulate Keagan Masters and Proton Competition on winning the overall championship. Congratulations also go to Chester Kieffer, who secured the title in the rookie standings.
Special congratulations also go to Michael Essmann of Team75 Bernhard, who won the ProAm classification. A strong performance and a great success for the team!
A season of ups and downs—and looking ahead
The 2026 season was an intense learning curve for Gian Luca. There were weekends when he had the pace to achieve strong results, but there were also setbacks, technical problems, and incidents that prevented him from finishing higher in the standings.
The finale at Hockenheim once again demonstrated what is possible: With a good starting position, the right feel for the race, and a bold tire choice, Gian Luca fought his way up to fourth place in the second race and ultimately finished the season with a strong seventh-place finish.
Now it’s a matter of taking what we’ve learned from this season, drawing the right conclusions, and consistently preparing for the next challenge. The goal remains clear: to regularly compete at the front again, fight for race wins, and contend for championships in the long term.
A big thank you goes out to Team75 Bernhard, all partners, sponsors, supporters, and fans who are accompanying Gian Luca on this journey. Motorsports is a team sport—and without the people behind the driver, this journey wouldn’t be possible.
Thank you for an exciting 2026 season. See you at the racetrack!
