Next outing for the Spa winners: ROWE RACING is ready for the home race at the Nürburgring
Philipp Eng, Marco Wittmann and Nick Yelloly aim to maintain their lead in the overall standings of the Endurance Cup / Dan Harper, Max Hesse and Neil Verhagen are targeting more points
St. Ingbert, 25th July 2023 – The next mission at Nürburgring: After securing their third triumph at the 24 Hours of Spa, ROWE RACING invited the #98 BMW M4 GT3 car, adorned with all the marks and insignias of the 3,761.148 kilometres of the victorious journey, for a photoshoot. Subsequently, the vehicle with chassis number 047 was given a quick clean and a small inspection, and now, four weeks later, it is ready for the next assignment. This Sunday marks the home race at the Nürburgring, which is the fourth of five races in the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup.
Austrian driver Philipp Eng, two‑time German DTM champion Marco Wittmann and British driver Nick Yelloly enter the Eifel region as the current leaders of the Endurance Cup after their season‑opening victory at Monza, a third‑lace finish at Le Castellet, and the Spa success. They hold a lead of eight points over their closest pursuers with a total of 76 points. In the team standings, ROWE RACING is ahead by twelve points with a total of 80 points. The objective at the Nürburgring – a track that feels like home for the St. Ingbert‑based team due to their numerous appearances on the Nordschleife – is clear, to maintain their strong position in the battle for the driver and team titles in the Endurance Cup in the penultimate race of the season.
The GT World Challenge Europe will not drive through the “Green Hell” and over the famous Nordschleife, where the #98 took second place in the 24h Nürburgring in May with Marco Wittmann, among others, but “only” on the 5.137‑kilometre Grand Prix Track with seven left‑hand and nine right‑hand corners. However, the short journey and familiar surroundings, including the ROWE lounge, still create a true home game atmosphere with many familiar routines.
This is equally true for the BMW Junior Team in the sister car #998. British driver Dan Harper, German driver Max Hesse and Neil Verhagen from the USA sit in third place in the driver standings with 33 points and are aiming to collect points after an unfortunate retirement at Spa. The trio is hopeful for another podium finish, similar to their second‑place result at Monza.
The race weekend in the Eifel region kicks off for the team from St. Ingbert on Saturday (29th July) with free practice from 8:30 to 10:00 followed by the pre qualifying from 12:25 to 13:55 also lasting 90 minutes. On Sunday (30th July), the qualifying session from 8:45 to 9:45 will determine the starting grid for the three‑hour race, which is scheduled to start at 14:45.
Hans-Peter Naundorf, Team Principal ROWE RACING:
“After the big victory at Spa, which concluded a very intense phase of the season, we all had a little time to catch our breath and enjoy our success so far this year. After the photoshoot with the winning car from Spa, we then started preparing for our home race at the Nürburgring and the rest of the season. We made sure that the #98 car was ready for its next outing and repaired the #998 after the incident in Spa. Our goal is clear: We want to maintain our top positions in the driver and team standings of the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup with the best possible performance and ideally continue our streak of podium finishes in at least six of our seven season races. We are very excited for our home race in the Eifel area, where we will be supported by over 100 guests. For all team members the Nürburgring is familiar territory. The journey is short, we know all the locations, have our ROWE lounge right above our pits, and all the routines are familiar. We hope to translate this into good results on the track.”
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