SRS Team Sorg Rennsport and Smyrlis Racing take class victories at PETN race with largest field to date

• Fabio Grosse and Patrik Grütter from SRS Team Sorg Rennsport (#901) clinch victory in the Cup 2 class in a thrilling finish
• Smyrlis Racing (#953) with Alexander Fielenbach and Oskar Sandberg win Cup 3 class starting from seventh on the grid
• Award ceremony for the esports athletes from the PEETN 25/26 season as part of the race weekend

Nürburg. With a total of 36 cars, the Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring (PETN) entered its second race of the season as part of the Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS) with the largest field of participants in the history of the Porsche one-make series. A total of 14 Porsche 911 GT3 Cup competed against each other in the Cup 2 class, while 22 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS lined up on the grid in the Cup 3 class. This meant even more cars took to the track than would have been the case at the canceled season opener.  In a thrilling finish, Fabio Grosse and Patrik Grütter from SRS Team Sorg Rennsport (#901) prevailed in the Cup 2 class and won the class. In the Cup 3 class, Alexander Fielenbach and Oskar Sandberg from Smyrlis Racing (#953) dominated the race after a rapid recovery from seventh on the grid and won their class. As part of the race weekend, the successful teams and drivers of the Porsche Esports Endurance Trophy Nürburgring (PEETN) were honored in a ceremony and were offered an extensive program by Manthey.

In a qualifying session marked by Code 60 phases, Tim Scheerbarth secured pole position in the Cup 2 class for the Mühlner Motorsport Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (#921) with a time of 8:07.943 minutes on his only free lap. In the Cup 3 class, Moritz Oberheim completed the 24.358-kilometer circuit in 8:33.776 minutes in the W&S Motorsport 718 Cayman GT4 CS (#962) to secure the top starting position. As a result, Scheerbarth and Oberheim each earned an additional championship point in their respective classes.

Decision in the Cup 2 class came down to the wire

Polesetters Joshua Bednarski and Tim Scheerbarth from Mühlner Motorsport (#921) led the race for a long time, but a collision shortly before the finish forced the duo out of the race. At the same time, start numbers 901 and 900 battled for the remaining podium spots. In the end, Fabio Grosse of SRS Team Sorg Rennsport (#901) emerged victorious, winning the race alongside his teammate Patrik Grütter ahead of Alexander Hardt, ‘Benjamin Hites,’ and PETN Talent Pool driver Ben Koslowski of BLACK FALCON Team ZIMMERMANN (#900). Nico Bastian and Martin Rump from Mühlner Motorsport (#904) finished in third place.

„That’s really awesome – our first overall Cup 2 victory. Patrick and the team did a great job, and we had some really good fights. ‘Cup 2 at its best,’ I would say”, Fabio Grosse sums up.

In the PRO/AM class, Kersten Jodexnis, Richard-Sven Karl Jodexnis, and Robin Chrzanwoski (PRO) from Clickversicherung Team (#919) finished ahead of Stephan Beyer, Bernhard Wagner, and Max Schlichenmeier (PRO) from SRS Team Sorg Rennsport (#915). The winners in the amateur driver classification were once again Alex Koch, Klaus Koch, and Niklas Koch from Smyrlis Racing (#910).

„After my opening stint, I was able to hand the car over to Kersten in P1 in the PRO/AM classification, and he did a fantastic job. Richard then stepped it up during his stint and clocked some great lap times. We’re thrilled about the victory in the PRO/AM class”, says Robin Chrzanowski.

Smyrlis Racing comes out on top in the Cup 3 class

Starting from seventh place, Smyrlis Racing’s starting driver Oskar Sandberg (#953) quickly fought his way to the front of the Cup 3 class and, together with his teammate Alexander Fielenbach, managed to defend the lead against PETN Talent Pool driver Calvin de Groot and Heiko Eichenberg of SRS Team Sorg Rennsport (#959) all the way to the finish. However, second-place finisher de Groot set the fastest lap of the race during the duel that dominated the entire race, securing an additional championship point for himself and his team.

„We started from P7, but Oskar managed to fight his way to the front within two laps—that was really impressive. We worked a lot on the setup yesterday, and it paid off today. We’re thrilled to have gotten off to such a great start with two wins in a row and hope to add more”, explains Alexander Fielenbach.

Moritz Oberheim, Lorenz Stegmann, and Finn Zulauf from W&S Motorsport (#962) completed the podium, while Erik Braun, Franz Linden, and Arne Hoffmeister (PRO) once again won the PRO/AM classification. Second place went to Fabio Sacchi, Moritz Wiskirchen, and Nick Wüstenhagen (PRO) from PETN newcomer Team Extreme Racing (#977). Maximilian Eisberg and Tommy Graberg from SRS Team Sorg Rennsport (#969) secured the victory in the amateur driver classification.

„The race went really well, and we were able to execute our plan perfectly. The team gave us a great car and did a fantastic job again this weekend. There was a lot going on during my stint but I was able to keep up with the pack, which was really fun. We are all very happy with the result”, Franz Linden sums up.

PEETN season finale as part of the race weekend

The Porsche Esports Endurance Trophy Nürburgring (PEETN), which took place over the winter, came to a festive conclusion this weekend as part of the PETN. A packed program was offered for the successful teams and drivers of the digital one-make series. This included a training session in the Manthey simulator, a guided eMTB tour to the Nordschleife together with PETN partner GIANT, and karting with Rotax. During the PETN awards ceremony, the sim racers were also honored with trophies and prize money.

The next round of the PETN will take place on June 20. Before that, teams and drivers will have the opportunity to compete in the 24 Hours of Nürburgring and the Qualifiers under the same technical regulations. The 24h Nürburgring Qualifiers will take place this coming weekend (April 18 and 19). The two 4-hour races do not count as championship rounds in the Porsche one-make series.

Press contact:

Jona Kläsener

PR & Social Media Manager
E-Mail: j.klaesener@manthey-racing.de