W&S Motorsport, and also Rüdiger Schicht and ‘Montana’ (Mathol Racing) win the title early on

Meuspath. Here are the champions of the Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing: Daniel Blickle, Tim Scheerbarth and Max Kronberg from W&S Motorsport, with start number 960, took the title in the championship’s team and driver rankings early on in the penultimate race of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS). The driver trio also still have a chance of topping the overall NLS standings in the season finale – they are currently in second place, just 0.55 points behind. For the amateurs of the Cup 3 class, the Mathol Racing team (#955) was unbeatable. So ‘Montana’ and Rüdiger Schicht also celebrated an early overall victory in the AM driver standings.

After 27 laps, W&S Motorsport (960) was first past the flag on Saturday, followed by Thorsten Jung and Oskar Sandberg from Mühlner Motorsport with start number 969. Third place was achieved by KKrämer Racing with Karsten Krämer, Alexey Veremenko and Christopher Brück. However, a time penalty of 35 seconds due to a yellow-flag violation subsequently nudged the trio from W&S Motorsport down to runner-up. Nevertheless, this second place put them unassailably at the top of the table in the team and driver standings of the Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing.

Dense fog over the Nürburgring prevented the time trials from starting promptly at 8:30 on Saturday morning. Therefore, the race for the fastest lap in the 53rd ADAC Barbarossa Cup, covering the 24.358-kilometre-long Nordschleife and sprint combination of the Grand Prix circuit, only began at 10 a.m. Of the 16 participants in the Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing, the pole sitter was the Mühlner Motorsport team’s mid-engine sports car (#969), gaining them an additional point.

First driver Oskar Sandberg continued to defend his leading position after the start of race, which began at 12:30 after a half-hour delay. Right at the start, Tim Scheerbarth from W&S Motorsport improved his position from four to two and closed the gap between himself and the leader. As the race progressed, different pit stop strategies meant that the pole position changed frequently. Despite all this, the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS with start number 960 controlled the field, scored a bonus point with the fastest race lap (8:39.876 minutes) and was waved across the finish line first after 27 laps. A retroactively imposed time penalty relegated the team to second place.

This season, 15 cars and 10 teams are competing for titles and top positions in the team, driver and AM driver rankings in the overall championship standing. After eight out of nine rounds, the overall winners of all rankings are already self-evident. Guest drivers are welcome at all races, and twice produced a record field of entrants in the Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing, which was first held in 2016.

The championship is contested in all rounds of the Nürburgring Endurance Series. 16 cars competed in the 53rd ADAC Barbarossa Cup, including 13 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 Clubsport and three 981 series Porsche. The NLS season will end on 9 October with the PAGID Racing 45th DMV Münsterland Cup.
 

Views on the race:

Max Kronberg, W&S Motorsport, 1st overall in the driver and team standings: “It was one of the closest races of the season. After the Mühlner team changed a second time, it got really tight. We then adapted our strategy, and Tim got back into the car earlier than planned. He took the lead with only a few seconds to spare, but could then open the gap a bit and extend the lead all the way to the finish line. It’s crazy that we won the Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing one race before the end. It’s my 5th season in the Trophy, in 2018 I was runner-up. After being cancelled last year, it’s even nicer that it has now worked out so well in the championship with this set-up. I’m really delighted and am very much looking forward to the final race.”

Daniel Schellhaas, head of the W&S Motorsport team, 1st overall in the driver and team standings: “The qualifier was tough. There were a lot of cars on the track, and we started the race in fourth place. We got off to a good start, reached second place after the first bend and caught up with the leader as the race progressed. On the final stint we decided to let Tim have another turn at the wheel, which was the right decision. This is our first year in the championship, we feel very much at home here, Manthey’s organisation is first-rate. The races were always close, and the level was very high, with up to 20 entrants. It’s unbelievable that we were overall winners one race before the end. We even have the chance to become NLS champions, which is why we’re going to give it all we’ve got in the final round. All in all, it was a great team effort.”

‘Montana’, Mathol Racing, 1st overall in the AM driver standing: “The race was incredibly gruelling and exciting. We started from a central position and at first there was complete chaos. With so much traffic, I was afraid that I would come a cropper in the turmoil. So I took the speed down a notch, but after three laps I got back to our usual pace and realised: today just could be our day. I handed the car to Rüdiger, who put in a great performance and got out of the car happy and sweaty after his stint. And Alex, our third driver today, also did a perfect job. Finally, we reached the finish before the 959 and took not only the day’s win for the amateurs, but the overall win as well.”

Julia Klee, organiser of the Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing: “We congratulate the W&S Motorsport team and Daniel Blickle, Tim Scheerbarth and Max Kronberg for today’s success and their victory in the team and driver rankings of the Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing. We also extend our congratulations to the Mathol Racing Team for coming top in the amateur standing. We’re now looking forward to the final race and hope that this year a team from the Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing will also win the overall title of the Nürburgring Endurance Series.” 
 

NLS 7 results: Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey-Racing

1 – #969 Jung/Sandberg (Mühlner Motorsport)*
2 – #960 Blickle/Scheerbarth/Kronberg (W&S Motorsport)
3 – #977 Krämer/Veremenko/Brück (KKrämer Racing)
4 – #979 Hoppe/Wolter/Salewsky (Mühlner Motorsport)
5 – #976 Bünnagel/Otto/Wüstenhagen (FK Performance Motorsport)
6 – #964 Friedhoff/Friedhoff (Aimpoint Racing)
7 – #75 Baumann/Riemer/Wiskirchen (Schmickler Performance)
8 – #970 Akimenkov/‘Iceman’/Selivanov (Black Falcon Team Textar)
9 – #955 Schicht/‘Montana’/Fielenbach (Team Mathol Racing)**
10 – #959 Vöhringer/Steinhaus/Perrot (W&S Motorsport)
11 – #944 Oehme/Oehme (9und11 Racing Team)
12 – #940 Dolfen/Schambony (-)
13 – #966 Krämer/Veremenko/Fatemi (KKrämer Racing)
14 – #956 Ackermann/Müller/Wiskirchen (rent2drive-FAMILIA-racing)
15 – #978 Ullrich/Schnautz/Koch (KKrämer Racing)
* First in the team standing
** First in the AM driver standing

DNF:
#983 Van Roon/Grütter/Grosse (G-Tech Competition)

Pole position – 08:37.671 minutes
#969 Jung/Sandberg (Mühlner Motorsport)

Fastest lap time – 08:39.876 minutes
#960 Blickle/Scheerbarth/Kronberg (W&S Motorsport)

Press contact:

Laura Claesgens

Corporate Communication Consultant
E-mail: l.claesgens[at]manthey-racing.de