W&S Motorsport and AVIA are further expanding the partnership. The team from Ofterdingen and the petrol station operator and energy trader from Munich will compete together as AVIA W&S Motorsport in the Nürburgring endurance series with two Porsches. The winners of the "Cayman GT4 Trophy by Manthey Racing" and runner-up 2021 of the Nürburgring Endurance Series will start the mission of defending their title in the 2022 season with the AVIA racing Porsche 911 GT3 Cup 992 in the Cup 2 class. Last year's winning car, the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS, will also be used in AVIA racing design in the Cup 3 class.

AVIA and W&S Motorsport are also chasing success together in the ADAC GT4 Germany. The Dane Nicolaj Møller Madsen and the german up-and-coming talent Finn Zulauf will drive a Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport in the unique AVIA design.

Stephan Hauke, responsible for sports marketing at AVIA, about the cooperation: "We are very pleased to be promoted to the GT3 league in the NLS with W&S Motorsport as a professional and successful partner. The new Cup Porsche is a fascinating car and the Trophy is an excellent opportunity to present the AVIA brand. It is important for us to continue to support motorsport in the future and with regard to eFuel, Porsche is a pioneer among manufacturers. The composition of our permanent driver crews of young talents and experienced successful drivers will provide the necessary action in the races, and we can certainly celebrate top results. We are looking forward to a guaranteed exciting and successful endurance racing season!"

Team Principal Daniel Schellhaas also shares this enthusiasm: "As a partner and lubricant supplier, we are very pleased to cooperate with AVIA in the NLS and we have put together a great package with the two Porsches and the driver crews for the Endurance Trophy. The whole team and the drivers will do their best to deliver excellent results in the classes."

For the team of Patrick Wagner and Daniel Schellhaas, Nordschleife experts Tim Scheerbarth (33/Dormagen) and Daniel Blickle (43/Albstadt) will compete in the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup 992. The current model of the manufacturer from Stuttgart delivers over 500 hp and will be close to the front of the field in terms of lap times. At the eighth NLS round last year, Scheerbarth and Blickle, together with Max Kronberg, secured the coveted Cayman Trophy in the Cup 3 class. Starting this season, two classes will compete for the title in the newly created "Porsche Endurance Trophy Nürburgring". The spearhead is the classification in the Cup 2 class, in which the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup 992 is used. The various Porsche Cayman GT4 models collect their points in the Cup 3 class. At the end of the season, a champion will be chosen who can come from both classes. AVIA W&S Motorsport has set itself the goal of winning the Trophy again.

Tim Scheerbarth knows the Nürburgring and its peculiarities better than almost any other driver. In 2011 he became overall champion of the VLN endurance racing championship and numerous class victories in the series as well as in the 24h Race in recent years with GT3 and GT4 cars from different manufacturers mark his way so far. His team-mate Daniel Blickle is also a Nordschleife expert and has many years of experience in the Green Hell. The businessman from Swabia has been making a successful start in long-distance driving in the near-production Porsche Cayman since 2017. After entering the SP10 class with the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS in 2020, he moved with the team to Cup 3 last season.

The sister car, the AVIA racing Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS, the winning car from last year, is also promisingly occupied. Marius Rauer (23/Willstätt) and Sebastian Vittel (FRA) take turns at the wheel.

Marius Rauer has contested his races mainly in the TCR car since 2017 and now dares to step into the cockpit of a GT4. The young man from Baden began his motorsport career in karting in 2011 and was able to celebrate his first successes the following year. He proved his talent in the DMV NES 500 and in his first NLS appearances. At his side is Sebastien Vittel from France, who has also made several starts in the NLS.

Who will strengthen both duos will be announced at a later date.

Team Principal Daniel Schellhaas explains: "By winning the Cayman Trophy in our debut season in the Cup, we have already set our bar quite high for this year. We are now taking on the mission of defending our title with the new Porsche 911 GT3 Cup 992. The fact that Daniel and Tim are still on board is fantastic. Both are experienced, reliable and fast pilots. The crew of the Cayman GT4 also promises success in Cup 3. We are aware that it will not be an easy task and that many top-class drivers will again take the wheel in the field. We are looking forward to eight exciting races in the Eifel and fair, tough competitions on the Nordschleife!"

"With our new Porsche 911 GT3 Cup, we are moving up to the Oberliga. The car is just mega and my anticipation is huge. With Tim I will do my best to defend our title. Many thanks to AVIA for their support this year and of course to my team W&S Motorsport, which I have trusted for years. Because of me, it can start tomorrow!" says Daniel Blickle.

Tim Scheerbarth adds: "As reigning Trophy champions, we are the hunted in Cup 2 this season. We will go full throttle with AVIA W&S Motorsport to climb onto the podium at every race and keep the trophy in the team. But as is well known, billing is only done at the end and the Nordschleife is always good for surprises. I am well prepared and highly motivated for this challenge. May the games begin!"

"The anticipation for the upcoming season is huge and I'm looking forward to the next step with the GT4 Cayman. I already feel very well looked after at AVIA W&S Motorsport and I know that the team will support me professionally. The Cup 3 will certainly be strong and competitive again, which is exactly the environment I am looking for to develop personally at the wheel," explains Marius Rauer.

"I have known the team for a long time and have full confidence in the crew, who always prepare our cars excellently and look after us in the best possible way. Our AVIA racing Cayman looks great and with Marius by my side I will do my best to deliver strong results. It won't be easy, but the challenge has been accepted and we want to attack," says Sebastien Vittel.

The Nürburgring Endurance Series starts on Saturday, 26 March 2022 at 12:00 noon. The first race will be held over the standard time of four hours and can be followed in the live stream on the homepage www.vln.de and on the YouTube channel of the NLS. A total of eight races are on the calendar, in addition to the 6h race in July, the 12h race over two days in September is the new highlight.

Nürburgring Endurance Series 2022*

18-20 March. – Test and adjustment drive

26 March – 67th ADAC Westfalenfahrt

09 April – 46th NIMEX DMV 4h Race

23 April – 53rd Adenauer ADAC Rundstrecken-Trophy

25 June – 45th RCM DMV Grenzlandrennen

09 July – ROWE 6h ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen

09 - 11 September – Nürburgring 12 Hours

08 October – 54th ADAC BarbarossaPreis

October 22 – PAGID Racing 46th DMV Münsterlandpokal