Jules Gounon sets fastest time on his comeback at the ADAC GT Masters at the Sachsenring – He had always aimed for the debut like this, he reveals
He’s back: Only two weeks after the announcement of his spinal fractures, Jules Gounon is back in the cockpit of a Mercedes-AMG GT3. At the ADAC GT Masters at the Sachsenring, he drove the AMG for ZVO Racing as usual – and set a fastest time straight away.
The best time came on fresh tyres. However, a large number of cars used fresh tyres as there were plenty of slicks left over from the Lausitzring weekend.
Gounon had believed in a comeback at the Sachsenring throughout his rehabilitation : “You have to remember that the injury happened several weeks ago. It was at VIR [Virginia International Raceway], after all.” That was at the IMSA round on the last weekend of August.
“The doctor was confident that I would be able to race after four weeks. That’s what I was working towards,” revealed the 27-year-old. Gounon has thus returned at the earliest possible time – and that despite having raced once more at Hockenheim with the injury.
How could this have been overlooked? The US healthcare system, which already doesn’t have the best reputation, obviously failed. “I did checks in the US at a small hospital in North Carolina, but I’m not sure they even qualified. “
Diagnosis only after GTWC Hockenheim
“Besides, I’m not someone who likes going to the doctor. So I thought, ‘All right, I don’t have anything, so let’s move on.’ I was in pain, but figured it was normal and would go away.”
And so, along with Raffaele Marciello and Daniel Juncadella, he still competed together for ASP in the GT World Challenge (GTWC) Europe at the Hockenheimring the following weekend. At the same venue, by the way, he will fight for the ADAC GT Masters title against his ASP teammates, should he stay in the championship race.
Then the shock: “When I was driving there, the pain got really bad. That’s when I thought to myself, ‘Damn, something’s wrong here. This is not just pain.’ That’s why I underwent some proper checks. That’s when they discovered the broken vertebrae. I immediately started physiotherapy, twice a day, so that everything would heal as quickly as possible. “
Gounon describes the Sachsenring as his favourite track. That’s why starting at this place has always been the goal. He doesn’t want to think about the title fight: “We are a bit behind. Unfortunately, we lost too many points at the Lausitzring. But the championship is long. We don’t think about it too much. We try to do our best. Another victory would be nice.”
At the same time, the Sachsenring is just a preliminary exercise for Gounon: “I want to use the race to prepare for the GTWC Endurance race next weekend [in Barcelona]. And the following week is the Indianapolis 8 Hours.” Gounon is the leader of the Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC) standings after his victories at the Bathurst 12 Hours and the Spa 24 Hours.
