Many teams which participate in the VLN Langstreckenmeisterschaft Nürburgring on a regular basis are this weekend facing the highlight of the season, the 39th ADAC Zurich 24h Race. The experienced and competitive drivers from this most popular endurance racing series in Europe hereby rank amongst the top favourites for the race twice around the clock.
The five winning teams in the first half of the VLN season will above all definitely be candidates for a place on the podium. BMW Motorsport, Mamerow-, Farnbacher-, Manthey- and Phoenix-Racing have taken best care in getting well prepared for the 24 Hour Race.
The VLN teams are however not only well represented in the group of the top teams. The wide middle field of this classical long distance race also comprises many cars which are usually competing in the endurance racing championship. This includes amongst others cars of the VLN partners of Audi, Aston Martin, BMW, Ford, Opel, Peugeot, Porsche, Renault and Seat.
The cooperation between the organiser of the 24h Race, the ADAC Nordrhein, and the VLN is not by chance. Both promoters rely upon largely identical regulations and they both have a close cooperation specifically regarding the top group of cars which is subject to an adjustment of performance, the ‘Balance of Performance’. Those who benefit most of this are in first place the spectators. Just as in the endurance racing championship, no team in this year’s entry list of the 24h Race can be identified as definite candidate to gain a victory. With BMW M3 GT, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3, Ferrari F458, Porsche 911 GT3 Hyprid and Audi R8 LMS five totally different super sports cars have so far been successful this year in the VLN endurance racing championship. “On behalf of the VLN, I wish all of the participants in the 24h Race success and a race free of accidents”, says Hans Jürgen Hilgeland, spokesman of the VLN stakeholders.
After the 24h Race, the VLN teams will have enough time to relax after the stress of the 24h Race. The sixth round of the year, the 34th RCM DMV Grenzlandrennen organised by the Rheydter Club for Motorsport, will be the opening round for the second half of the season and starts on 30th July.
