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【24h Nürburgring After 8hours Race ／ Nürburgring】
Walkenhorst Motorsport well in the game after incredible repair job overnight
24h Nürburgring After 8hours Race
| Date | 20-21 May 2023 |
|---|---|
| Course | Nürburgring (Germany) |
| Weather | After 8hours : Fine |
| Surface | After 8hours : Dry |
Eight hours into the 51st edition of the Nürburgring 24 hours Walkenhorst Motorsport and Yokohama are well within reach of a top 5 finish with the #102 Yokohama liveried entry driven by Thomas Neubauer, Jake Dennis, Jens Klingmann and Christian Krognes. After the first third of the race the BMW M4 GT3 is hovering between 5th and 12th position, depending on pitstops in a tightly packed field at the front of the race.
The team scored its first victory already way ahead of the race by making it into the starting grid in front of a staggering crowd lining up in the grandstands and around the hills of the infamous “Green Hell”.
After contact with the barriers in the top qualifying session on Friday, Walkenhorst Motorsport did an astounding job overnight and finished repairs of the BMW at almost 4am on Saturday morning. Starting from last position, the #102 steadily climbed its way up the order with a consistent pace and well into the top 10, aiming for a top position finish by the end of the race.
The #100 art car of Henry Walkenhorst, Jörg Breuer, Sami-Matti Trogen and Christian Bollrath is also well positioned in the SP9 Pro-Am class in 7th position, overcoming a hit by a smaller car misjudging its breaking point in the first corner of the lap in the early stages of the race. Maintaining a cautious approach, the art car is set to strike within the Pro-Am class in the second half of the race.
No longer in the race is the #101 Yokohama-liveried entry driven by Christian Krognes, Jakub Giermaziak, Jesse Krohn and Andy Soucek with racing luck not being on their side. After two unfortunate incidents on track the BMW had to retire after a strong start into the race, having run as high as 6th with the top 5 in sight.
Driver’s Voice
Thomas Neubauer [No.102 / SP9 PRO Class]
“We’re well in the game and our pace is quite strong. Our advantage in comparison to the opponents is that we don’t have any degradation with the tires. We can push quite a lot in the corners. We’re strong in all areas of the Nordschleife, except maybe the straight line. We need to keep our momentum, don’t make any mistakes, stay in the group we are now in and see the daylight. The guys did a crazy job last night. The car didn’t look beautiful at all, but they did an amazing job until almost 4 in the morning. The car feels really good. A very big thank you to the team for their commitment.”