Four weeks before the ADAC TotalEnergies 24h Nürburgring, seven Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring teams with eight cars took the opportunity to prepare for the last time under race conditions on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife. Four cars started in each of the Cup 2 and Cup 3 class. With a 2-hour race on Saturday and a 4-hour race on Sunday, a total of six hours of racing distance were completed on the 25.378-kilometer track at the ADAC 24h Nürburgring Qualifiers. The Qualifiers, as well as the 24-hour race itself, take place outside the PETN championship. Teams can compete under the same technical regulations in the Cup 2 and Cup 3 classes.

Cup 2 winner in both races was KKrämer Racing (#184) with Michele Di Martino, Karsten Krämer and Florian Naumann on Saturday as well as Michele Di Martino and Moritz Kranz on Sunday. The Cup 3 class was won in Race 1 by Sorg Rennsport (#185) with Jose Casares Garcia, Daniel Miller and Carlo Scholl. Race 2 went to Huber Racing (#180) with David Kiefer, Marius Kiefer, Stefan Kiefer and Luca Rettenbacher.

In preparation for driving in the dark at the 24-hour race, the 2-hour race began at 19:30 on Saturday evening and continued into the night. Pole setter in the Cup 2 class KKrämer Racing (#184) with Michele Di Martino and Moritz Kranz drove to class victory with a 3:39.307 minute lead over Huber Motorsport (#125) with Thomas Kiefer and Hans Wehrmann. Third was the second entered car of KKrämer Racing (#161) with Herbert Lösch and 'SELV'.

The Cup 2 class finished Race 2 on Sunday in identical order. With the usual NLS race distance of four hours, the teams were able to collect another numerous kilometers in daylight on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife.

"That was a great weekend. Two times on the podium with both cars, as well as class victory both times. That was good preparation for the 24-hour race. Last year it brought us luck, let's hope it's the same this year," said team boss Karsten Krämer, who won Cup 2 class at last year's 24-hour race with Christopher Brück and Moritz Kranz.

Sorg Rennsport and Huber Racing with victories in Cup 3 class

Race 1 went to the Sorg Rennsport (#185) with Jose Casares Garcia, Daniel Miller and Carlo Scholl on Saturday evening. The trio won after 11 laps by 51.950 seconds over Sébastien Carcone, Andreas Schaflitzl and Jürgen Vöhringer of W&S Motorsport (#186). Third was Huber Racing (#180) with David Kiefer, Marius Kiefer and Stefan Kiefer.
Race 2 was a close call: after four hours of racing and 25 laps, Huber Racing finished just 0.105 seconds ahead of W&S Motorsport. The class winners from the 2h race Sorg Rennsport finished the race in third place.

This year, for the first time, there will be an AM rating for the classes Cup 2 and Cup 3 at the endurance classic on the Nürburgring-Nordschleife. To be eligible for the rating, all drivers must be classified according to the FIA driver categorization list. Each driver will be assigned a numerical value: Bronze 1, Silver 2, Gold 3 and Platinum 4. If the average value of all drivers on a vehicle results in 1.75 or less, the vehicle will be classified as AM.

Last chance to obtain Permit A before the 24-hour race taken

At the qualifying race, drivers with Permit B classification had the last chance to get Permit A before the 24-hour race. Seven drivers in Cup 3 class took advantage of this opportunity. To earn Permit A, a Porsche Cayman GT4 CS with reduced power can be used in Cup 3 class. Drivers must achieve a minimum of three race results, two of which must finish within the top 75% in class. In addition, a total of at least 24 race laps must be completed. In doing so, each Permit A applicant is required to have a driving percentage of at least 25% per race on said vehicle.

"I am very happy to have received my Permit A. Ever since I started motorsports many years ago, the plan was to compete in the 24-hour race. I can't wait," says New Zealander Grant Dalton, who made Permit A with Grant Woolford and Harley Haughton at WS Racing (#85).

The ADAC TotalEnergies 24h Nürburgring will take place from 18th to 21st May.