The BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert #20 Z4 GT3 driven by Martin Tomcyzk, Jens Klingmann, Dominik Baumann, and Claudia Hürtgen was a contender for the win in the 42nd running of the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring, but a late race setback took it out of contention. A second Team Schubert Z4 and both Marc VDS Z4s exited the race well before the finish.
Rene Rast, Christopher Haase, Christian Mamerow and Markus Winkelhock won the race in a factory supported Phoenix Audi R8 LMS. The Black Falcon Mercedes SLS driven by Jeroen Bleekemolen, Andreas Simonsen, Christian Menzel and Lance David Arnold finished second. The winners covered a record 2509 miles in a race run in dry conditions.
The #20 Z4, the Phoenix Audi, and the Black Falcon Mercedes traded the lead over the course of the night. But the BMW’s fortunes changed with about two hours left. The car had to serve a penalty for a contact incident earlier in the race, and then a spin by Claudia Hürtgen led to suspension and steering rack damage that took seventeen minutes to repair. The time in the pits dropped the car to sixth, where it eventually finished.
While the other factory supported Z4s were competitive, leading the race at times, they fell by the wayside. The #19 Schubert Z4 was the first to exit, retiring after four hours with rear suspension failure. Both the #25 and #26 Marc VDS cars crashed out in the tenth hour; Marco Wittmann in #25 was hit and sent into the barriers, and then Bas Leinders went off course in #26 while trying to avoid other cars. Both cars were too damaged to continue.
A privateer Walkenhorst Motorsport Z4 driven by Ferdinand Stuck, Max Sandritter, Christopher Brück and Dennis Rostek finished eighth overall.
The Adrenalin Motorsport M 235i Racing driven by Daniel Zils, Norbert Fischer, Uwe Ebertz, and Timo Schupp won the M235i Racing Cup, finishing 29th overall.—Brian S. Morgan
