Tradition meets festival. On the weekend of July 11-13, the ADAC GT Masters will kick off at the legendary Nürburgring as part of the Internationalen ADAC Truck-Grand-Prix. Last year, 130,000 spectators traveled to the joint festival of the ADAC GT Masters and the trucks. This season, there was already a joint event at the season opener at the Lausitzring. The ADAC GT Masters field is growing at the Nürburgring: Team Joos is returning to the series with a Porsche. Both races of the weekend will start at 4:10 p.m. and will be streamed live on sport1.de, Joyn, ServusTV ON, and youtube.com/adacmotorsports. In addition, both races will be broadcast on a delayed basis on Sky Sport.
Return to endurance format
Another endurance weekend will be held at the Nürburgring. Both races on the 3.629 km short circuit will last 80 minutes and include two mandatory pit stops with driver changes. Victory in the only two endurance races so far in 2025 went to the current championship leaders Leo Pichler (23/AT)/Simon Birch (18/DNK/both Razoon – more than racing). They are currently just one point ahead of Tim Zimmermann (28/Langenargen)/Leyton Fourie (19/RSA/both FK Performance Motorsport) in their Porsche 911 GT3 R, who were the high flyers of the second weekend of the season at Zandvoort in their BMW M4 GT3 Evo.
“We've seen that we can compete at the front. Now that we're in first place in the championship, we obviously want to stay there,” said Pichler. “We feel very well prepared for the upcoming endurance races. We've got that under control and I think we could achieve some very good results again.”
Home race for many drivers and teams
For many drivers and teams, the weekend in the Eifel will be a home race. Leading the way is Nico Hantke (21). The Hürth native lives less than 80 kilometers from the Nürburgring. He drives the Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo2 from Scherer Sport PHX, which is based in Meuspath, in the industrial park of the Nürburgring. “I'm really looking forward to the weekend. I really like the track itself and I also think it should suit our Audi,” explained Hantke. “Of course, the weather is always a decisive factor in the Eifel, but I'm convinced that my Scherer team is prepared for all eventualities simply because of its proximity.”
The twins Sandro and Juliano Holzem (21) have probably the shortest journey. The two Schubert Motorsport drivers live in Polch, 30 kilometers away as the crow flies. Sandro Holzem achieved his best result in the ADAC GT Masters to date at the Nürburgring in 2023 with a second place. “For us, this weekend is a combination of pressure and motivation. Of course, we want to do our best, especially because so many friends and sponsors are there. At the same time, it motivates us even more to achieve a top result at home,” said Sandro Holzem. His brother Juliano added: “Of course we want to win, otherwise we wouldn't be here!”
The Haupt Racing Team can also count on its home advantage with the three Ford Mustang GT3s. The team is based in Drees, right next to the Nürburgring, and won both races in the Eifel last year – albeit in a Mercedes-AMG GT3 at the time. Moritz Wiskirchen will be trying to impress the home crowd in 2025 with this brand. The 22-year-old from Euskirchen has been visiting the Nürburgring with his father since he was a child. “Just because I live right around the corner, I haven't been there more often than the others, unfortunately,” said Wiskirchen. “Nevertheless, I'm optimistic. The track should suit our Mercedes-AMG, and I hope that with my extra motivation at home, we'll be right up there at the front.”
Runner-up returns to ADAC GT Masters
Team Joos Sportwagentechnik will make a guest appearance in the ADAC's GT3 junior league at the Nürburgring. Team boss Michael Joos (34/Vöhringen) and newcomer Felix Neuhofer (28/AT) will be driving the Porsche 911 GT3 R. The team from Vöhringen in Baden-Württemberg is no stranger to the ADAC GT Masters. The team competed in the entire 2021 season and finished runner-up in the drivers' championship with current DTM driver Ayhancan Güven and Christian Engelhart.
Michael Joos has competed in a total of ten races so far and won the second race at the Red Bull Ring in 2023. Team mate Neuhofer already has a wealth of experience in Porsche and has competed in the Porsche Carrera Cup Germany, among other series. "For me, the ADAC GT Masters debut is a real milestone – but I'm not here just to take part. I want to show what I can do, fight, push, and assert myself. The series is tough, but that's exactly what motivates me,“ said the Austrian. Teammate and team boss Joos added: ”The start at the Nürburgring is a one-off for now, but we hope that two good races will attract sponsors and partners who can enable us to compete in further races in this year's ADAC GT Masters season."