BLACK FALCON takes victory and podium finish in NLS3
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The fifth round of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) provided BLACK FALCON with two podium finishes and numerous challenges. On Saturday morning, thick fog on the GP circuit initially caused a déjà vu of the 24-hour race three weeks ago. Fortunately, the fog proved to be less persistent this time and only meant that the qualifying session was shortened and the start of the race postponed by 45 minutes. The team from Meuspath at the Nürburgring celebrated the third victory of the year for the #103 in the PETN (Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring) CUP2-AM classification at the end of the four hours of racing. The sister car with the #148 finished third in the CUP 2-PRO classification after a thrilling final phase. However, only one of the other three cars saw the chequered flag.
BLACK FALCON: Third victory in the fifth race for Kaya, Piana, Stursberg
Mustafa Mehmet Kaya, Gabriele Piana and Mike Stursberg once again caused a sensation in the CUP2-AM classification of the PETN. The CUP2 class winners of the 24-hour race qualified their Porsche 992 GT3 Cup (#103) in difficult conditions as the best-placed CUP2 car in fifth position overall among the more powerful GT3 cars. After a strong and faultless performance by all three drivers, the 103 crossed the finish line as the deserved winner in the AM classification for the third time this season and now leads the PETN AM championship.
BLACK FALCON Team 48 LOSCH: Strong fightback and important points
The Porsche 992 GT3 Cup (#148) of BLACK FALCON Team 48 LOSCH was driven this weekend by the duo Steve Jans and Tobias Müller. They were supported on site by their team-mate Noah Nagelsdiek, who is currently unable to take the wheel himself due to ill health. The #148 started the race from the midfield of the PETN CUP2 class. Starting driver Jans took over the first part of the 4-hour race before Tobias Müller climbed into the cockpit for the remainder of the race. Despite many Code 60 phases, an impressive race to catch up took the Team 48 LOSCH-Porsche to the top of the class. After the last pit stop, however, the strategy chosen by BLACK FALCON did not work out, which meant third place in the end, but still secured the lead in the PETN championship.
First Permit B result for Barst and Schwenk, early end for sister car
In the CUP3 class, NLS newcomers David Barst and Nils Schwenk competed in a Porsche Cayman GT4 CS (#980) with a reduced-performance "Permit B" specification. On their racing debut with the BLACK FALCON team, they put in an outstanding performance and crossed the finish line as the best-placed "Permit B" Cayman. They thus secured the first of two results required to obtain the Nordschleife Permit A, which is mandatory for vehicles without power reduction.
The sister car with the starting number 931 started in the "Permit A" version with full power. The two drivers Ryan Harrison and Tom Roberts, who had travelled from the USA, experienced ups and downs of emotions this weekend. After a good day of testing on Friday, they were strong in qualifying before a contact through no fault of their own shortly before the end of practice necessitated a radiator replacement in the significantly reduced time between practice and the race. After a strong performance by the mechanics, the car started behind the field from the pit lane and began a race to catch up. At the end of the first stint, however, the Cayman crashed in the Fuchsröhre / Adenauer Forst approach and had to retire from the race.
Out of action after accident for Team BILSTEIN
The BMW M4 GT4 (#150) of Team BILSTEIN by BLACK FALCON driven by Jimmy Broadbent, Misha Charoudin and Manuel Metzger also failed to see the chequered flag in NLS3. After a strong performance in qualifying, in which they missed out on pole position by just five hundredths of a second, and an impressive pace in the early stages, the car crashed after around one and a half hours of racing in the Fuchsröhre / Adenauer Forst approach area. Here too, it was not possible to return to the pits due to damage to the cooling system, resulting in a "DNF" for the successful team in this race.
Alexander Böhm, Team Principal of BLACK FALCON:
"The third round of the NLS was certainly not one of our best races. We were very pleased with the renewed victory of the #103 and the clean finish of the Permit B Cayman. Unfortunately, however, we lost two cars early on due to over-motivated driving manoeuvres, which deprived us of further good results. In the final phase, we chose too cautious a strategy with the #148, which cost us some points, but on the other hand secured our leading position in the PETN. We will learn our lessons before the 6h race in August and do everything we can to achieve the best team result of the current season at the season highlight."
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