VIVIAN ASHER 

As the night draws to an end, two Porsche 911 GT3 R have maintained contact with the leaders at the 24-hour highlight on the Nürburgring. After 18 hours of racing, Rutronik Racing lies in fifth place with the 911 helmed by Dennis Olsen, Matteo Cairoli and Julien Andlauer. Falken Motorsports is currently running in eighth place with the GT3 vehicle shared by Nico Menzel, Tim Heinemann, Joel Eriksson and Martin Ragginger. Both vehicles are still on the same lap as the leaders. 

The cool, dry night at the Nürburgring brought numerous setbacks. At daybreak, three of the seven customer-run 911 GT3 R still had a chance of finishing among the frontrunners. In addition to the cars fielded by Rutronik Racing and Falken Motorsports, Huber Motorsport’s 911 was also running in the top 15. Sharing driving duties in the No. 25 car are the works driver Romain Dumas from France, the two Germans Lars Kern and Dennis Fetzer as well as Frenchman Côme Ledogar.

However, the blistering speed of the race on the 25.378-kilometre combination of the historic Nordschleife and the original layout of the Grand Prix circuit took its toll right from the start. First, Manthey EMA suffered a setback with its so-called “Grello”. After an impressive charge from 20th on the grid, the Frenchman Kévin Estre was back in eighth place, only to have a puncture cause him to slide into the tyre barrier at the end of his second stint. However, after the repairs were completed, the team was unable to solve the ongoing problems on the left rear wheel. At 1.30 a.m. on Sunday morning, Manthey EMA withdrew the vehicle driven by Estre and his works driver teammates Michael Christensen (Denmark), Frédéric Makowiecki (France) and Thomas Preining (Austria) for safety reasons. By this time, the No. 24 entry from Lionspeed by Car Collection was already out of the race. After lengthy repairs when Matt Campbell slid off the track, the team called it quits after a good two and a half hours.

In the first third of the race, the No. 44 Porsche campaigned by Falken Motorsports defended its position as the best-placed Porsche. For a brief time, the 911 GT3 RS driven by Austria’s Martin Ragginger, Joel Eriksson (Sweden) and the two Germans Nico Menzel and Tim Heinemann held third place. At around midnight, bad luck hit the quartet: While lapping a slower car in the Flugplatz section of the track, Heinemann slid into the tyre barrier. Including the pit stop, the GT3 car fell back to P14 behind the No. 33 sister car but was back in eighth place by eight o’clock the next morning.

At around 3:30 a.m., the Falken Porsche driven by Sven Müller (Germany), Klaus Bachler (Austria) and the Belgian Alessio Picariello was also hit by a slower vehicle, which shunted it into guardrail. After repairs were made, the team rejoined the race, only to call the car into the pits for good 90 minutes later. For the No. 54 Porsche from Dinamic GT, the race was over at 4:45 a.m. after a hefty collision in the Bellof-S area. Driver Laurin Heinrich was released from the medical centre after a routine check.

“We already lost four out of seven cars before the final third of the race,” Sebastian Golz sums up. The Porsche 911 GT3 R project manager adds: “The shock of the accident between the Dinamic GT car and the Dacia is still fresh in our minds. We’re very relieved that our driver Laurin Heinrich and the driver of the Dacia are doing well so far. Now, we’re concentrating on the three nine-elevens still in the race. The Porsches from Rutronik Racing, Falken and Huber are currently running well. We’ll have to wait and see how our performance develops as temperatures rise. Hopefully, we can fight for a top-five result.” 

The race - interim 1

The Porsche 911 GT3 R fielded by the customer team Falken Motorsports has asserted itself among the frontrunners in the early stages of the Nürburgring 24 Hours. After the first three hours of racing through the “Green Hell”, the No. 44 entry fielded by the experienced customer squad is running in eighth place. As the second-best 911, the No. 96 car from Rutronik Racing is putting in a steady push to catch up without taking unnecessary risks. Bad luck, however, has plagued Manthey EMA and Lionspeed by Car Collection, with both teams involved in incidents early on and sustaining significant damages.

In slightly cloudy conditions and temperatures of around 15 degrees Celsius, Falken Motorsports’ No. 44 car made a strong start among the 130-strong field. After tackling the race from position six on the grid, Nico Menzel handed the Porsche 911 GT3 R to youngster Tim Heinemann in fifth place. At the wheel of the ca. 415 kW (565 PS) 911, the German put in a flawless stint and at times advanced to third place. After two more pit stops, the car is running eighth after three hours.

While the No. 33 sister car from Falken Motorsports is in 23rd place due to damage at the rear after a shunt while lapping slower traffic, the GT3 car of Rutronik Racing is now making progress. First, Norwegian Dennis Olsen made up positions, now the Italian Matteo Cairoli is maintaining contact with the top 10 in P17. The two 911 racers campaigned by Dinamic GT and Huber Motorsport are currently in 19th and 21st.

In the first two hours of racing, works driver Kévin Estre put on a stunning show at the wheel of Manthey EMA’s Porsche 911 GT3 R. In supreme style, the Frenchman catapulted the fans’ favourite car, known as “Grello”, from 20th to eighth place. Shortly before the end of his stint, however, a puncture saw Estre slide into the barriers in the Tiergarten section. The repairs to the rear of the car threw the team almost two laps back. The No. 24 entry from Lionspeed by Car Collection has already retired from the race. Toward the end of his stint, Australia’s Matt Campbell ran onto the grass at the exit of the Ex-Mühle area and spun into a tyre wall. After lengthy repairs, the team sent the 911 back out but ultimately had to call it quits after about two and a half hours. 

“Two of our top cars were already out of the fight for victory after two hours,” states Sebastian Golz. The Porsche 911 GT3 R project manager adds: “Matt Campbell went too wide in the early stages and spun into the tyre barriers. A puncture caused Kévin Estre to plough into the barriers shortly before the end of his stint. It’s such a shame because Manthey EMA had a great pace and strategy. Now we have to keep our fingers crossed that we don’t experience other incidents and that the remaining cars finish the rest of the race unscathed. Let’s see what comes out of it.” 

The qualifying

The top qualifying session took place on Friday afternoon on a dry track in spring-like temperatures. Like last year, it was the Nürburgring born-and-bred local, Nico Menzel, who planted one of the seven Porsche 911 GT3 R cars on the best grid position in the decisive segment of the individual time trial. In the second race car fielded by Falken Motorsports, Austria’s Klaus Bachler, Germany’s Sven Müller and Belgium’s Alessio Picariello secured a seventh grid row spot. Two positions ahead of them, Porsche works drivers Mathieu Jaminet from France and Matt Campbell from Australia, as well as Germany’s Patrick Kolb and Patrick Pilet head into the 24-hour race through the famous “Green Hell”.