NLS 6 Preview: Kobayashi jumps straight back in off the back of historic Le Mans victory
- Benjamin Crundwell
- 3h
- 3 min read
Five weeks after a blockbuster Nürburgring 24h, the green hell will come back to life this weekend for the sixth round of the Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie (NLS).
Last weekend Kamui Kobayashi won the 24 Hours of Le Mans for the second time, with Toyota. Six days after crossing the line, he is getting behind the wheel of the No.47 KCMG Mercedes-AMG GT3. Kobayashi raced the No.47 in NLS 3, the car had strong pace and could have won the race if the strategy had played out differently.
Kobayashi said: "Le Mans and the Green Hell are two completely different challenges. After the magnificent victory, I am now looking forward to competing with KCMG again after a great experience at NLS3.
"My goal is to continue to improve on the Nordschleife in the GT3 car. This is another great opportunity to continue my learning process at this legendary circuit. With an all-Japanese driver crew, we are confident that we will have a successful race day."
The other notable Mercedes entry is the No.26 PROsport Racing car, which will see Adam Christodoulou and Kyle Tilley team up with BTCC Champion, Jake Hill. The entry is Pro-Am, but this does not mean they should be written out of it, as there are only five Pro entries this weekend.
Three of the five SP9 Pro entries are Porsche, each run by a tyre marque. Dunlop will once again race the striking black and yellow liveried No.17, with Nico Menzel and Sven Müller. Common competitors, Falken Motorsport, will field the No.44 Porsche, driven by Tim Heinemann and Klaus Bachler.
The final Porsche, the No.30 Hankook Competition car, will be raced by Jongkyum Kim, Michael Christensen and Récardo Bruins Choi.
The final SP9 Pro entry is another German car. The No.77 Schubert Motorsport BMW is set to be driven by Robin Frijns and Jens Klingmann, who starred in the M3 Touring during the Nürburgring 24h. The M3 shocked everyone, crossing the line in fifth overall, despite not being an SP9 entry; its final position was bumped up to fourth last week, when a very late post race penalty was applied to the Lamborghini ahead.
Frijns was the driver chasing Kobayashi in the final stint of the 24 Hours of Le Mans, as the two had to compromise fuel consumption and pace while the BMW driver attempted to chase the Toyota driver.
Another Pro-Am entry to keep an eye on is the No.35 Walkenhorst Aston Martin. Dennis Fetzger and Mateo Villagomez will team up with the very fast Christian Krognes.
The fan favourite 'YouTube car' of Jimmy Broadbent, Steve Brown, Misha Charoudin and Manuel Metzger will not feature in NLS 6, as the car is still under repairs from the damage caused during the 24 hour race a month ago. The car crashed from the lead of the class over night, when the brakes failed in Wehrseifen, the slowest corner on the track.
Nürburgring regular, Misha Charoudin features on the entry list regardless, as he will be racing the Dacia Logan with Oliver Kriese in the SP3T class. This is not the first time Charoudin has raced the popular Dacia, as he drove the first iteration in 2021.
The Dacia might struggle to win its class, however with only four entries in it, a podium is possible.
Former Formula One driver, Scott Speed will make his NLS debut on Saturday, in the No.999 Mühlner Motorsport Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS. Tim Tramnitz, former Formula 3 driver is also making his debut this weekend, in the No.651 Adrenaline Motorsport BMW M240i. Both drivers are looking to advance their license so they can race at a higher level.
As per usual, the racing will start at 12:00 local time (11:00 BST) on Saturday, after qualifying from 08:30 to 10:00 local time in the morning. Unusually for the Eifel Forrest, the sun is forecast to be out on race day, meaning the job will be slightly simpler for each of the drivers coping with the already challenging Nordschleife.
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