At point 16 on Saturday, Nissan starts the most ambitious race in the 24 hour race at the Nürburgring. Because it is the first time for the Japanese company and its motorsport department NISMO not only class victories, but top positions in the overall standings. Two flawless ones GT-R NISMO GT3 Under the application Nissan GT Academy Team RJN and a third GT-R named by Schulze Motorsport compete at the 42. Edition of the Eifel marathon against the crème de la crème of GT racing. Pilots and cars are entering uncharted territory, as the "Green Hell" has long been the living room of the Nissan GT-R. Here, Nissan traditionally tests all GT-R again before they are released for series production. And here in September Michael Krumm managed a lap in 2013 minutes on a slightly modified Nissan GT-R NISMO - new best time for a road sports car manufactured in large numbers on the 7.08,679 kilometer-long Nordschleife.
Led by the international Nissan driver team for the 24 hour race of the year 2014 from the longtime Formula 1 driver Nick Heidfeld, Together with the reigning German GT Academy winner Florian Strauß as well as Lucas Ordonez and Alex Buncombe he shares the memory of the 80. Company anniversary of Nissan with the start number 80 provided GT-R NISMO GT3.
"The last time I drove here was two years ago and I just wanted to start the VLN test race we had started from where I had left off," says the Mönchengladbacher. "But it's not that easy! The route has so many curves and blind passages. Normally you only need five or six laps to get a good feeling for the Nordschleife again. Only then can you start to tune the car. But the lap is damn long here, and there are three other drivers waiting. Therefore, the motto is: "Okay, everyone has two rounds!"
Heidfeld, who also serves as the head jury member of the German GT Academy, has a very special experience waiting for him on Saturday: As a teacher, he tensions with his former but still eager student Florian Strauß. "It's amazing how Nissan's GT Academy keeps producing new racing talents. I am sure that in a few years this will be considered a normal career path in sports. Especially since the junior sighting also opens the way for those who cannot afford to get involved in the increasingly expensive karting. ”
When he first met 2008's first GT Academy winner, Lucas Ordonez, a few weeks ago, he no longer regarded him as a former console player, but as a normal racing colleague, Heidfeld admits. “It's different with Florian, of course, he's only been driving a car race for a few months and is still in the learning phase. On the other hand, in Germany alone 100.000 gamers have applied for his place - so he has to have a very special talent. "
Lucas Ordonez already brought 2012 a class win for Nissan at the Eifel Marathon: “We won with a GT-R in Clubtrack edition and took place 200 among over 30 starters. In preparation for this year's race, we drove two runs to the VLN series; In addition to a pole position, many quick training and racing laps jumped out. Pirelli has developed very good tires for the Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3, so we hope for an absolute top result. But so much can happen at the Nürburgring. Every little mistake is punished mercilessly, so every driver has to treat the track with the greatest respect. ”
In the second GT-R NISMO GT3, the fluent Japanese-speaking NISMO brand ambassador Michael Krumm forms a Far Eastern quartet with the three Japanese Kazuki Hoshino, Katsumasa Chiyo and Tetsuya Tanaka. The start number 30 on their GT-R NISMO GT3 symbolizes the 30 anniversary of the Nissan motorsport and factory tuning department NISMO.
“If you take into account the great potential of the car, we have a real chance of a podium. We will do everything we can and hope to have the necessary bit of luck, ”announced the native of Reutlingen.
Kazuki Hoshino, like Krumm, who is mainly active in the Japanese Super GT series for Nissan this season, has been dreaming of a victory in the Eifel for several years: "These are my sixth 24 hours, this time with the GT-R NISMO GT3, I have accompanied its development from the beginning. Last month I started in the fourth round of the VLN series. We collected a lot of data, which makes us very confident. I hope we can show everyone what's in this Nissan GT-R on the world's toughest racetrack. ”
