A decade on from debuting a sole Porsche 997 GT3 R on the Nordschleife, Falken will field a pair of the latest-generation 911 GT3 R cars in both the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) and 24-Hour race in 2021. Schnabl Engineering, the German specialist that has supported the tyre manufacturer since 2011, will continue to run the Falken Motorsports team this year.
Six minutes, 48.047 seconds. This is the new record lap time for a series production car around the 20.832-kilometre Nürburgring Nordschleife loop. The car was a 730hp Mercedes-AMG GT Black Series, the tyres Michelin Pilot Sport Cup 2 R.
All four Giti Tire Motorsport cars achieved top three finishes in their classes at the Nürburgring 24-Hour. Terrible overnight weather at the Eifel circuit saw the race suspended for nine hours, and only 70 of the 97-car grid make it to the finish. Giti said that tyre management proved decisive in helping teams overcome challenging conditions. The Giti Tire Motorsport by WS Racing Audi R8 LMS GT4 finished first in the SP8 class, while the Volkswagen Golf VII GTI Clubsport came in third in the VT2 class. In the SP3T class the trailblazing #gitiracing all-female racing team finished third in their Volkswagen Golf VII GTI TCR, overcoming a race crash and garage repairs to finish.
Tyre brand Falken’s twin Porsche 911 GT3 Rs finished in 10th and 11th place at the 48th ADAC Total 24h-Race 2020. The Eifel weather proved challenging for everyone with constantly changing conditions over the race’s 24 hours. Falken said the finish demonstrated the reliability of its performance tyres. Despite conditions causing many cars to come off the track, Falken brought both Porsches home: 10th place for the #44 with Klaus Bachler, Sven Müller, Peter Dumbreck and Martin Ragginger at the wheel and11th place for the #33 with the double starters Klaus Bachler and Sven Müller alongside Christian Engelhart and Dirk Werner.
Falken Tire’s motorsport division is looking forward to the belated running of its centrepiece event this weekend, the Nürburgring 24 Hours. The Sumitomo Rubber Industries flagship brand is involved in a multitude of motorsport disciplines, including drifting and motocross. But Germany’s premier endurance race remains an event to which it is fully committed, decades on from its first appearance in 1999. The Falken Motorsports team regularly competes in the top GT3 (SP9) category and has targeted 2020 as another opportunity for an outright win. The manufacturer says its commitment to the race is also due to the research benefits of putting its product range to the test on the Nordschleife in the long term.
The Nürburgring 24 Hours is one of the last open tyre competitions in recent years. For Falken, it represents an opportunity to compete on track against top global premium brands, like Michelin, Goodyear and Yokohama. In the last decade Falken road tyre technology it has narrowed the performance gap, evidenced by improved results in third party tyre tests.
Hankook’s Ventus Race tyre is in action at three major series this weekend. The tyre follows up DTM, Formula Renault Eurocup, and 24H Series powered by Hankook action with events at the Nürburgring and the Circuit de Nevers Magny-Cours. Saturday’s race at the Nürburgring marks the DTM’s halfway point, with Sunday’s second race getting the second half immediately underway. The series lines up on the Grand Prix circuit for the first time for 19 years, including 17 corners and big changes in elevation. Hankook says the resulting compressions place great strain on the construction of the Ventus Race, as do the solid kerbs, which are taken at great speed.
Max Kruse Racing’s Volkswagen Golf GTI TCR scored a class win in the NLS endurance series at the Nürburgring this weekend. The team was competing on Falken Azenis race tyres for the first time. The SP3T pole position and class winner was one of six cars including a Porsche 911 GT3 Cup MR (997), VW Sciroccos, Golfs and Cupra switching to the tyre manufacturer as Falken expands its motorsport customer programme.
Falken Motorsports has made a surprise addition to its NLS schedule. The tyre brand’s motorsport team will add the Porsche of Christian Engelhart and Dennis Olsen to this weekend’s opening NLS round. Falken says it originally planned to start the revised season with both of its Porsches at the NLS2 and 3 double-header on 11-12 July. A weather disrupted schedule and few other opportunities to test mean the race debut for the 2020 car has been brought forward.
Nankang Rubber Tire has opened a new showroom at Nürburgring Boulevard, as part of the ATOMIC-SHOP Motorsport Showroom. The manufacturer, which produces racing tyres for global motorsport codes, is the first Taiwanese manufacturer to have a showroom at the Nürburgring.
The ADAC TOTAL 24h of the Nürburgring has been rescheduled for September, leaving a cloud-shaped hole in Falken Motorport’s schedule. The tyre brand’s team is followed by an enthusiastic fan base, though, and Falken has found a way to engage them without the totemic event of its motorsport season.
Giti Tire Motorsport’s all-female racing team took to the grid of the second Digital Nürburgring Endurance Series meeting on 4 April. Professional WS Racing drivers Carrie Schreiner and Celia Martin got behind the gaming wheel of a virtual Giti liveried Audi RS3 LMS TCR for the three hour endurance race and finished 10th in the TCR Class.
Hankook Tire has become a sponsor of the Nürburgring Endurance Series, the race event at the renown German circuit that previously went by the name VLN Endurance Championship and billed as the largest motorsport championship in the world. The tyre maker hopes this new tie-up will be the start of a “long term partnership” with the retitled, open tyre supply motorsport series.
Falken will run a pair of the latest specification GT3 Porsche 911 GT3 R cars in both the Nürburgring Endurance Series (formerly known as the VLN) and the Nürburgring 24h race in 2020. The Falken Motorsports race team, run by Schnabl Engineering for the tenth consecutive year, has ordered a new 991.2 chassis to run alongside its 2019 Porsche. Both cars will be identical in specification.
From endurance racing and drifting to desert rallies, Falken Tyres has seen success in varied motorsport disciplines this season. The brand celebrated top-ten finishes in its 20th year at the Nürburgring 24-hour race and on the Peking to Paris Rally, while the season’s crowning glory has been drift driver James Deane’s double title win.
Goodyear will accelerate the development of its motorsport programme in 2020 in several German race series. Following a period away from the top level of sport, the tyre brand will build on its long and successful racing history at the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, where Goodyear will equip numerous teams in the VLN Endurance Championship and the 24h Race. Its racing tyres will also be used in the two racing series DMV GT and Touring Car Cup (DMV GTC) as well as the DMV National Endurance Series 500 (DMV NES 500).
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