NLS 2 Preview: Everything you need to know ahead of 71st ADAC Westfalenfahrt
- Benjamin Crundwell
- 3 hours ago
- 3 min read
Written by Benjamin Crundwell, edited by Vyas Ponnuri
Last week, the stage was set for a thrilling opening round to the 50th season of the Nürburgring Langstecken-Serie (NLS). Unfortunately, classic Eifel weather brought an end to the race before it started, as snow and heavy rain hit the track. A week on from the soggy day, the sun is expected to be out for a hot day of racing on the Nordschleife.
Headlining the entry list is Max Verstappen, who will be racing with Winward Racing in the Mercedes-AMG GT3. The Formula One World Champion will be teaming up with Mercedes factory drivers Jules Gounon and Daniel Juncadella.
Verstappen’s previous outing in the NLS saw him dominate the race, although critics may argue that the competition was too low. This time, Verstappen will have his work cut out to prove his worth on the ring, as strong contenders have been bought in heaps. The other Pro Mercedes will also be backed by Winward Racing, at the hands of Maro Engel and Fabian Schiller.
After his absence on the NLS 1 entry list, Frank Stippler is back in the series with Haupt Racing Team and the Ford Mustang. The second Mustang will be piloted by Arjun Maini, Fabio Scherer and Emil Gjerdrum.
If entering more cars improves a manufacturer’s odds of winning, then BMW are favourites. The first of three Pro cars to be entered comes from Schubert Motorsport, driven by Ugo de Wilde, Jens Klingmann and Charles Weerts.
The other two BMW entries are by Rowe, and they’re no less impressive. The No.98 will be driven by Augusto Farfus, Raffaele Marciello and Kelvin Van der Linde, while the No.99 will be driven by Dan Harper and Jordan Pepper.
Delayed a week, the DUNLOP team will be making their debut on the Nürburgring, with factory support from Dorian Boccolacci and Nico Menzel. The DUNLOP entry has taken over the second Falken Motorsport entry from previous years, leaving just the No.44 Falken car to race this weekend with Tim Heinemann and Sven Müller.
Although the Temerario GT3 will debut in the Sebring 12 Hours this weekend, Lamborghini are bringing two Huracans to the Pro class. The first will be driven by Maximilian Paul, Christian Engelhart and Patricija Stalidzane, while the second will have a four-driver lineup of Mirko Bortolotti, Luca Engstler, Marco Mapelli and Patric Niederhauser.
The Pro class will be rounded out by a Scherer Sport PHX Audi, Walkenhorst Aston Martin and a Rinaldi Ferrari.
Popular YouTubers Jimmy Broadbent, Steve Brown (aka SuperGT) and Misha Charoudin will team up once again with Nürburgring 24h winner Manuel Metzger in a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car in the AT 2 class. The Porsche will pose the squad with new challenges to the BMW M4 GT4 they raced last year, but they are guaranteed a podium finish as only two cars will race in their class.
Perhaps the most eye-catching piece of news is the April Fool’s prank turned into reality. BMW teased an M3 Touring Car last April, and having seen the fans' reaction, they decided to make it a reality. The BMW G81 M3 Touring 24H has been designed with M4 GT3 technology to design an entry for the SPX class of the Nürburgring 24h.
The car will make its debut this weekend in NLS 2. Klingmann and de Wilde will be driving it, meaning they are doing the double, due to their duties in the Schubert Motorsport BMW M4.
The race will last four hours on the combined layout, starting at 12:00 local time (11:00 GMT) on Saturday, after 90 minutes of qualifying at 08:30 local time. Both sessions can be streamed live on YouTube, or various streams are available to watch a specific car’s onboard.
