As the countdown continues to the final round of the inaugural Fanatec GT2 European Series at Circuit Paul Ricard on 1-2 October, we've been taking a look back at the stars - and cars - that have served up a thrilling debut season for the category.
One entry that made plenty of headlines both in pre-season and when racing action got underway is the #24 Reiter Engineering KTM X-BOW GT2 shared by Kris Rosenberger and one Hans-Joachim Stuck, the ex-Grand Prix racer, three-time Le Mans 24 Hours Winner and 1990 DTM champion.
For "Strietzel", as he is affectionately known throughout the motorsport community, the announcement marked a return to full-time, active racing for the first time in a decade, and plenty of international attention for the fledgling series, with the Austro-German driver line-up tipped for great things in the season ahead.
Remarkably, having scored a podium finish in all but one of the eight races to-date, the duo head to Le Castellet still in search of a maiden victory in GT2 machinery, with arguably only luck keeping the pair from the top step of the rostrum.
At the inaugural event in Monza, it was Stuck who scored a pole position in the Am Cup on debut, and lead the way early on before a spin at the exit of the Ascari chicane forced the #24 challenger back into the pits, and eventually retirement, although the fastest lap proved to be some consolation.
Having finished second in the final race on Italian soil to eventual Am champion Christop Ulrich's #7 Sportec KTM, the series moved on to Hockenheim, where Rosenberger and Stuck did - briefly - celebrate a maiden triumph in the category.
After surviving a heavy hit to the rear at the Turn 5 Hairpin to claim second spot in the opener, Stuck made a lightning start in race two to move into the class lead, before pitting first among the Am runners.
That proved to be the decisive moment as, although Rosenberger emerged in front and went on to take the chequered flag first on the road, a pit-stop infringement for a team member measuring the tyre pressures on the car with the engine still running incurred a post-race penalty, dropping them to second once again.
Three further podiums - and another pole position - have followed for the pairing since at Misano and Spa-Francorchamps, but that maiden victory remains elusive. With Ulrich now clear out front and crowned as the Am Cup champion, Paul Ricard represents the perfect opportunity for Rosenberger and Stuck to end the season on a high note with a long overdue - and richly deserved - maiden triumph.
One entry that made plenty of headlines both in pre-season and when racing action got underway is the #24 Reiter Engineering KTM X-BOW GT2 shared by Kris Rosenberger and one Hans-Joachim Stuck, the ex-Grand Prix racer, three-time Le Mans 24 Hours Winner and 1990 DTM champion.
For "Strietzel", as he is affectionately known throughout the motorsport community, the announcement marked a return to full-time, active racing for the first time in a decade, and plenty of international attention for the fledgling series, with the Austro-German driver line-up tipped for great things in the season ahead.
Remarkably, having scored a podium finish in all but one of the eight races to-date, the duo head to Le Castellet still in search of a maiden victory in GT2 machinery, with arguably only luck keeping the pair from the top step of the rostrum.
At the inaugural event in Monza, it was Stuck who scored a pole position in the Am Cup on debut, and lead the way early on before a spin at the exit of the Ascari chicane forced the #24 challenger back into the pits, and eventually retirement, although the fastest lap proved to be some consolation.
Having finished second in the final race on Italian soil to eventual Am champion Christop Ulrich's #7 Sportec KTM, the series moved on to Hockenheim, where Rosenberger and Stuck did - briefly - celebrate a maiden triumph in the category.
After surviving a heavy hit to the rear at the Turn 5 Hairpin to claim second spot in the opener, Stuck made a lightning start in race two to move into the class lead, before pitting first among the Am runners.
That proved to be the decisive moment as, although Rosenberger emerged in front and went on to take the chequered flag first on the road, a pit-stop infringement for a team member measuring the tyre pressures on the car with the engine still running incurred a post-race penalty, dropping them to second once again.
Three further podiums - and another pole position - have followed for the pairing since at Misano and Spa-Francorchamps, but that maiden victory remains elusive. With Ulrich now clear out front and crowned as the Am Cup champion, Paul Ricard represents the perfect opportunity for Rosenberger and Stuck to end the season on a high note with a long overdue - and richly deserved - maiden triumph.