2023 24 Hours of Nürburgring: Race

NUR24

May 21

Tremendous success for the new Ferrari 296 GT3 with an overall victory by #30 Frikadelli Racing Team at the 51st 24 Hours of Nürburgring, a P1 in SP9 PRO-AM for #20 WTM by Rinaldi Racing (7th overall) and a 100% reliability with sister #19 by racing one ending 15th overall (3rd SP9 PRO-AM).

Three manufacturers on the podium.

#30 Ferrari 296 GT3 by Frikadelli Racing Team driven by Earl Bamber, Nick Catsburg, David Pittard and Felipe Fernandez Laser wins the 51st 24 Hours of Nürburgring after leading the race almost non-stop (except when pitting) since their first pit stop after 5 laps. That early stop strategy was the right one as, from then on, the #30 Frikadelli lead with 2 minutes + the rest of GT3s. Even a slow puncture at the end of Nicky Catsburg stint just before night didn’t put the Bamber, Catsburg, Pittard, Fernandez Laser quartet in difficulty.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #30 Ferrari 296 GT3 by Frikadelli Racing Team driven by Earl Bamber, Nick Catsburg, David Pittard and Felipe Fernandez Laser.

#98 BMW M4 GT3 by Rowe Racing driven by Maxime Martin, Dries Vanthoor, Marco Wittmann and Sheldon van der Linde end second 26.911 sec. behind the winning Ferrari after starting the race from P 33. They probably lost any chance of winning against the Ferrari after missing the qualifying sessions and therefore starting from the back of the GT3 grid.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #98 BMW M4 GT3 by Rowe Racing driven by Maxime Martin, Dries Vanthoor, Marco Wittmann and Sheldon van der Linde.

Maxime Martin (#98 BMW M4 GT3, ROWE Racing, 2nd place): “All in all, we had a strong race and, given our starting position, that is a good result. The team did a perfect job with the strategy. We were fast and consistent. However, I am also pleased for Frikadelli Racing. Klaus and the whole team deserved it. We can be happy with ourselves.”

Sheldon van der Linde (#98 BMW M4 GT3, ROWE Racing, 2nd place): “Simply getting through this race without any major issues or incidents is a very good performance. We saw a lot of crashes, particularly during the night. We wanted to survive that phase without any issues – and we managed that. We were just lacking a little bit of pace that would have allowed us to push for victory. However, we still produced a flawless race.”

Dries Vanthoor (#98 BMW M4 GT3, ROWE Racing, 2nd place): “That was not an easy race. We gave it everything and were ultimately rewarded with second place. Everyone did a fantastic job. A lot happened in the race, and the traffic was very difficult at times. Thank you to ROWE Racing and everyone at BMW M. We’ll go again next year.”

Marco Wittmann (#98 BMW M4 GT3, ROWE Racing, 2nd place): “We can be extremely proud of ourselves. To challenge for victory from the back row of our starting row, that is a very good team effort. That goes for both the team and us drivers. Not once did we make contact with another car. Although we did not quite have the pace to take victory, we can be happy on the whole.” Source: BMW Group

#4 Mercedes-AMG GT3 by Mercedes-AMG Team Bilstein driven by Philipp Elis, Luca Stolz and Raffaele Marciello have been in the battle for victory until they had a 32 sec. penalty for pit infringement. They end third 1:17.400 minutes behind the BMW #98.

Remarquable that the top three are within 2 minutes after a 24 hours race without any safety car that generally regroup the top 10 cars (if not more) in other 24 hours races!

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #4 Mercedes-AMG GT3 by Mercedes-AMG Team Bilstein driven by Philipp Elis, Luca Stolz and Raffaele Marciello.

3 Mercedes-AMG in the top 8 overall.

Christodoulou, Götz and Schiller get their #2 Mercedes-AMG GT3 by Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed in P4, 46.500 seconds behind sister #4.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: Christodoulou, Götz and Schiller with #2 Mercedes-AMG GT3.

The first Porsche 911 GT3 R is fifth with Dennis Olsen, Matteo Cairoli and Julien Andlauer driving the #96 Porsche by Rutronik Racing. They end 5:07.567 minutes behind the #2 Mercedes and are the last one to end within the winners lap.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #96 Porsche 911 GT3 R by Rutronik Racing with Dennis Olsen, Matteo Cairoli and Julien Andlauer.

Dennis Olsen (Porsche 911 GT3 R #96): “Once again, the ‘Green Hell’ lived up to its name. It was an incredibly tough race. We did our utmost and the team worked perfectly. We got through the race without any technical problems. Everything was perfectly prepared. Nevertheless, it became very clear that the other manufacturers could set a better pace. We accomplished what we set out to do and have to be satisfied with the result. Fifth place almost feels like a podium finish after today’s battle. Now, my sights are set on the coming weekend and the start of the DTM season. I’m really looking forward to it.” Source: Porsche

6th and only surviving Audi in the top 10, #39 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II by Audi Sport Team Land driven by Christopher Haase, Christopher Mies and Patric Niederhausen ending one lap behind the winners.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #39 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II by Audi Sport Team Land driven by Christopher Haase, Christopher Mies and Patric Niederhausen

7th overall and first SP9 PRO-AM is the #20 Ferrari 296 GT3 WTM by Rinaldi Racing driven by Leonard Weiss, Jochen Krumbach, Daniel Keilwitz and Indy Dontje.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #20 Ferrari 296 GT3 WTM by Rinaldi Racing driven by Leonard Weiss, Jochen Krumbach, Daniel Keilwitz and Indy Dontje. The trio also ends second of the SP9 PRO-AM class.

Third Mercedes-AMG GT3 to be in the top 8 is the #6 by Mercedes-AMG Team Bilstein driven by Hubert Haupt, Jordan Love and Arjun Maini. The trio ends third of the SP9 PRO-AM class.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #6 by Mercedes-AMG GT3 by Mercedes-AMG Team Bilstein driven by Hubert Haupt, Jordan Love and Arjun Maini.

The #27 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 ends ninth representing the third Italian manufactured GT3 in the top 9 overall.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #27 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2 driven by Kelvin van der Linde, Marco Mapelli, Jordan pepper and Nicki Thiim.

Last in the top 10: #44 Falken Porsche 911 GT3 R driven by Joel Eriksson, Tim Heinemann, Nico Menzel and Martin Ragginger.

📷 © Luc Warnotte at **24 hours of Nürburgring**: #44 Falken Porsche 911 GT3 R driven by Joel Eriksson, Tim Heinemann, Nico Menzel and Martin Ragginger.

Tim Heinemann (Porsche 911 GT3 R #44): “We were within striking distance of the podium early in the race, but then came the first mishap – a high-speed spin, puncture and considerable time cost. In the morning we fought our way back into the top five. And then? More damage. We tried everything and managed to mitigate the damage by finishing tenth. Our mechanics worked incredibly hard. It’s a shame because more could have been possible. Now we have to live with this result. It felt great representing such a prestigious brand like Porsche in front of more than 230,000 spectators. Next up for me is the DTM. The tests went well. I’m confident and hope that, as a newcomer, I can muscle my way into the top 10 in the DTM.” Source: Porsche

2023 24 Hours of Nürburgring: Race

Three manufacturers on the podium.

3 Mercedes-AMG in the top 8 overall.

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