On September 13 and 14, the double-header of the ADAC Nürburgring Langstrecken-Meisterschaft (ADAC Nürburgring Endurance Championship) will be a motorsport extravaganza. Two four-hour races – one on Saturday, one on Sunday – promise pure excitement and action. At the top of the field, an unexpected premiere and a spectacular comeback are causing a stir, while the battle for the championship is slowly but surely coming to a head with four races to go. Tickets for the race are available from 25 euros at VLN.de/tickets. Admission is free for young people up to and including the age of 14. A treat for fans: the AMG grandstand T4A and the Schwalbenschwanz section of the track will be open this coming weekend. Those who cannot be there in person can follow the two race days via livestream at VLN.de.
Two BMW teams arrive at the top of the standings. Sven Markert and Ranko Mijatovic, who were teammates at Adrenalin Motorsport last year, are now battling each other for the title. Markert drives the BMW M240i Racing (starting number 1) for Adrenalin Motorsport Team Mainhattan Wheels alongside Kevin Wambach and Adrian Rziczny. Mijatovic will compete with Nick Wüstenhagen and Reinhold Renger in the BMW M4 GT4 for FK Performance Motorsport. Both teams have won five races in their classes and each secured one second place. They share the lead with 90 points. Arne Hoffmeister and Tim Scheerbarth, champions in 2011, are just eight points behind. In the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup from Mühlner Motorsport, they also won five times in their class, but had to settle for sixth place once.
GT3 debut for Benny Leuchter
While the championship is being decided in the midfield – points in the NLS depend on the number of participants in each class – the GT3 teams are dominating the race wins. Falken Motorsports, already a three-time winner this year, is fielding two Porsche 911 GT3 Rs. Julien Andlauer and Joel Sturm drive the #3, while Tim Heinemann and Benny Leuchter share the #4. For Leuchter, Nordschleife specialist and team boss at Max Kruse Racing, this is his first race in a GT3. “I’m really excited to be embarking on this adventure with Falken, a long-standing partner,” says Leuchter. “With Tim, I have an experienced colleague at my side. Let’s see what the weekend brings. The accelerator pedal is on the right – attack!” Max Kruse Racing is also entering two Audi RS3s in the alternative fuels class.
Spectacular comeback
On Sunday, Frikadelli Racing’s iconic Ferrari 296 GT3 will return to the Nordschleife. “I will try to drive the four-hour race alone,” announces team boss Klaus Abbelen, adding: “For next season, we are planning a top driver line-up and entries in the season’s highlights, including several NLS races.”
Competition in the GT3 class is fierce. The Haupt Racing Team will be fielding a Ford Mustang GT3, Walkenhorst Motorsport an Aston Martin Vantage GT3 EVO, and Renazzo Motorsport a Lamborghini Huracán GT3 Evo II. Car Collection Motorsport and the BLACK FALCON Team EAE are fielding further Porsche 911s, while JUTA RACING and équipe vitesse are each entering an Audi R8 LMS.
The most competitive class remains Cup 3 of the Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring with 20 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS cars. Schmickler Performance powered by Ravenol with Horst Baumann and Stefan and Markus Schmickler are currently leading the standings. They have an 8.5-point lead over Heiko Eichenberg and Harley Haughton from SRS Team Sorg Rennsport. Eleven cars each will compete in the Cup 2 class of the Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring and the VT2 class.
Tickets and program
Day tickets cost €25 (children under 14 free) and are available at vln.de/tickets and at the box office. They grant access to the grandstands on the Grand Prix circuit, the Brünnchen and Pflanzgarten spectator areas, the paddock, the pit lane, and the starting grid. In addition, the Schwalbenschwanz section of the track will be open for the double-header.
The schedule for the 65th ADAC ACAS Cup – the organizing AC Altkreis Schwelm is celebrating its 100th anniversary this year – on Saturday and the 64th ADAC Reinoldus Endurance Race on Sunday is identical. Qualifying will run from 8:30 a.m. to 10:00 a.m. After that, there will be time to experience the vehicles up close: from 10:20 a.m., the pit walk will lead into the pit lane, before the starting grid is formed at 11:10 a.m. The race will start at 12:00 p.m. on both days. Prominent visitors include Nürburgring mascot Legend and a ‘Labubu’ on Saturday, as well as Captain America on Sunday. In the paddock and between practice and the race on the Grand Prix circuit, the Falken Drift Show will provide impressive drift angles.
The livestream on VLN.de begins at 8:15 a.m. In addition, Radio Nürburgring will broadcast via rpr1.de and the RPR1.APP.
