Emotional Mercedes-AMG victory at the season’s highlight

The KW 6h ADAC Ruhr Cuprace in the ADAC RAVENOL Nürburgring Endurance Series took place on 1 August 2026 amidst glorious weather and in front of packed grandstands in the middle of the summer holidays, providing a fantastic backdrop for the traditional highlight of the season in the Green Hell. Six hours of tactical racing, fierce wheel-to-wheel battles and a brilliant atmosphere in the stands characterised the seventh NLS race of the year. After 41 laps, the Mercedes-AMG Team RAVENOL secured overall victory ahead of the Schubert Motorsport team and Team 48 LOSCH Motorsport by BLACK FALCON.

The focus of the race was on Ralf Aron’s emotional return. Around five months after his serious accident at the 12 Hours of Bathurst, the Estonian made an impressive racing comeback in the No. 80 Mercedes-AMG GT3. Aron had already made a big impression during the morning’s qualifying session when he secured pole position for the Mercedes-AMG GT3 with a fabulous time of 7:51.506 minutes. In the race, Aron and Luca Stolz delivered a flawless performance across the board and, after six hours of error-free driving, crossed the finish line as beaming overall winners. For his team-mate Stolz, the triumph was the perfect present for his 31st birthday. “That was a fantastic race for us, and it was great fun. Six hours packed with action in perfect Eifel weather – I’ve still got a big grin on my face. It really is the best birthday present. We had a completely flawless day; the car didn’t even get a scratch – simply perfect,” explained a visibly relaxed Luca Stolz after crossing the finish line. Ralf Aron didn’t hide his emotions either: “This makes the comeback perfect and I’m over the moon. I didn’t even dare to dream of this beforehand. It was a huge pleasure for me to compete in the race alongside Luca.”

Second place in the overall standings was secured by the Schubert Motorsport team after 41 laps, finishing 39.480 seconds behind. In the No. 77 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, Jens Klingmann, Ugo de Wilde and Nordschleife GT3 debutant Tim Tramnitz put in a highly focused performance. “Luca was an incredibly strong opponent. The Mercedes crew were already extremely fast in qualifying and deserved their victory today. We were within striking distance at times, but whenever we got closer, they managed to pull away again. I’m incredibly proud of my two team-mates – especially Tim, who was competing in his first GT3 race on the Nordschleife,” said veteran driver Jens Klingmann, summing up the battle at the front. Tim Tramnitz also drew an all-round positive conclusion: “It’s a brilliant feeling. After my first stint, we did have a slightly tricky pit stop, but the car was in excellent condition. Jens’s experience helped me enormously, particularly in the run-up to the weekend.” His team-mate Ugo de Wilde was equally delighted with the success: “I was absolutely determined to secure this first Nordschleife podium. Tim did a fantastic job on his debut.”

The remaining place on the overall winners’ podium was secured by 48 LOSCH Motorsport by BLACK FALCON in the Porsche 911 GT3 R EVO (#48), who finished third overall and were also winners of the SP9 PRO-AM class. The trio of Patrick Assenheimer, Tobias Müller and Dylan Pereira also put in a strong performance. Whilst Dylan Pereira set off for his next race in the GT World Challenge Europe Sprint Cup at Magny-Cours immediately after the race, Patrick Assenheimer and Tobias Müller celebrated the cup victory on their own at the track. “Dylan called us from the car via FaceTime and we were able to witness his celebrations live. He was right there with us the whole way. The race went fantastically well and, after the final race, we’re back on the overall podium. Despite a slightly misaligned track, we put in an absolutely solid performance without any mistakes or penalties,” reported Tobias Müller.

The No. 4 Porsche 911 GT3 R from Goroyan RT by Car Collection, driven by Artur Goroyan, Alex Fontana and Nico Menzel, finished fourth overall, securing second place in the SP9 PRO-AM class. Fifth place overall was snatched by Team FK Performance Motorsport in the BMW M4 GT3 EVO (#1) in a thrilling finale. The quartet of Leyton Fourie, Dan Harper, Pavel Lefterov and Maxime Oosten overtook the Porsche 911 GT3 R EVO (#123) from Mühlner Motorsport – driven by Martin Rump, Ben Bünnagel and Noah Nagelsdiek – on the very last lap, meaning the latter were classified in sixth place.

In the SP9 AM class, following a dramatic battle after the final pit stop, the Renazzo Motorsport Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO II (#786), driven by Sak Nana, Christoph Breuer and Thomas Mutsch, came out on top. They relegated the Porsche 911 GT3 R (#5) from BLACK FALCON Team EAE, driven by Mustafa Mehmet Kaya, Gabriele Piana and Mike Stursberg, to second place in the class.

Even outside the top SP9 category, the six-hour Eifel classic produced some unique stories. A joint project between Porsche Heritage and Museum and Team75 Bernhard provided a very special highlight. In the exclusively designed Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS (#718), the two Nordschleife legends and Porsche brand ambassadors, Timo Bernhard and Jörg Bergmeister, gave a fitting send-off to the very last mid-engined racing car of this series to be built in Zuffenhausen. “This car was an extremely important customer sports model for Porsche. We wanted to give it a fitting send-off. The reception from the fans was simply phenomenal – it makes you incredibly proud,” explained Timo Bernhard, visibly moved, before the start. Jörg Bergmeister added with a smile: “When the request came in, I didn’t have to think twice. Just as we started out together back then, the circle is now complete here on the Nordschleife.” The duo completed 37 flawless laps and capped off the emotional farewell outing with fourth place in the SP10 class.

Things were just as intense in the highly competitive one-make cup classes. In the CUP2 class, the BLACK FALCON Team ZIMMERMANN celebrated a commanding class victory. Alexander Hardt, Benjamin Hites and Benjamin Koslowski prevailed in their Porsche 911 GT3 Cup (#900) against their brand colleagues Ryan Harrison, Raphael Rennhofer and Leon Wassertheurer from Team LIQUI MOLY by BLACK FALCON (#902). Third place on the CUP2 podium was secured by Patrik Grütter and Fabio Grosse for SRS Team Sorg Rennsport (#901).

In the CUP3 category (Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring), Oskar Sandberg and Alexander Fielenbach claimed their fourth victory. In the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS (#953) from Smyrlis Racing, the pair staged a spectacular comeback after being handed a drive-through penalty for a false start, crossing the line as class winners after six hours. They relegated Lorenz Stegmann and Moritz Oberheim of W&S Motorsport (#962), as well as Marius Rauer, Michal Makes and Toby Goodman (#961, also W&S Motorsport), to second and third places respectively.

With yet another class victory at the season’s highlight, the trio of Edoardo Bugane, Yannick Fübrich and Sven Markert from Adrenalin Motorsport Team Mainhattan Wheels cemented their lead in the overall standings. With a flawless tally of 79.00 points, the BMW M240i trio (#650) have celebrated a class victory in every race they have contested so far this season. They are followed by Alexander Fielenbach and Oskar Sandberg (64.00 points) and the trio of Anton Abée, Yannik Himmels and Jörg Viebahn (56.00 points). Benjamin Albers and Raphael Rennhofer round off the top 10 with 55.00 points each. As there are no longer any discarded results this season, all results without exception count towards the standings – which makes the title race incredibly tense: the leaders must continue to score points reliably in the remaining races and cannot afford any slip-ups or retirements.

Following the successful six-hour spectacle, the ADAC RAVENOL Nürburgring Endurance Series is taking a short summer break, before the next highlight at the Nürburgring takes place on 12 and 13 September 2026 with the big double-header comprising NLS8 and NLS9.