Dutch Supercar and the Mosler Challenge hopped over the border for the first of their two meetings in Germany. Hockenheim played host to three Moslers all hoping for success as this GP circuit.
With the temperature climbing during Saturday qualifying, Martin Short turned up the heat and scorched into pole. Almost two seconds in his wake was Ian Flux.. but he was demoted down a row from second to fourth having deemed to have overtaken under yellow flags. Berry van Elk brought the BlueBerry Mosler round into eleventh place.
As Martin Short led the field into the Spitzkehre hairpin, Kevin Riley made a play to push up to the front. Unfortunately, Rene Snel's Porsche 996 was where Riley wanted to be; both cars ended up off the track and out of the race.
Nicky Pastorelli's Passat and Cor Euser's Marcos ran in second and third as Short increased his lead. Meanwhile, it wasn't just the track temperature that was rising - Berry's troublesome engine was burning up and forced the weekend's first retirement. 
Cor Euser leapfrogged the Passat into second as Martin Short found himself ahead of the field by almost a minute as he coasted the works Mosler home for his first competitive win in the marque since the inaugral Britcar 24 hours in 2005. "My car was just fantastic, the best ever", said Martin - perhaps it's the way he builds 'em?
The grid for the second race told two very different tales - Martin Short on pole, Berry van Elk and the KRM car bringing up the rear. The BlueBerry team had replaced their engine overnight to get themselves back in the running, whilst KRM had to start from the pitlane following further mechanical problems.
Early laps saw Cor Euser's Marcos and Ardi van der Hoek's Audi battling over second place, allowing Martin Short to floor the Mosler and set up an unassailable lead. Even his winning-handicap-enhanced pitstop didn't jeapordise his chances and even got to ease down on the last lap to take a comfortable win.
Further down the field, Riley and Flux struggled their out-of-sorts Mosler home into eight place whilst Berry van Elk retired again as temperatures continued to flare in the Blueberry car.
Two wins, pole position and fastest lap for Martin Short made it a successful weekend for the works team. "There is no doubt that the car flattered me," he said after, paying tribute to his team for working with a new aero package on the six-year-old Mosler. "We threw the kitchen sink at the car; not entirely sure exactly what would work, but with high hopes". Those hopes were rewarded by a 171mph max drive that showed just what the Mosler is capable of at this level.
Martin hoped that these proven development benefits can be applied to the other Mosler customers. I hope so; as great as it is to see a double win, having a full Challenge field start and finish the race - and compete for the podium places- would stick one on those critics who judge the marque to be hit-and-miss at national GT level.
Oschersleben hosts the next round in a few weeks time. Whether Martin feels the need to pour six litres of water into his jump suit again to keep in cool, only time will tell...
Photos (c) Robbert Mass and Marc de Waart, http://www.supercarchallenge.nl/
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