The second race of the ADAC Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie double-header made history in several ways. Frank Stippler and Vincent Kolb scored the very first win for the powerful Ford Mustang GT3 in the Green Hell at the "64. ADAC Reinoldus-Langstreckenrennen". The Haupt Racing Team duo ended Porsche’s seven-race winning streak this season. At the finish, their margin over second-placed Tim Heinemann and Benny Leuchter in the Falken Motorsports Porsche 911 GT3 R was an impressive 2:05.634 minutes. For the second race in a row, Mike Stursberg and Mustafa Mehmet Kaya, today joined by Ben Bünnagel, finished third in the BLACK FALCON Team EAE Porsche. Another emotional highlight came from Klaus Abbelen, who contested his final GT3 race on the Nürburgring Nordschleife, marking his farewell as a driver in the series. For his solo effort, Abbelen was named “Driver of the Race.”
The second race day began with a surprise: in qualifying, Alex Fontana took pole position in the Car Collection Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 R, which he shared with Artur Goroyan. With a lap of 8:50.741 minutes, the Swiss driver edged out Bünnagel in the BLACK FALCON Porsche by just 0.647 seconds. In the race, however, their joy was short-lived – lasting only about eight minutes. After the opening lap, Saturday’s winners Julien Andlauer and Joel Sturm reclaimed the lead in the Falken Porsche, and for a long time it looked like another victory for the Japanese tire manufacturer’s squad. But with three laps to go, Andlauer went off track while leading on the approach to Hohen Acht. That opened the door for Vincent Kolb, who took over in the Ford Mustang GT3 and went on to take the historic win.
“I’m really happy that we could take the first victory with the Ford Mustang GT3 here at the Nürburgring,” said Matthias Meister, head of the Ford Mustang Nürburgring GT3 project at HRT. “We stayed calm throughout the distance, had excellent pit stops, and the car ran flawlessly. Vincent is getting more and more in tune with the Mustang.” Kolb, celebrating his second NLS win, was overwhelmed: “Sensational. I’ve never experienced anything like those last two laps. The fans and the marshals were cheering me on – it was so much fun. Huge thanks to HRT for bringing such a great car to the Nordschleife. The entire team, together with Frank (Stippler), is constantly working on developing the car further. Today was payday at last, and the whole team is over the moon.”
While their sister car dropped out from the lead, Heinemann and Leuchter lost significant time before half-distance with a puncture, likely caused by debris on track. “Of course, I had hoped for the win today,” said Heinemann. “But we were unlucky. After that, we tried to make the best of it. In the end, it just wasn’t meant to be.” Guest driver Leuchter was satisfied with his stint at Falken: “I’m extremely happy. I was able to improve a lot compared to yesterday. Thanks to the team for giving me this opportunity. I really hope this wasn’t the last time.”
Third place for Stursberg, Kaya, and Bünnagel also brought them victory in the Am category of SP9. The fastest Pro-Am entry was the JUTA Racing Audi R8 LMS GT3, driven by Alexey Veremenko, “SELV,” and double starter Stippler, who finished fourth. Christian Krognes, Mateo Villagomez, and Anders Buchardt brought the Walkenhorst Motorsport Aston Martin Vantage GT3 EVO home in fifth, just ahead of the Car Collection Motorsport polesitters.
Farewell drive at Klostertal Corner
Klaus Abbelen, who turns 65 the Monday after the double-header, contested his final race on the Nürburgring Nordschleife at NLS8 – fittingly at the wheel of the Frikadelli Racing Ferrari 296 GT3. Driving solo, he delivered a strong performance that ultimately went unrewarded with a result. Running 11th, he retired with gearbox issues 40 minutes before the finish at Klostertal Corner. Though he managed to limp the stricken Maranello supercar back to the pits, he did not resume the race. “That’s racing – you can’t control the technical side,” said Abbelen. “I was really proud of myself for keeping up so well for so long. I would have loved to see the finish, but there was nothing I could do.” For his effort today, and in recognition of his long-time commitment as driver and team principal of Frikadelli Racing, Abbelen was named “Driver of the Race.” The award is presented by the ILN (Interessengemeinschaft Langstrecke Nürburgring) and decided by the race director, the Drivers’ Association, and the track commentators. Abbelen had already announced before the weekend that his team will return next season with a top driver line-up in the NLS.
Key step in the championship battle
With their eighth class win in eight races, Ranko Mijatovic and Nick Wüstenhagen have taken a major step toward the championship. The FK Performance Motorsport duo, competing in the SP8T class with the BMW M4 GT4, now sit at 109 points after accounting for the first of three dropped scores. Just eight points behind are Arne Hoffmeister and Tim Scheerbarth in the Mühlner Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 Cup. With two further wins, they too could reach 109 points. Adrenalin Motorsport Team Mainhattan Wheels, which produced the champions for the past seven years, is currently third in the standings with drivers Philipp Leisen, Daniel Zils, and Philipp Stahlschmidt – and simultaneously leads the Production Car Trophy. However, they are no longer in contention for the title, as even with two more wins they cannot reach 109 points. Only the drivers of Adrenalin’s car #1 still have a theoretical chance. After two retirements during the double-header, they sit fourth in the standings, but could also reach 109 points with two victories. In that case, the title would be decided based on tie-break criteria, such as the best result in the final counted race.
The VLN Junior Trophy remains undecided. Noah Nagelsdiek (LOSCH Motorsport by BLACK FALCON) leads by just one point over Harley Haughton (SRS Team Sorg Rennsport). In the Gentleman Trophy, Heiko Eichenberg (SRS Team Sorg Rennsport) still holds the edge over veterans Joachim and Jürgen Nett (Dupré Motorsport Engineering), despite a retirement at NLS8. In the Ladies Trophy, Janina Schall (GITI TIRE MOTORSPORT BY WS RACING) is following in the footsteps of her successful father Ralf Schall, who collected 105 class wins in the NLS.
In two weeks, the ninth round of the ADAC Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie will take place. The 57th ADAC Barbarossapreis on September 27 will run over the usual distance of four hours.