The seventh meeting of the VLN Endurance Championship was held at the Nürburgring this weekend. A total of seven Audis were entered.
Only one Audi R8 LMS ultra was entered this weekend, the #44 Audi entry from Twin Busch Motorsport in the SP9 class. An army of six Audi TT cars were also entered. Three TT RS cars were entered in SP3T, joined by one TT and one TTS. One TT RS was entered in SP4T. The Audi Sport customer racing developed TT RS entries included Raeder Motorsport, Møller Bil Motorsport and Rotek Racing.
During qualifying the Twin Busch R8 LMS ultra was the highest place Audi in eighth overall. There was an Audi 1-2-3-4 at the top of the SP3T class. The #331 Raeder Motorsport Audi TT RS took pole in SP3T and the #249 Rotek Racing TT RS took pole in SP4T.
The race concluded with the #44 Twin Busch Audi R8 LMS ultra unfortunately running low on fuel during the final lap, while they were running as high as second. The fuel miscalculation cost the team and they were ultimately classified as a non finisher. SP3T was dominated by the Audi TT RS cars, as the #331 Raeder entry won the class ahead of the #334 Møller Bil TT RS and the #290 TT RS in third. Rotek Racing won the SP4T class.
The eighth VLN event will be held at the Nürburgring on the twelfth of October.
An exciting new onboard video has been released, featuring a helmet camera in an Audi R8 LMS ultra on the Nürburgring Nordschleife.
The latest VLN Endurance Championship round was held at the Nordschleife this past weekend. A helmet camera was fitted to the helmet of Johannes Stuck during Friday’s track running. Stuck was driving the #15 white/blue Phoenix Racing Audi R8 LMS ultra.
There are a large number of Nordschleife onboard laps available on YouTube, including many Audi R8 LMS ultra videos, but this is a new perspective from inside the Audi R8 LMS ultra at least. This video provides an interesting glimpse at what it takes to pilot one of these GT3 machines on the world’s most demanding race circuit. Enjoy the video embedded below.
The German VLN Endurance Championship held its sixth meeting of the season at the Nürburgring today. It was an unlucky race for the R8 LMS ultra competitors, but it was certainly a good day for the Audi TT RS entrants.
Only two Audi R8 LMS ultra cars were entered this weekend, a single entry each from Twin Busch Motorsport and Phoenix Racing.
Twin Busch Motorsport was the highest placed Audi during qualifying, having taken fourth place ahead of the Phoenix car in ninth. The #1 LMS Engineering TT RS claimed eighteenth overall and pole in the SP3T class. Rotek Racing and their #249 TT RS was on pole for the SP4T class, twenty-forth overall.
The Audi TT RS teams stole the show for Audi at the four hour VLN race today. LMS Engineering made it a victorious comeback and debut for their #1 Audi TT RS. They achieved class pole position, class victory and they finished in a very impressive sixth overall. It was also an Audi 1-2-3-4-5-6 in SP3T, as the #334 Møller Bil Motorsport TT RS finished second ahead of the Raeder Motorsport #331 TT RS in third and the #290 TT RS in fourth. Audi TTS race cars also finished fifth and sixth in SP3T. The TT RS clean sweep was completed by the Rotek Racing #249 taking victory in SP4T.
Both Audi R8 LMS ultra entries faced problems today. The #15 Phoenix Audi finished twenty-fifth overall and the Twin Busch Motorsport #44 Audi unfortunately retired after running as high as second.
The next VLN round will be taking place on 28 September.
LMS Engineering was set to compete in the 2013 VLN with a new Audi TT RS, but various setbacks prevented them from taking part, but the team is now progressing very well with their car.
The #1 LMS Engineering Audi TT RS was presented earlier this year, but supply problems regarding critical drive train components resulted in the team unfortunately withdrawing their initial VLN entry. Since then the team has been working very hard and they have also acquired the required parts. In recent weeks they have revealed photos and videos of their new engine. The car and engine were tested together for the first time this week, with successful dyno runs. The team is now ready to begin further testing and their first rollout with the Audi.
LMS Engineering has developed a two litre version of the five cylinder turbo TT RS TFSI engine, allowing it to compete in the SP3T class in the VLN Championship. A few of these Audi Sport customer racing TT RS cars have been converted to run in the SP3T class (two litre turbo) versus the original specification in the SP4T class (two and a half litre turbo). The Raeder Motorsport and Møller Bil Motorsport TT RS cars are current examples of these SP3T versions, which are currently competing in the VLN. The LMS Engineering SP3T version will be the first variant with a five cylinder engine, the other SP3T TT RS examples are based on four cylinder two litre power plants.
It is very exciting to hear that LMS Engineering are progressing well with their TT RS, especially after their setbacks earlier this year. Hopefully the beautiful #1 TT RS will be seen on track very soon.
Update: LMS Engineering conducted their rollout at the Nürburgring on Friday afternoon.
The 6-hour VLN race at the Nürburgring Nordschleife gave Audi great satisfaction today. Phoenix Racing achieved fantastic performances and results.
The #37 Audi R8 LMS ultra G-Drive Racing by Phoenix, which started from pole position, ended in a very strong second place. The car was shared by Audi regulars Frank Stippler and Marc Basseng, along with Russian driver Roman Rusinov. All race long the car was among the front runners, and always within the top 5. Their teammates, Harold Primat, Christopher Haase and Frank Stippler (he raced in both cars), also made it onto the podium, with a fine third place. The three drivers shared the #5 Audi R8 LMS ultra.
The #11 Audi R8 LMS ultra from Audi race experience, run by TKL Motorsport, finished sixteenth overall. The car was lead by Rahel Frey joined by Christian Bollrath, Ronnie Saurenmann and Dominque Bastien. Unfortunately three other Audis faced troubles today. The #22 R8 LMS ultra from Audi race experience and the #44 Audi from Twin Busch Motorsport suffered problems during the race. The #15 Phoenix Audi was unable to take the start following a crash in qualifying earlier this morning.
As was the case for the big Audi R8 LMS ultra in the SP9 class (GT3), the Audi TT RS was also impressive in both the SP3T and SP4T classes. The #331 Audi TT RS from Raeder Motorsport won the SP3T class and finished in an impressive fifteenth overall. The #249 Audi TT RS from Rotek Racing won the SP4T class.
The overall win went to the #7 Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 from Rowe Racing, in the hands of Nico Bastian, Lance David Arnold and Jan Seyffarth.
The VLN Endurance Championship is resuming at the Nürburgring Nordschleife this weekend. The most prestigious and longest race of the season, the "Opel 6 Stunden ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen," a 6-hour event. Audi is very well represented and already doing very well at the Green Hell.
The qualifying session held this morning was very satisfying for the Audi R8 LMS ultra. A great pole position for G-Drive Racing by Phoenix with the #37 Audi R8 LMS ultra. The car is shared by VLN specialists Frank Stippler and Marc Basseng, joined by Roman Rusinov from Russia.
Audi race experience, who are back for this sixth round of the VLN, also did well. Their #22 Audi R8 LMS ultra driven by Marco Werner, Christopher Mies and Markus Winkelhock took a very strong fourth place. In fifth is another Audi car from Phoenix Racing, the #5 machine with Harold Primat, Christopher Haase and Frank Stippler. Another Audi team, Twin Bush Motorsport, qualified their #44 R8 LMS ultra in fifteenth place.
Unfortunately the #15 Phoenix Racing Audi driven by Ferdinand Stuck, Johannes Stuck, Hans-Joachim Stuck and Christopher Zoechling will not take part in the race. The car was heavily damaged with Hans-Joachim Stuck behind the wheel during qualifying.
Phoenix Racing will be competing with three Audi R8 LMS ultra cars in the six-hour-race of the Endurance Championship Nürburgring (VLN) on Saturday (24 August). “Alongside the traditional 24-hour race this VLN race that lasts six hours is the second highlight of the season on the Nordschleife,” says Phoenix Team Director Ernst Moser. “We’ve already won two VLN rounds this year but winning this race over the extended distance would be something special. We’re looking forward to this special race very much.”
The driver trio with the ‘Ring’ specialists Frank Stippler (D) and Marc Basseng (D) plus Roman Rusinov (RU), who impressively showed his abilities on the difficult Nordschleife at the 24-hour race in May, has firmly set its sights on the podium. They are driving the white-black #37 Audi R8 LMS ultra of G-Drive Racing by Phoenix. In a G-Drive Racing by Phoenix R8 Frank Stippler and Marcel Fässler (CH) had won the 24-hour ‘dress rehearsal’ at the second VLN round at the end of April.
With the tailwind gained from the victory at the fourth VLN round in June together with Frank Stippler, Ferdinand and Johannes Stuck are contesting the entire VLN season in the white-blue #15 Audi of TÜV Rheinland. The Stuck brothers are supported by Christopher Zoechling (A). The 25-year-old talent is driving for Phoenix for the first time. “Christopher Zoechling convinced us in track tests and we also watched his performances in the Porsche and in the Mercedes on the Nordschleife so that he deserves this opportunity in the R8,” explains Ernst Moser. And Hans-Joachim Stuck (D), who is driving the Phoenix R8 race taxi sporting Red Bull graphics as part of the activities before the VLN race, is ready to actively support his two sons again in the cockpit as a matter of exception.
Taking turns at the wheel of the #5 Audi featuring the white-black Primland graphics will be Christopher Haase (D), Frank Stippler and Harold Primat (CH). At the VLN round in June Haase/Primat, both of whom are driving a Phoenix R8 in the Blancpain Endurance Series with Oliver Jarvis (GB), had achieved a podium position. Ernst Moser: “Harold Primat would like to contest the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring in 2014, so this and other VLN races serve as the best possible preparation.”
At this race Phoenix Racing is continuing the development work with the new suspension partner KW. Two R8 cars are equipped with dampers from KW, the third one with the time-tested Bilstein suspension.
Over 210 Teams, including a large number of GT3 sports cars with plenty of horsepower, make for a gigantic field of entrants. After tests on Friday afternoon and the 90-minute qualifying session on Saturday morning, the 6-h race will be started at 12:00. Photo credit:Phoenix Racing
The customer teams of last year's winner Audi experienced one of the toughest events of the Nürburgring 24 Hours this year. Heavy rain forced race control during the night to interrupt the race for more than nine hours. Numerous accidents caused a treacherous mix of oil, mud and rain water on the track. Three Audi R8 LMS ultra cars had accidents in these critical conditions and retired. In the end, Marcel Fässler/Mike Rockenfeller/Frank Stippler/Markus Winkelhock (CH/D/D/D) in fifth place were the best Audi drivers.
For the first time since the 24-hour Nürburgring debut of the racing version of the R8 in May 2009, there was no trophy for the GT sports car. Four times in succession, the R8 LMS won the GT3 class. In addition, Audi celebrated overall victory a year ago. Following this factory-backed commitment, customer teams exclusively relied on the most recent evolution of the R8 LMS ultra. Five teams put eight race cars on the grid. Frank Stippler (D) started the race weekend for Phoenix Racing by setting the best time in qualifying. From grid position one, last year's winner in car number 4 took the lead at the beginning of the race. Subsequently, the local hero from Bad Münstereifel, who was nominated for two cars, concentrated on his stints in car number 1, the R8 LMS ultra of G-Drive Racing by Phoenix.
Stippler with his team-mates Marcel Fässler, Markus Winkelhock and Mike Rockenfeller, who had directly arrived from Brands Hatch where he won a DTM round, was initially running among the top three teams. Due to an exchange of the oxygen sensor, car number 1 dropped to tenth place on Sunday night. Up to the interruption of the race the team had recovered to fourth place. On Monday, the quartet defended its position in the fiercely competitive field of the front runners as rain was repeatedly setting in again. In the end, they finished in fifth place.
Several Audi customers got to experience the trickiness of the conditions that prevailed after the race was interrupted. Michael Ammermüller (D) was fortunate when after an excursion only the tie rod on his number 4 Audi had to be exchanged. Consequently, together with Ferdinand and Johannes Stuck (A), he managed the leap onto position eight. One position behind them, Frank Biela/Christer Jöns/Luca Ludwig/Roman Rusinov (D/D/D/RUS) in the second car of G-Drive Racing by Phoenix reached the finish.
Almost simultaneously with Ammermüller, Laurens Vanthoor (B) had slipped into the guard rails on an oil leak. The suspension of his number 29 Audi of the Belgian Audi Club Team WRT was too heavily damaged for a repair. Around 80 minutes later, Christian Mamerow (D) was struck by misfortune. At the ‘Schwedenkreuz' he got off track on a slippery spot. He destroyed the suspension of his number 2 R8 LMS ultra so that Prosperia C. Abt Team Mamerow retired.
Car number 14 of the Audi race experience experienced a smaller accident as well on lapping a rival but Pierre Ehret (D) was able to continue to drive. Piloted by other enthusiastic customers and several professional drivers, the two R8 LMS ultra cars of the Audi race experience otherwise completed their laps in a commanding manner and in the end took positions 18 and 28.
"I've never experienced such a tough event of the 24-hour race since the R8 started running here," said Head of Audi Motorsport Dr. Wolfgang Ullrich. "Still, our customers demonstrated a great fighting spirit. Our congratulations today go to those who finished the race and of course to the overall winners of Mercedes-Benz. I'm sure that our customers will attack again at Spa in July at the next 24-hour race."
Romolo Liebchen, Head of Customer Sport at quattro GmbH, commented, "Every string comes to an end. Since May 2012, the R8 has won four 24-hour races - at the Nürburgring, at Spa, at Zolder plus the class victory at Daytona in January. That the R8 LMS ultra is a reliable and fast endurance race car we saw nonetheless at the Nürburgring in the fierce competition of more than 30 GT3 race cars. Together with our customers, we're already looking forward to the next challenges."
It wasn't to be. The Belgian Audi Club Team WRT's race at the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring, probably the toughest GT race in the world, ended on Monday morning when the Audi R8 LMS ultra of the Belgian squad suffered an accident after hitting a spot of oil on the track, sustaining heavy damage. Until then, Team WRT had been a win contender and was in fifth position at the moment of the accident. There was frustration among team members and the four drivers (Laurens Vanthoor, Christopher Haase, Christopher Mies and Edward Sandström) but also satisfaction for the competitiveness shown throughout the weekend, in what was only the second participation of the Belgian squad in the landmark race on the Eifel track. This year's edition has matched in excess the epics of the Nordschleife, as the race had to be neutralized during the entire night because of heavy rain and fog. Eventually, Audi could not retain the crown, with the best-placed R8 only in fifth, in an edition dominated by the Mercedes SLS.
Following its positive debut in 2012, the Belgian Audi Club Team WRT was keen to show its potential in this second outing at the 24 Hours and that happened since the first practice sessions. The car proved well-balanced and fast, and was qualified in an excellent 10th position (out of 175 entrants!) by Edward Sandström.
The race started at 5 pm on Sunday and during the first hours, the Belgian R8 stabilized in the top ten, with very short gaps within the front-runners. Options for a big result remained open even a first alert, when the Battlefield4-livered R8 slightly touched the barriers after going into aquaplaning in the rain. The car could be perfectly repaired and re-prepared as the race was red-flagged around 11 pm. The rain had become heavier and heavier, with visibility made poorer by darkness and spots of fog. The situation went on for the entire night, with the race resuming shortly after 8 am on Monday morning.
The pace of the Belgian squad's car was again excellent and the car charged back to 5th, when, shortly before 10 am, it fell victim of an accident in the fast section of Bergwerk. Laurens Vanthoor was at the wheel at that moment and the young Belgian rookie was surprised by a sudden spot of oil, not flagged by the marshals. The car hit the barriers several times and was too heavily-damaged to continue, but luckily, Laurens escaped unscathed.
Team Principal Vincent Vosse was philosophical in wrapping up the experience: "That's the kind of thing that can happen anytime in a race such as the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring, and you have to accept it. This year, things were made even more difficult by the apocalyptic weather conditions. It's a pity, because we proved competitive, we were in the top positions and very often the best-placed Audi, but that's racing. Now we are all trying to lift up Laurens' spirits. He feels a little bit miserable at the moment, and any driver would do so in his position, but there is nothing he should be blaming himself for, what happened would have occurred to anyone at the wheel at that moment. I am happy with what we showed, with the great work done by the team and the drivers, and we are going to turn the page and focus on what comes next".
This will be the second round of the Blancpain Endurance Series scheduled on 1st - 2nd June at Silverstone.
The Belgian Audi Club Team WRT heads to the Nürburgring this coming weekend for its first 24-hour race of the season. The journey may be a short one for the Belgian squad, but the challenge is definitely one of its kind: the 24 hours of the Nürburgring, held on the legendary Nordschleife, the historic 22-km long track in the Eifel, also known as the “Green Hell”, and arguably the toughest motor racing race in the world. This is only the second time that Team WRT takes part to the iconic race, which will again attract around 200 entries. Last year, for its debut, the Belgian Audi Club Team WRT managed to finish the race, learning a lot about this unique competition. This year, it will contribute to Audi’s efforts to retain the title conquered in 2012 with one Audi R8 LMS ultra, entrusted to Laurens Vanthoor-Christopher Mies-Christopher Haase-Edward Sandström.
“Anything we can say about the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring falls short from reality”, admits Team Principal Vincent Vosse. “I have done it a number of times as a driver, and I am now discovering it in a different capacity. It’s really a special event and a very difficult one, because it is almost impossible to master all parameters.”
The track itself, in the first place, is unique: a fast, narrow and dangerous string of asphalt with over 170 corners up and down the Eifel hills, where weather conditions may change from one point to the other. In the 24 Hours race, endurance, weather conditions, darkness, traffic and the disparity of performance level among cars and drivers, which range from top professionals to perfect amateurs, are added issues.
Vosse looks at this 41st edition of the race with all the necessary humility: “We came here for the first time as Team WRT last year and we learnt a lot, but we are conscious that you can never have everything under control in such a race. Last year, we were among the top contenders, then a contact with another car put us in a final position (32nd) that did not reflect our potential. We’ll see how things go this time, but I fully trust the reliability of the R8 LMS ultra and of our drivers, and I think the Balance of Performance is correct. The first objective is to help Audi winning again.”
The driver line-up of the Belgian Audi Club Team WRT is among the strongest and is a perfect combination of experience and performance. Christopher Haase, Christopher Mies and Edward Sandström are all familiar with the 24 Hours, while Laurens Vanthoor will take part to the race for the first time.
As a matter of fact, one of the WRT boys has already tasted the sweetness of victory in this legendary race: Christopher Haase was part of the quartet that gave Audi its first win twelve months ago. “Winning here, especially for a German, really means something. It is the biggest GT race in the world and a real challenge. For me, it was a dream come true and certainly one of the major achievements of my career. Still, after winning it once, what you really want is to win it twice!” The 24-year-old Bavarian, though, knows that nothing is granted: “It is not necessarily the fastest car that wins here. What you need is a fantastic endurance car, like the Audi R8, a great team, like WRT, and excellent co-drivers, like my team mates. The most crucial thing is to avoid mistakes, stay focused, go through the night, and then adopt the right strategy for the final hours. You can never anticipate anything, but one thing is sure: it’s good to be driving an Audi!”
At the other end of the spectrum is Laurens Vanthoor. The young Belgian will be making his debut in the 24 Hours and, as any rookie, had to pass a sort of aptitude test. Any driver wishing to race the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring, regardless of his status or CV, first has to enter two events of the VLN, the special championship that takes place exclusively on the Nordschleife. In his case, he could only do one race, a few weeks ago, as the other race he was scheduled to enter was cancelled. “This is why I had to come back for a test last week and I will have to pass a sort of theoretical exam as soon as I get to the ‘Ring’ later this week”, he explains. The young Belgian is taking all these duties with great diligence. “I think I couldn’t have prepared better for this race. I can say I start to feel comfortable about the track, but I approach the Nordschleife with great respect. This is really the kind of circuit and race you can never say you know everything about! The track, of course, is exciting, although a little bit dangerous. I like it a lot, it is so special, so different from anything else. But I still have to experience driving at night, on the wet or with so many cars around me. I’ll try to do my best and avoid mistakes…”
Such a special race justifies a special livery. The Belgian Audi Club Team WRT car will sport a full black livery and a very … topical sponsor: Battlefield-4! The race itself runs this year on a special format. While free practice will take place on Friday, the Top-40 Qualifying that will determine the pole position on Saturday, the start of the race will be on Sunday at 17:00 hours, with the chequered flag falling at 17:00 hours on Whit Monday, which is a festive day in most European countries.
