11/07/2022
Maiden wins in the Cup 2 and Cup 3 classes at the 6-hour race on the Nordschleife
Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring
Meuspath. Two teams claimed their first victories of the season in the Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring, which is part of the Nürburgring Endurance Series. Tim Scheerbarth, David Jahn and Daniel Blickle in the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992) of the AVIA W&S Motorsport team (#120), and Fidel Leib, Philip Miemois, Heiko Eichenberg and Moritz Wiskirchen in the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS (982) run by Sorg Rennsport (#959) took their place on the top step of the podium for the first time at the ROWE 6h ADAC Ruhr Pokal race.
The victorious Cup 2 trio of Scheerbarth/Jahn/Blickle also made it into the overall top ten, finishing ninth. “That is a great result for us. We had changed the set-up a little on Friday. We were really happy with P2 after qualifying,” said Scheerbarth, who was at the wheel for the start. “From the lights turning green to the moment I pulled into the pit lane, it was an incredible fight for eight long laps. I have been driving here since 2007, but that was the most intensive start I have ever experienced. It was wild.”
The AVIA W&S Motorsport trio claimed their first win of the season with a big lead. The winners of NLS 1 – Karsten Krämer, Alexey Veremenko, Christopher Brück and Florian Naumann of KKrämer Racing (#112) – followed them home in second place, 4:58.169 minutes back. Third place went to Mustafa Mehmet Kaya, Gabriele Piana and Mike Stursberg from the Black Falcon team (#104). Piana secured third place for his team in the closing stages, when he overtook Mathol driver Hendrik Still before beating him to the finish line by less than one second.
Stursberg and Kaya were also the fastest AM drivers in Cup 2. “That was one of my toughest races,” Kaya admitted. “I struggled with the car this time, compared to the last race. However, I would like to say a big thank you to my teammates, who got us up there. Don’t forget this is the first season with this car for all of us, and we are learning all the time.”
Second place for Schmickler Performance after a time penalty
There was drama in the Cup 3 class. The winners of the first two races – Kai Riemer, Mauro Calamia and Ivan Jacoma from Schmickler Performance powered by Ravenol (#969) – were on course for another victory. However, a time penalty for exceeding the speed limit in the pit lane, meant they ultimately had to settle for second place, 1:05 minutes behind Fidel Leib, Philip Miemois, Heiko Eichenberg and Moritz Wiskirchen in the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS of Sorg Rennsport (#959). “We did a super job. As far as the driving was concerned, everything was great – apart from my little mistake after the pit stop. You can’t afford to let something like that happen if you want to be champions,” said a self-critical Kai Riemer.
Fidel Lieb, on the other hand, was more than satisfied: “In the end, that is a mega result for us. Victory was within our reach at NLS 1. We were then really unlucky in the following races. Even though we kind of inherited the win, we are still happy. We now want to repeat that at the 12h Nürburgring. For that to happen, everything must fall into place.” Heiko Eichenberg added: “That is a superb result. It is nice to come out on top. We did not make any mistakes or pick up any penalties, and the race went really well. The various different pitstop times meant we did not know exactly how we were doing at times. We wanted to make it onto the podium and are thrilled with P1.” Third place in the Cup 3 class again went to Christopher Rink, Philipp Stahlschmidt and Francesco Merlini from the Smyrlis Racing team (#952).
‘SVITTEL’, Marius Rauer and Daniel Bohr defended their lead in the AM category within the Cup 3 class, courtesy of fourth place in the class. “The 6h race was important, because there are more points up for grabs in the championship,” said ‘SVITTEL’. “Generally speaking, it was a great race: few Code 60 phases, no rain, not too hot in the car – I had a lot of fun. We now have time to come back down again before the 12h Nürburgring. Then we must ramp up the excitement again for the highlight of the season, in order to score points again. It would be great to find a few extra seconds here and there.”
KKrämer Racing and Schmickler Performance lead the classes again – PETN looking strong in the NLS overall standings
The DNF for Black Falcon Team Identica (#102) means KKrämer Racing (#112) regain the lead in the Cup 2 Team competition with 78.5 points. Schmickler Performance powered by Ravenol (#969) leads the Cup 3 class with 75.5 points.
Karsten Krämer and Christopher Brück (78.5 points) top the Drivers’ Championship in Cup 2. Mauro Calamia, Ivan Jacoma and Kai Riemer are the drivers to catch in the Cup 3 class (75.5 points). The best AM driver in a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (992) is Mustafa Mehmet Kaya (87 points). ‘SVITTEL’ and Marius Rauer (85 points) continue to top the standings for AM drivers in the Cayman GT4 CS.
Half of the top ten in the overall NLS standings are PETN drivers. Calamia/Jacoma/Riemer (47 points) currently lie second, just ahead of Brück/Krämer (46 points) in third. Sixth place is occupied by Harkema/Müller (41 points). Blickle/Scheerbarth (36 points) are ninth, closely followed by Moetefindt/Oberheim/Wolter (35 points) in tenth place.
The Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring returns after the summer break with the highlight of the NLS season: the 12h Nürburgring will take place for the first time from 9th to 11th September.
Press contact:
Laura Claesgens
Consultant Corporate Communications
E-Mail: l.claesgens[at]manthey-racing.de