There’s no time to catch one’s breath in the ADAC RAVENOL Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie. Just one week after the third round, races four and five are on the schedule with the ADAC 24h Nürburgring Qualifiers (17–19 April). The prologue to the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring counts towards the points standings of the historic Nordschleife Championship for the third year running. Led by Max Verstappen, no fewer than 37 GT3 cars will line up on the grid, promising thrilling racing in the Green Hell. Long-standing NLS drivers are moving up to the top category, and there are also some new faces in the midfield. The races will be livestreamed on the NLS YouTube channel on Saturday and Sunday.
No fewer than 37 GT3 cars will be competing in the qualifiers. Added to this is the BMW M3 Touring 24h in the SP-X class. One name in the entry list stands out once again, promising international attention: Max Verstappen. The four-time Formula 1 world champion returns to the Nürburgring Nordschleife after a one-race break. In the Mercedes-AMG GT3 of Mercedes-AMG Team Verstappen Racing, he will be sharing the drive with Lucas Auer this time. Making their SP9 debuts in races four and five are the BMW Z4 GT3 from Saugmotoren Motorsport | 3M, a Mercedes-AMG GT3 from SR Motorsport by Schnitzelalm, a McLaren 720S GT3 from Dörr Motorsport, and three Porsche 911 GT3 Rs fielded by PK Motorsport x Lionspeed, High Class Racing and Mühlner Motorsport powered by H&R.
NLS veterans make their GT3 debut
Two long-standing NLS drivers are making their GT3 debut at the Qualifiers: Maik Rönnefarth and Tobias Wahl. Together with Maxime Dumarey and Marek Böckmann, they will be taking turns at the wheel of the Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3. “This is my eleventh year competing in the NLS and I’ve been driving GT4 for ten years, so the move to the GT3 class is now a logical step,” says Wahl. “Last year I had a lot of bad luck and couldn’t win the title alongside Nick Wüstenhaben and Ranko Mijatovic because I’d broken my collarbone. Now I’m all the more excited about this adventure with PROsport. The Aston Martin felt very good to me right from the start of testing. I was surprised by how good the feedback is that you feel as a driver. You can drive it much more precisely and accurately, and the aerodynamics are superb. I was able to set an 8:11-minute lap quite quickly. Nevertheless, there’s obviously still room for improvement, and I’m really looking forward to my first race.”
Christoph Breuer is set to receive a great honour. A graduate of the 2006 VLN Honda Junior Team and long-standing head of Manthey’s Road Cars division, he has been competing in the NLS for years – since 2024 in the Renazzo Motorsport Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo II alongside Thai drift champion Kiki Sak Nana. At the qualifiers, Breuer will now take the wheel of the legendary Grello, Manthey’s Porsche 911 GT3, for the first time. “Looking at it objectively, they were still looking for a driver, as Thomas isn’t allowed to compete in the race alone,” says Breuer. “Personally, however, this is a huge dream come true for me. If someone had told me this five years ago, I would simply have waved it away. I’ve always wondered what it’s like to drive the Grello – now I have the chance to experience it for myself. For me, this is a huge honour and I have great respect for it. The team is putting their heart and soul into this project – from the mechanics to the engineers and all the other staff right up to the top management. My task is clearly defined: don’t break anything. But I’m at an age where my ego allows for that.”
Smudo from ‘Die Fantastischen Vier’ is making his racing debut this year. The rapper will be sharing the cockpit of a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup with his long-time colleague Tom von Löwis and Henrik Bollerselv from Denmark. As usual, the car will be competing in the AT class, demonstrating that motorsport can also be sustainable. “We’re looking forward to kicking off the season at the 24h Qualifiers. They’re a benchmark. Every lap counts and we’re ready to show what’s possible with our sustainable technologies,” says Smudo.
In the midfield, three cars from Asia are making their debut. As usual, Subaru Tecnica International is entering the Subaru WRX in the SP4T class. Two Elantra N1 RPs from Hyundai Motorsport N are competing in the same class.
How the Qualifiers differ from the other NLS races
Whilst the NLS race days follow a familiar pattern, the ADAC 24h Qualifiers feature a unique format. Perhaps the biggest difference is the circuit layout. As with the 24-hour race, the AMG Arena is omitted. Instead, the Müllenbachschleife forms part of the circuit. The track length increases to 25.378 kilometres. The longer distance per lap means that strategy may need to be adjusted.
Saturday’s schedule is also unusual for an NLS race. Whilst qualifying takes place as usual between 08:30 and 10:00, the race does not start until 17:30 and continues into the evening. During the break between qualifying and the race, the first round of the German Historic Endurance Championship will take place. The race will run for three hours, starting at 12 noon.
On Sunday, a Top Qualifying session takes place in the NLS once a year. Following qualifying (08:15 to 09:45), the Top Qualifying session begins at 10:40. Here, the top cars take to the track in a single-car time trial to determine their starting positions. The second four-hour race then starts at 13:00.
Tickets for Friday are already available for €10. Tickets for individual race days start at €27, whilst weekend tickets are available from €45. Full details can be found at 24h-rennen.de. Spectators who are unable to attend in person can watch the race via livestream as usual on the NLS YouTube channel. The stream begins on Saturday at 8.10 am and on Sunday at 8 am.
