Held on August 1, 2026, amidst the summer holidays, the KW 6h ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen of the ADAC RAVENOL Nürburgring Endurance Series provided a fantastic setting for this traditional season highlight in the “Green Hell,” featuring glorious weather and packed grandstands. Six hours filled with tactical maneuvering, fierce wheel-to-wheel battles, and a great atmosphere in the stands defined the seventh NLS race of the year. After completing 41 laps, the Mercedes-AMG Team RAVENOL secured the overall victory, finishing ahead of the Schubert Motorsport squad and Team 48 LOSCH Motorsport by BLACK FALCON.
The race was defined by the emotional return of Ralf Aron. Roughly five months after his serious accident at the Bathurst 12 Hour, the Estonian driver made an impressive racing comeback in the No. 80 Mercedes-AMG GT3. Aron made a strong statement during the morning qualifying session by putting the Mercedes-AMG GT3 on pole position with a blistering time of 7:51.506 minutes. In the race, Aron and teammate Luca Stolz delivered a stellar performance, crossing the finish line as the beaming overall winners after six hours of flawless driving. For Stolz, the triumph was the perfect 31st birthday gift. “It was a fantastic race for us—we had so much fun. Six hours of action in perfect Eifel weather; I’ve still got a huge grin on my face. It really is the best birthday present. We had a completely flawless day, and the car didn’t even get a scratch—simply perfect,” said a visibly relieved Luca Stolz after the finish. Ralf Aron made no secret of his emotions either: “This makes the comeback complete, and I’m overjoyed. I hadn’t even dared to dream of this beforehand. It was a huge pleasure to race alongside Luca.”
The Schubert Motorsport team secured second place overall after 41 laps, finishing 39.480 seconds behind the winners. Driving the No. 77 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Jens Klingmann, Ugo de Wilde, and Tim Tramnitz—making his Nordschleife GT3 debut—delivered a highly focused performance. “Luca was a formidable opponent. The Mercedes crew was extremely fast right from qualifying and truly earned today’s victory. We were within striking distance at times, but whenever we closed the gap, they were able to respond and pull away again. I’m incredibly proud of both my teammates—especially Tim, who was competing in his first-ever GT3 race on the Nordschleife,” said veteran driver Jens Klingmann, summarizing the battle at the front. Tim Tramnitz was also thoroughly pleased with the outcome: “It’s a great feeling. We had a bit of a tricky pit stop after my first stint, but the car’s handling was superb. Jens’s experience was a huge help to me, especially during the preparations for the weekend.” His teammate Ugo de Wilde was equally delighted with the success: “I really wanted to secure this first Nordschleife podium. Tim did a fantastic job in his debut.”
The remaining spot on the overall podium went to the #48 Porsche 911 GT3 R EVO entered by LOSCH Motorsport by BLACK FALCON; the team finished third overall and won the SP9 PRO-AM class. The trio of Patrick Assenheimer, Tobias Müller, and Dylan Pereira also delivered a strong performance. While Dylan Pereira headed straight to his next race at Magny-Cours immediately after his stint, Patrick Assenheimer and Tobias Müller celebrated the trophy win on-site on their own. “Dylan called us via FaceTime from the car, and we could share in his excitement live; he was following the action closely throughout the entire drive. The race went fantastically, and after the final run, we’re back on the overall podium. Despite the wheel alignment being slightly off, we put in a rock-solid performance—no errors, no penalties,” reported Tobias Müller.
The #4 Porsche 911 GT3 R from Goroyan RT by Car Collection finished fourth overall, driven by Artur Goroyan, Alex Fontana, and Nico Menzel, who thereby secured second place in the SP9 PRO-AM class. In a thrilling finale, Team FK Performance Motorsport snatched fifth place overall with their #1 BMW M4 GT3 EVO. On the very last lap, the quartet of Leyton Fourie, Dan Harper, Pavel Lefterov, and Maxime Oosten overtook the #123 Porsche 911 GT3 R EVO from Mühlner Motorsport—driven by Martin Rump, Ben Bünnagel, and Noah Nagelsdiek—relegating that car to sixth place.
In the SP9 AM class, the #786 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO II from Renazzo Motorsport—driven by Sak Nana, Christoph Breuer, and Thomas Mutsch—prevailed after a dramatic battle following the final pit stop. They relegated the #5 Porsche 911 GT3 R from BLACK FALCON Team EAE (driven by Mustafa Mehmet Kaya, Gabriele Piana, and Mike Stursberg) to second place in the class.
Emotional Moments and Action in the One-Make Cup Classes
Beyond the top SP9 category, the six-hour Eifel classic also delivered unique stories. A very special highlight was provided by a joint project between Porsche Heritage and Museum and Team75 Bernhard. Driving an exclusively liveried Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS (#718), Nordschleife legends and Porsche brand ambassadors Timo Bernhard and Jörg Bergmeister gave a fitting send-off to the very last mid-engine race car of this model series built in Zuffenhausen. “This car was an extremely important customer racing model for Porsche. We wanted to give it a worthy farewell. The reception from the fans was simply tremendous—it makes you incredibly proud,” explained a visibly moved Timo Bernhard before the start. Jörg Bergmeister added with a smile: “I didn’t have to think twice when the request came in. Just as we started out together back then, the circle is now closing here on the Nordschleife.” The duo completed 37 flawless laps and crowned their emotional farewell outing by finishing fourth in the SP10 class.
Action was equally intense in the highly competitive one-make cup classes. In the CUP2 category, Team BLACK FALCON Team ZIMMERMANN celebrated a commanding class victory. Alexander Hardt, Benjamin Hites, and Benjamin Koslowski prevailed in their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (#900) against fellow Porsche drivers Ryan Harrison, Raphael Rennhofer, and Leon Wassertheurer from Team LIQUI MOLY by BLACK FALCON (#902). Patrik Grütter and Fabio Grosse secured third place on the CUP2 podium for SRS Team Sorg Rennsport (#901).
In the CUP3 category (Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring), Oskar Sandberg and Alexander Fielenbach secured their fourth victory. Driving the Smyrlis Racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS (#953), the duo staged a furious recovery drive after receiving a drive-through penalty for a jump start, ultimately crossing the finish line as class winners after six hours. They relegated Lorenz Stegmann and Moritz Oberheim of W&S Motorsport (#962)—as well as Marius Rauer, Michal Makes, and Toby Goodman (#961, also W&S Motorsport)—to second and third place, respectively.
Thrilling Championship Battle
With another class victory at the season’s highlight event, the trio of Edoardo Bugane, Yannick Fübrich, and Sven Markert (Adrenalin Motorsport Team Mainhattan Wheels) cemented their lead in the overall standings. Boasting a perfect score of 79.00 points, the BMW M240i team (#650) has won its class in every race contested so far this season. They are followed by Alexander Fielenbach and Oskar Sandberg (64.00 points) and the trio of Anton Abée, Yannik Himmels, and Jörg Viebahn (56.00 points). Benjamin Albers and Raphael Rennhofer round out the top 10, each with 55.00 points. Since there are no dropped results this season, every single race result counts toward the standings—making the title fight incredibly intense: the leaders must continue to score reliably in the remaining races and cannot afford any slip-ups or retirements.
Following this successful six-hour spectacle, the ADAC RAVENOL Nürburgring Endurance Series heads into a brief summer break before the next highlight at the Nürburgring takes place on September 12 and 13, 2026: a major double-header featuring rounds NLS8 and NLS9.
