Five things we learned from the European GP

Falcon Simracing – between highs and lows

Falcon Simracing was considered the dark horse for the weekend at Mugello. The car was perfectly suited to the undulating, flowing track characteristics – and Michael Falkenhain underlined this in qualifying with his first pole position in his VFC career.

While teammate Jan Wiegels couldn't match Falkenhain's pace in qualifying and was a full eight tenths of a second behind, the picture changed in the race. Falkenhain messed up the start, lost several positions before the first corner and fell back outside the top 10. This was followed by a series of mistakes and collisions – in the end, he only managed tenth place, even being lapped.

Wiegels, on the other hand, showed his usual consistency in the race and drove to fourth place with a flawless performance – his best result since the podium in Indianapolis. It was a weekend of two halves for Falcon: between highs and disappointments.

The re-emergence of Heiko Kolvenbach

While Sven Schubert has dominated the season so far, his teammate Heiko Kolvenbach has now firmly established himself among the frontrunners. Four podium finishes in the last five races and victory at the Dutch Grand Prix speak for themselves.

The Cologne native was in top form at Mugello – his strongest weekend since his comeback. He comfortably outpaced Schubert in qualifying and was also the faster man in the race. Had it not been for the different tyre start: Kolvenbach started on mediums, while Schubert was able to build up an early lead on softs. Kolvenbach did catch up later, but a rev limiter set too low prevented him from attacking his teammate. If Kolvenbach maintains this form over the winter, he is likely to become a serious challenger to Schubert in 2026.

There's a problem with Razor GP

At the worst possible moment, things are not going well for Razor GP. On the one hand, most of their competitors have caught up in terms of development – some have even overtaken them. On the other hand, Bastian Paisler seems to be dogged by bad luck at the moment: the crash at Spa, through no fault of his own, technical problems at Monza and now Mugello, where he competed despite being ill and was clearly not at full strength. The result: zero points.

To make matters worse, the big goal – the team championship – is now in jeopardy. A comfortable lead of over 40 points has now turned into a ten-point deficit behind Optiminal Esports. Given the current form of the Optiminal drivers, catching up seems like a mammoth task. But as we all know, it's not over until it's over.

Schubert close to achieving his goal

Sven Schubert has left his mark on the 2025 VFC season like no other. The Swabian travelled to Mugello with the theoretical possibility of clinching the title there – a scenario that was considered unlikely from the outset given the necessary constellations. Nevertheless, Schubert delivered once again, controlling the race and collecting important points. With a lead of 37 points, he now travels to India – with 45 points still up for grabs, the title is almost certainly his. The countdown is on.

Mugello – unfortunately a disappointment

The VFC made its first appearance at Mugello, the historic test track in Tuscany. But what was planned as a highlight turned out to be a rather tough race. The drivers struggled more with the bumps and dirty air than with their opponents. Overtaking was almost impossible, and the race flattened out early on.

So Mugello leaves a sobering impression – and the realisation that the track is probably better suited to its role as a test circuit. It is unlikely that it will reappear on the VFC calendar.