High-class motorsport, tactical games and numerous overtaking manoeuvres: the spectators who have been creating a unique atmosphere around the Nürburgring since Thursday, got quite something to enjoy during the first third of the 51st ADAC TotalEnergies 24h Nürburgring. Accompanied by the atmospheric and creative fan support, the 135 cars, split up in three starting groups, started the endurance racing classic with its long tradition in fine Eifel weather at 4pm.
Raffaele Marciello (SUI), who was awarded the Glickenhaus Trophy for his record lap in Top Qualifying, initially set the pace as the pole sitter with the #4 Mercedes-AMG GT3. Having started second with the #3 Mercedes-AMG GT3, Maro Engel (GER) slotted into third place after a few laps. His teammate at Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed, Maximilian Götz (GER), started his progress right away in the opening stages. Moving up from tenth place, he worked his way up into sixth position with the #2 GT3. Adam Christodoulou (GBR), who stepped in to take over from Götz after two hours, went on to make up further positions.
After that, the three Mercedes-AMG GT3s were in second to fourth position and regularly staged thrilling and close duels at the track in spite of varying strategies. Until darkness fell over the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, all three Performance cars remained among the first five. Soon after that, Maro Engel had to park the #3 car in the pits with a broken shock absorber after contact that wasn’t his fault. The GetSpeed team managed to repair the damage within a few minutes. Nevertheless, Maro Engel dropped back several positions. After a few laps, the team decided to retire the #3 Mercedes-AMG GT3 from the race for safety reasons, as possible consequential damage could not be ruled out. With eight hours and 54 laps completed, two Mercedes-AMG GT3s remain in positions with a good perspective. The #2 Mercedes-AMG GT3 is currently fourth, the #4 Mercedes-AMG Team BILSTEIN entry follows in sixth place.
In the SP-X class, Mercedes-AMG Teams HRT and Schnitzelalm had to take in setbacks following a successful start. Both Mercedes-AMG GT2s had to endure repair phases, the #222 car due to a technical issue, the #46 car following a collision. Both cars are back on track. The only Mercedes-AMG GT4, the #89 Haupt Racing Team entry, is currently competing for a top five position in the SP10 category.
“We had a good start. The car worked very well, we had the right strategy and that is how we got ourselves to the front. By staying out for a long time, we are considerably more flexible with the pit stop times towards the end. Now, the night is thereand we have to try not to make any mistakes and make it through without any issues.”
Maximilian Götz, Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed #2
“That's obviously very unfortunate, frustrating and unnecessary. When I was lapping a slower vehicle there was contact. The car in front of me pulled to the right and when I wanted to pass, it suddenly pulled to the left again and hit me on the right rear wheel, causing the shock absorber to break. Since we can't rule out consequential damage, we had to park the car. Nevertheless, I would like to thank the entire Mercedes-AMG Motorsport team and Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed. They did a fantastic job and it's obviously a shame that we had to end the race so early."
Maro Engel, Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed #3
“I had a good time in the car. The tight battle with Adam Christodoulou (#2) and Daniel Juncadella (#3) as we were flying on the Nordschleife in a formation of three was great fun. Too bad that we got the penalty at the start. Until then, we were going really well in the race. Now, we try to make up for it again.”
Luca Stolz, Mercedes-AMG Team BILSTEIN #4
“We made it through in a clean way, that is the main thing. Unfortunately, I lost some time in traffic. I partly wasn’t as self-confident dealing with this situation as my teammates. On top of that, we had bad luck with the code 60 phases. But there are many hours still to go and we know that the car is strong.”
Jordan Love, Mercedes-AMG Team BILSTEIN #6
“A very difficult start. In spite of the good visibility conditions, there were already many accidents. However, currently, we are definitely running according to plan. Both cars are well within the top 15. The goal remains to make it among the best ten.”
Kenneth Heyer, Schnitzelalm Racing #11
“We had a problem with an oil line. Exchanging the parts cost us a lot of time as the car had to stop on track and had to be brought back into the pits first. Now, it is running again and we are able to rack up our laps. I am already looking forward to my night stint, that will be my first real experience with darkness at the Nordschleife.”
Mikaël Grenier, Mercedes-AMG Team Schnitzelalm #222
“We started with single stints. The field is still very compact and there is a lot of traffic at the track as a result. Now, we have to make it through the night in a good way. To do so, we will do double stints. When we have completed these, we will see.“
Alexander Kroker, Haupt Racing Team #89
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