The second race of the ADAC 24h Nürburgring Qualifiers offered plenty of excitement, dramatic moments both big and small—and many insights, especially with an eye toward the 24h Nürburgring in May. It wasn’t just the ultra-exciting start, marked by the spectacular duel between the Scherer Audi #16 and the Verstappen Mercedes-AMG #3, that was a thrill. The finish, where things got really exciting again in the leading group, was also a true showcase for endurance racing on the Nordschleife. Here are the quotes and news from the four-hour race.
#3 Verstappen / Auer (Mercedes-AMG GT3)
1:03 p.m. Verstappen is in fourth place behind Christopher Hasse in the #16 Haase / Sims / Green (Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II)
1:16 p.m. Verstappen passes Marschall in the #45 Perel / Marschall / Vermeulen (Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo26) at the exit of the Eiskurve and takes second place.
1:29 p.m. Max Verstappen passes Christopher Haase in the #16 Haase / Sims / Green (Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II) and takes the lead.
1:40 p.m. Verstappen has set the fastest lap of the race so far with a time of 8:10.453.
1:51 p.m. Max Verstappen pits. Haase in the #16 Haase / Sims / Green (Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II) stays out. The Dutch driver remains in the car.
2:20 p.m. Verstappen continues to lead ahead of the #16 Haase / Sims / Green (Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II) and the #84 Engstler / Bortolotti / Niederhauser (Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2)
2:30 p.m. comes into the pits after completing the tenth lap. There is obviously a problem with the car, which is being pushed into the pits by the team.
2:41 PM has a defect on the front splitter, which the team is now repairing. In the final stages, the focus is on preparations for the 24-hour race.
2:58 p.m. is pushed out of the pits and Lucas Auer takes over the drive.
#4 Goroyan / Berthon / Kvitka (Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26)
3:03 p.m. Driving slowly in the Brünnchen area
#7 Stalidzane / Paul / Lefterov (Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2)
1:40 p.m. Maximilian Paul: “We had tire issues, so we decided to pit early. Otherwise, it was business as usual—we just didn’t have any grip. And now we’re trying something different.”
3:06 PM On the tow truck in the Mutkurve section
3:43 PM Patricija Stalidzane: “We tried to push for a lap and ended up with a flat tire. I had to pull the car over. We tried a risky strategy and it didn’t work out. The car is running perfectly, but I don’t think it’s worth it for us to go out again now.”
#8 Veremenko / SELV (Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II)
4:59 PM Quick pit stop—front right tire changed, and we’re back on track
#16 Haase / Sims / Green (Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II)
1:09 p.m. Christopher Haase passes Thomas Preining in the #911 Preining / Campbell (Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26) and takes second place.
1:14 p.m. Haase passes the leader, the #45 Perel / Marschall / Vermeulen (Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo26)
1:34 p.m. Haase attacks Verstappen in the #3 Verstappen / Auer (Mercedes-AMG GT3), but is forced to drop back behind the Dutch driver.
2:07 p.m. Pit stop completed, and Haase has handed over to Alexander Sims
2:09 p.m. Christopher Haase: “Max and I had another duel. To be fair, I have to say I struggled more this time. I don’t think we have the balance we need. We have too much oversteer, which makes the car a bit too unpredictable. I think it’s due to the cold conditions. That makes it a bit harder for us. And it makes it harder in a duel. The battle was very respectful again, and that makes it fun. I was never in a position where I could have been the one to hold him up. You just have to accept that; it’s part of the game. But the moment will come when I might be better positioned.”
2:37 p.m. Since #3 Verstappen / Auer (Mercedes-AMG GT3) is still in the pits, Alexander Sims takes the lead.
5:06 p.m. Sims crosses the finish line and secures the victory for his team.
5:11 p.m. Christopher Haase: “Our weekend was a rollercoaster. We really struggled with the rainy conditions today. I also had a minor collision with the tire barriers. We really had a hard time getting the car to work. In the top qualifying session, the whole picture changed again and the car ran pretty well, almost perfectly. Things are going well for us in the race right now, but the balance isn’t exactly where I’d personally like it to be. But in the end, it turned out pretty well for us. We’ve already spotted a few things in the data that we’re not entirely happy with. I think we need to take another look at the technical side of things. It doesn’t slow us down, but it’s obviously less pleasant to drive. If we improve the drivability over the stint, that would be much less stressful for the drivers. That would be especially important in a 24-hour race.”
#23 Zsigo / Kranz / Jahn (BMW M4 GT3 EVO)
1:03 p.m. is the loser of the start and is now down to eighth place.
#30 Kim / Bruins / Cho / Seefried (Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26)
2:16 PM Kim Jongkyum: “That was a tough stint for me, since it was only my second time starting on the Nordschleife. I started yesterday as well, and I was still totally nervous today. But it was also fun. Our goal is to bring the car home.”
#35 Fernández Laser / Mateo / Fetzer / Aust (Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO)
12:47 p.m. Pits after a short lap on the GP circuit. Dennis Fetzer gets out.
#36 Reeh / Schall / Walkenhorst / Scherer (BMW E89 Z4 (EVO 2013))
12:16 Can’t shake off the bad luck. After a collision during Top Qualifying, the Z4 is too damaged.
#45 Perel / Marschall / Vermeulen / Neubauer (Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo26)
1:02 p.m. The pole sitter is in the lead.
1:13 p.m. Dennis Marschall is locked in a fierce battle with Christopher Haase in the #16 Haase / Sims / Green (Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II). Interestingly, the two of them won the 2024 24-hour race together in the second-place Audi.
1:42 p.m. The fourth-place Ferrari is in the gravel trap at the Brünnchen exit
#47 Fukuzumi / Gamo / Krohn / Pittard (Mercedes-AMG GT3)
2:21 PM Was driving too fast during a Code 60 phase and receives a 45-second penalty.
2:29 PM Receives a 45-second time penalty for failing to obey flag signals.
#48 Arrow / Assenheimer / Müller / Pereira (Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26)
2:19 PM The Black Falcon Porsche driven by Pereira has a technical issue in the Pflanzgarten section and is being repaired by the team alongside the track.
5:04 p.m. is pushed into the pits
#61 Holstad / Ludwig / Gebhardt / Spengler (HWA Evo R)
2:19 PM Bruno Spengler hands off to Peter Ludwig and reports: “The car had very good balance. I was able to drive consistent lap times. The car was already good in qualifying, and I was relatively satisfied. So there was no need to change anything for the race—just put on another set of tires. The team is doing a great job. The car was only born last October, and here we are on the Nordschleife, driving good, fast, and consistent lap times.”
#62 Winkelhock / Ludwig / Asch / James (HWA Evo R)
2:13 p.m. Markus Winkelhock: “It was cool; it was really fun. The car was great to drive. This was my first race with the car. I have to say, the car has been running without any technical issues from the start. The balance is great, the traction control, the ABS—it’s all been completely retuned and is at a really high level.”
#65 Stippler / Maini / Hubert / Schumacher (Ford Mustang GT3)
1:49 p.m. Frank Stippler handed over to Hubert Haupt and reported: “My stint was okay so far. We were able to test what we wanted to test. It was great to drive in such nice weather. At the moment, everything is going according to plan, but we just have to see where we stand when we’re racing with the front-runners. Unfortunately, we were a bit too far back in qualifying. I couldn’t see exactly where our strengths and weaknesses lie compared to those who are driving really fast up front or even faster. So it’s still hard to assess where we stand right now.”
#67 Mies / Vervisch / Scherer / Caresani (Ford Mustang GT3)
2:04 p.m. Starting driver Christopher Mies handed off to Colin Caresani and reported: “It’s always difficult when you start so far back. In terms of pace, I think we could have been further up the grid. Our car is a bit slower on the straights this year because of the extra downforce. Now it feels like we’re the slowest car on the straights. That makes it hard to pass. It was still really fun, though—there were some tough battles at the limit, but they were fair. So I think it was cool for the spectators.”
#69 Dörr / Strycek (McLaren 720S-GT3)
3:13 p.m. On the track with loose underbody panels in the Fuchsröhre section.
3:24 p.m. Due to failure to comply with a Code 60 phase, a time penalty of 77 seconds is imposed, and Timo Glock receives two penalty points on his DMSB record.
#80 Engel / Schiller / Stolz (Mercedes-AMG GT3)
1:57 p.m. Luca Stolz overtakes the #23 Zsigo / Kranz / Jahn (BMW M4 GT3 EVO) and takes sixth place.
2:06 p.m. Luca Stolz: “The start phase is always interesting, and I had a few really good battles. I was hoping to get past the Schnitzelalm a bit earlier and overtake the BMW in front of me. It felt like that took a little too long. But then I made a small mistake myself. Other than that, everything went well.”
4:16 p.m. Failed to meet the minimum pit stop duration and receives a 32-second time penalty
4:23 p.m. Luca Stolz comes in and serves his time penalty
4:48 p.m. Fabian Schiller is rapidly catching up to Thomas Preining in the #911 Preining / Campbell (Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26)
4:50 PM Fabian Schiller passes the #911 Preining / Campbell (Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26), but Thomas Preining fights back and remains in third place.
#84 Engstler / Bortolotti / Niederhauser (Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2)
1:26 p.m. Mirko Bortolotti passes Dennis Marschall in the #45 Perel / Marschall / Vermeulen (Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo26) to take third place
1:52 PM Mirko Bortolotti pits
1:59 PM Mirko Bortolotti: “I had a great start from twelfth place and was able to overtake a few competitors right away in the first two corners. I was then in sixth place and had a great stint. I made the most of my opportunities and came into the pits in third place. Everything is going according to plan right now. The traffic is as crazy as ever and the atmosphere is amazing. It’s always fun to race here.”
2:51 p.m. is right on the tail of the leading #16 Haase / Sims / Green (Audi R8 LMS GT3 evo II)
3:09 p.m. Luca Engstler has handed over to Patrick Niederhäuser and reports: “I don’t think the pace is quite there—compared to the Audi and Mercedes—but I still feel very comfortable in the car. It’s a good battle for the podium, and I think that’s important. We’re going flat out from the first to the last lap. And yes, unfortunately it’s not enough to be right at the front. But we have to focus on ourselves, and then everything will be fine.”
4:04 p.m. Martin Tomczyk, Motorsport Director at Abt Motorsport: We’re running a super clean race. Mirko certainly laid the groundwork with his start, where he passed six cars. Then we made it through the traffic unscathed, and now you can see that the lap times are quite spread out. However, it’s also important to note that the results aren’t pit stop-adjusted yet. In other words, the Mercedes behind us is virtually ahead of us. The Audi has a significant lead up front. Now we’ll see. It’s pretty even between Audi and Mercedes in terms of pace. Now let’s finish the race and see where we end up.”
5:06 p.m. Patric Niederhauser takes second place
5:11 p.m. Mirko Bortolotti: “From a sporting perspective, it was a great weekend for us. We had two great race starts—yesterday and today. Things are moving in the right direction in terms of preparations for the 24-hour race. But yesterday was a dark day and really very hard for all of us. It was a truly difficult moment for the entire paddock. My thoughts are with the family. You don’t want to see something like that in motorsport, but unfortunately, sometimes it’s part of it. So it wasn’t a joyful weekend, but from a sporting perspective, I can’t complain.”
#88 Sasaki / Iguchi (Subaru WRX)
1:16 p.m. Pits after one lap. The Subaru was involved in a collision at the start.
#89 Knappmeier / Knappmeier / Groneck (VW GOLF 7 GTI TCR DSG)
5:01 PM Receives a 45-second time penalty for failing to observe a Code 60 phase.
#108 Beck / Schmidt (BMW 325i (e90))
2:44 PM Stuck in the Bergwerk section with a technical issue
#175 Lulham / de Oliveira / Kautz / Bard (Mercedes-AMG GT4)
4:04 p.m. Stuck in the gravel trap at the exit of the Goodyear hairpin
#188 Partl / Schrey / Wiskirchen (BMW M4 GT4 EVO (G82))
3:36 p.m. Philipp Wiskirchen: “It’s very hot, but my stint went really well. The car ran flawlessly. We’re currently in third or fourth place in the class, which is very competitive. The race still has an hour and a half to go, but of course we’re hoping for a podium finish. Max Partl apparently had a collision, and after that we were driving without a rear hatch. It was pretty loud, too. But we didn’t have any problems, and the car is running with the rear hatch again now.”
4:49 p.m. Michael Schrey, who actually wanted to retire from motorsports at the end of last season, couldn’t resist the offer from his former team, Bonk Motorsport. That seems to be paying off, as the driver from Wallenhorst is leading both in the SP10 class for GT4 cars and in the BMW M2 Cup class.
#275 Geisler / Harris (BMW 318ti (E36))
3:43 p.m. The oldest car in the field was traveling too fast in the pit lane and has been handed a 60-second penalty.
#302 Kim / Shin / Sepulveda Irizarry / Lauck (Hyundai Motor Company ELANTRA N1 RP)
1:07 p.m. Pits after the formation lap.
1:07 p.m. enters the pits after a short lap
4:04 p.m. Is towed by the DMSB crew
#380 Schäffer / Morhin (Opel Corsa GS Line 130)
4:14 PM Lena Strycek: “I got a call this week at the last minute asking if I wanted to participate this weekend. After a break of over four years, I had to quickly renew my license this week and now feel right at home again. Our Bitter Corsa is actually an Opel Corsa that has been modified by the Bitter company.”
#396 Faßbender / Büllesbach / Schettler / Arimon (Porsche Cayman S)
4:58 p.m. Klaus Faßbender was driving at 145 km/h instead of 120 km/h in a double-yellow zone and received a 55-second time penalty and one penalty point.
#480 Dupré / Nett (Audi S3 Sedan)
5:03 p.m. is also going bumper-to-bumper with Michael Bohrer into the final lap. The battle is for the win in the VT2 Front class.
#488 Alger / Deissler / de Groot (BMW 128ti)
4:28 p.m. Calvin de Groot disregarded a Code 60 phase, resulting in the Sorg BMW receiving an 86-second time penalty and the young Dutch driver two penalty points on his DMSB record.
#494 Schönfeld / Pellegrino Fernandes / Schneider (VW Golf GTI)
3:32 PM For disregarding a Code 60 phase, the team receives a time penalty of 75 seconds, and Alex Schneider additionally receives two penalty points on his DMSB record.
#514 Strube / Carobbio / Kroner / Vicenzi (BMW)
1:07 p.m. Pits after a short lap
#520 Miyazono / Kawabata / Horino (Toyota Supra)
5:11 PM Kawabata disregarded a double-yellow phase and receives a 67-second penalty and one penalty point.
#524 Ooms / Timmis / Torres (Toyota Supra)
2:09 PM The championship leaders from the VT2 RWD class are on the side of the track in the Kallenhard section.
#632 Broadbent / Brown / Charoudin / Metzger (Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992))
2:54 PM Leading the alternative fuels classification and holding his own exceptionally well against the identical GT3 Cup Porsches. He would currently be on course for a podium finish there.
#651 Albers / Silva / Baztarrica (BMW M240i Racing Cup)
1:28 p.m. Briefly went off the track but is able to continue.
#665 Ullrich / Von der Sanden / Steffens / Garbe (BMW M240i Racing Cup)
1:19 PM is being pushed backward into the garage
#677 Grilli / Alpiger (BMW M240i Racing Cup)
3:13 PM Receives a 45-second time penalty for failing to observe a Code 60 phase
#830 Basseng / Lauck / Bastian / Azcona (Hyundai Motor Company ELENTRA N TCR)
2:55 PM The TCR Hyundai driven by Marc Basseng is once again the top front-wheel-drive car in 33rd place overall.
3:51 p.m. Azcona hits the guardrail with the right side of his car near Schwedenkreuz and then slides into the gravel near Aremberg. The fastest front-wheel-drive car in the field so far is able to continue slowly and appears to have suspension damage, as the Spaniard has to keep correcting with the steering wheel.
4:12 p.m. Mikel Azcona: “I had a tire blowout in a very fast section. I was going about 250 km/h. I turned the wheel, the tire exploded, and I was just a passenger from there on. Even though I hit the guardrail at ‘ ,’ I managed to get the car back to the pits. It wasn’t easy, since I was driving on the rim.”
4:41 p.m. Driving slowly on the GP circuit. Nico Bastian has to head for the pits after a short lap.
#904 Hofmeister / Walter (Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992))
2:53 PM The fastest Cup car comes from the Mühlner team, with Joshua Bednarski currently at the wheel.
#911 Preining / Campbell / Breuer (Porsche 911 GT3 R (992) Evo26)
1:01 p.m. has moved up to second place after a lightning-fast start
2:43 PM is overtaken by several competitors.
4:52 PM Preining has to fend off attacks from Schiller in the #80 Engel / Schiller / Stolz (Mercedes-AMG GT3) through several turns. But he manages to stay ahead.
5:07 p.m. After a lap-long battle with #80 Engel / Schiller / Stolz (Mercedes-AMG GT3), Preining secures third place.
5:11 PM Matt Campbell: “We had a good race. Thomas did a really good job. We also did a good job with the strategy. I think the other cars were definitely faster than us, but the strategy really worked well.”
#925 Miller / Lander / Wehrmann (Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992))
3:39 p.m. is sidelined with a technical issue in the GP circuit area
#939 Ruf / Sartingen / Schwenk (Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport (Type 982))
1:43 p.m. enters the pits
#945 Nölken / Nölken (Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport (Type 982))
2:36 PM Receives a drive-through penalty due to the collision with #45 Perel / Marschall / Vermeulen (Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo26).
#977 Zimmermann / Arn / Frommenwiler / Ruhrmann (Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport (Type 982))
4:14 p.m. is sideways on the track in the Kallenhard section.