The ADAC Zurich 24h Race will celebrate its 40th jubilee with an ultimate event. More than 170 teams, most of them from amongst the regular competitors in the VLN endurance racing championship Nürburgring, will be at the start of the longest race of the year this weekend (17 to 20 May) at the Nürburgring Nordschleife. The organisers expect about 200,000 spectators at the legendary race track to follow the world-wide biggest grid at an automobile race. The race will figure about 600 race drivers, an organisation with 2,000 marshals and officials and a full-speed show with a dozen of attractions, starting on Wednesday evening on and beside the track. The field of the more than 30 top teams includes the works and works supported crews, all with excellent drivers, of the favourite and premium manufacturers Audi, BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche. Dream race cars such as Aston-Martin, Ferrari, Corvette and Ford GT will however take up the challenge and for the 40th edition of the long distance classical race, the experts expect an extremely tough and ultra exciting sprint competition over 24 hours.
The event will start on Wednesday evening (16 May) already when a drift-show, taxi rides and a parade of the participating teams will be part of the ADAC FanFestival at the Nürburgring Müllenbachschleife to get the drivers and the fans into the right spirit for the weekend. The fight for the start positions will follow on Thursday. After the free practice, the qualifying over four hours (from 19:30hrs) will take the drivers into the night time. This session as well as the second qualifying on Friday will decide about the last positions in the shoot-out for the top grid positions; during the top-40-qualifying (Friday 18th May, from 18:00hrs), the fastest cars will individually complete two laps each at the Nordschleife. The attractive programme on Friday also includes the Falken Drift Show to take place in the evening at the Müllenbachschleife (from 19:15hrs) and which will be concluded with the huge aerial firework organised on occasion of the 40th anniversary of the 24h Race. Saturday will then be all about the 24h. From 13:30hrs on, the teams will take up their grid positions before the start of the race will then be given at 16:00hrs.
The show at the Nürburgring will provide a true fleet of dream sports cars. Vehicles such as Audi R8 LMS ultra, BMW Z4 GT3, Mercedes-Benz AMG SLS GT3 or Porsche 911 GT3 combine high tech and reliability, spectacular visual appearances and a fantastic sound. A selection of top drivers at the Nordschleife and highly experienced in long distance races will compete in the race. The grid includes former DTM Champions such as Bernd Schneider and Frank Biela, the touring car specialists such as Markus Winkelhock and ace drivers at the Nordschleife à la Uwe Alzen and Dirk Adorf. Never before had there been so many favourite teams as this year, which include for example the McLaren MP4 12C GT3, driven by ex formula 1 professional driver Nick Heidfeld, or the Hybrid Ferrari P4/5 with race sports star Nicola Larini who will day and night be behind the steering wheel. Rapper Smuda will also be at the start again with a “green” race car driven by a TDI engine. Amongst the celebrities this weekend will be Thomas Gottschalk who will keep his fingers crossed amongst others for the two GT3 race cars in the colours of sweets manufacturer HARIBO. On Saturday afternoon, he will also accompany a karting parade with 50 young rookies over the Nordschleife.
