After a brief hiatus, the Digital Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie (DNLS) returns with a bang. When the engines roar to life for the second half of the 2025/26 winter season this coming Saturday, February 21st, the sim racing world will be treated to two major innovations: a new car model will make its debut in the Porsche class, while a prominent brand change will cause a stir in the top SP9 class. Amidst these technical updates, the hunt for the championship titles officially begins after two thrilling 3-hour races. The livestream with presenters Olli Martini and Jan Schmitz starts at 11:45 a.m. on VLN.de and YouTube.
Technical Premiere: The New Porsche 911 Cup Rolls to the Starting Line
A special premiere is coming to the Porsche Esports Endurance Trophy Nürburgring (PEETN). Starting with the next race, the new car model will be used for the first time, which will also debut in the real “Green Hell” in the Cup 2 class in 2027. With this, the DNLS is building another bridge between simulation and reality.
Julia Klee, Project Manager for the Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring, emphasizes the significance of this innovation: “The interfaces between our virtual and real-world series are particularly important to us – this time, PEETN is leading the way. We are especially pleased that we were able to equip the new model with our new communication design in iRacing as well. We hope this will also bring joy to some sim racers and are excited to see how the teams adapt to the new car.”
From a sporting perspective, it will be interesting to see who adapts to the new handling the fastest. So far, EMM Esports #905 has been the team to beat with a perfect score of 32 points.
SP9: Andy Gülden switches to Mercedes-AMG
Nürburgring eSports is making headlines in the top SP9 class. The team, led by Nordschleife expert Andy Gülden, is switching brands: The previously used Aston Martin is being replaced by a Mercedes-AMG GT3 in the familiar Toyo Tires livery. This move is due to Gülden’s involvement in the real-world NLS, where he is also competing for the Ring Racing team this year, driving a Mercedes-AMG for the first time. “Switching to the Mercedes-AMG in the DNLS is the logical next step for me,” explains Gülden. “If I’m racing with the three-pointed star on the hood for Ring Racing in the real NLS, it makes sense to do the same in virtual racing.”
Falken Simracing SP9 (#44) currently leads the standings with 26 points. However, their lead over the defending champions, BS+COMPETITION #1 (23 points), is razor-thin after their strong second race.
Status Quo: Tight Competition in All Classes
While a duel between BS+COMPETITION #284 (BMW M2 CS Racing) and EMM Esports #905 (both with 32 points) is shaping up in the overall standings, the SP10 (GT4) class is incredibly tense. Only a single point separates the leaders, SimRC #176 (28 points) and Williams Sim Racing (27 points).
The pursuers are also lurking in the brand cups: Coanda Esports #918 (PEETN, 20 points) and SCHERER ESPORT M2 CSR (19 points) will do everything they can to not lose touch with the “serial winners”.
