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- 24h Nürburgring Qualifying 3 & Top Qualifying Report
【24h Nürburgring Qualifying 3 & Top Qualifying ／ Nürburgring】
Yokohama and Walkenhorst Motorsport finishing race preparation für Nürburgring 24 hours
24h Nürburgring Qualifying 3 & Top Qualifying
| Date | 19 May 2023 |
|---|---|
| Course | Nürburgring (Germany) |
| Weather | Qualifying 3 : Fine Top Qualifying : Fine |
| Surface | Qualifying 3 : Dry Top Qualifying : Dry |
The final practice day of the 2023 Nürburgring 24 hours saw lots of track action on the Nürburgring Nordschleife under perfect conditions in the Eifel forests.
Walkenhorst Motorsport made full use of the final 75-minute practice session on Friday afternoon, locking in 76 laps cumulatively over the three sessions with its three BMW M4 GT3 and the latest Yokohama slick tires. With conditions similar to what is expected for the race, Walkenhorst Motorsport is perfectly prepared for the enduro twice around the clock starting on Saturday afternoon at 4pm local time.
The grid positions for the 51st edition of the “Green Hell” endurance classic were set in top qualifying. In a tightly fought top qualifying 1 session with 20 GT3 cars battling for five spots in the top qualifying 2 session, Jesse Krohn took the wheel of the #101 Yokohama-liveried BMW M4 GT3.
With a time of 8’17.595s the BMW factory driver narrowly missed out on the top 5 positions and a spot in TQ2. The #101 M4 with Krohn, Christian Krognes, Jakub Giermaziak and Andy Soucek will start the race in 27th position.
Having secured a grid spot in TQ2 ahead of the weekend, it was on youngster Sami-Matti Trogen to take the honors for the #100 BMW in the session that determined the top grid spots for the race.
Battling against the world class of GT3 drivers, the young Finn charged to a laptime of 8’17.297s, securing 19th grid spot overall and fifth in the SP9 Pro-Am class in the car he shares with Henry Walkenhorst, Jörg Breuer and Christian Bollrath.
The #102 Yokohama-liveried entry meanwhile learned the irks and quirks of the “Green Hell” the hard way.
Christian Krognes was right on the edge on his flyer in TQ1, trying to fight his way into the TQ2 session when he hit some dust on the road that has been blown on track by a preceding car, touching the barriers with the driver’s side. Krognes remained unscathed thanks to the strong safety features of the BMW M4 GT3.
The highly professional Walkenhorst outfit has already started repair work on the car and is confident to win the race against the clock to make the race start.
Driver’s Voice
Jesse Krohn [No.101 / SP9 PRO Class]
“Obviously it was not what we were looking for. We would have liked to make it to TQ2. Our qualifying run was a little bit compromised, however I’m sure we have a better race car than qualifying car. Over the race distance, I’m sure we will be a lot stronger with the tires that we have and make up many positions. I’m really happy with the balance of the car, everything is working fine, we just didn’t have the luck on our side in this session. The tires were really good and I’m really happy with the work that Yokohama has done over the whole preparation period. The tires are definitely not our limiting factor. The performance we get out of them is on a very good level. I’m really looking forward to the race because we have a very good tire for the conditions that are expected for the next two days.”