Indian racing driver Armaan Ebrahim and BMW Team India clinched their maiden podium of the 2013 FIA GT World Series, finishing second in the Pro-Am category and a brilliant ninth overall at the Zandvoort Circuit here today.
It was a welcome result for the team after a disappointing outing at Zolder in Belgium, where Armaan's teammate crashed the car during practice and put the team out of contention for the weekend.
"This is effectively our second race of the season and my first at this circuit, so it feels incredible to finish on the podium," said an elated Armaan.
Prior to the weekend, the team had done a brief shakedown at Spa, along with Armaan's new teammate Melroy Heemskerk, who had replaced Jouse. Jouse couldn't continue due to some contractual issues with the team.
A Zandvoort native, Heemskerk had no problem getting comfortable in the car and both drivers ended up having similar pace at the Danish venue, despite Armaan's comparative lack of experience at the circuit.
"The shakedown did us good as it enabled me to get into the groove straightway on the race weekend, as I hadn't been in the car for over two months before that," clarified Armaan.
After showing encouraging pace in practice sessions on Friday, the team was hoping for a good result in qualifying but was slightly left lagging on the setup front.
"We had a few things to work on but just ran out of time during qualifying, so we were hoping to make a step forward in the afternoon," he said.
