2015 ADAC Zurich 24 Hours of Nurburgring

Congratulations to Belgian Team WRT (Drivers:Christopher Mies, Nico Müller, Edward Sandström and Laurens Vanthoor) for winning the 2015 Nurburgring 24 hour race. This is also the inaugural debut and first win of the new 2015+ spec Audi R8 LMS at the Nurburgring 24 hour event. This is the second consecutive time in 2 years that Audi Sport have won the 24 hour race at Nurburgring with the Audi R8 LMS platform. Audi Sport Team WRT completed an overall of 156 laps to win the tough 24 hour race which featured very close racing. With only a 40 second gap to second place, this year featured the closest finish ever for the 24 hour event.

2015 NBR 24 hour winner – Audi R8 LMS by Team WRT. Photo Credit : Audi Sport

At the end of the 2015 24 hour race, 3 out of the top 5 and 6 out of the top 10 overall were equipped with Brembo Racing brakes. The winning Belgian Team WRT Audi R8 LMS was also equipped with Brembo Racing RB340 endurance racing pads. Audi Sport equips Brembo Racing brake systems and Brembo RB340 pads on all 2015+ spec Audi R8 LMS cars.

2015 24 Hours of Nurburgring – Top 10 Results

• First: #28 – Audi Sport Team WRT, Audi R8 LMS – Brembo Racing equipped
• Second: #25 BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS, BMW Z4 GT3
• Third: #44 – Falken Motorsports, Porsche 997 GT3-R – Brembo Racing equipped
• Fourth: #26 BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS BMW Z4 GT3
• Fifth: #5 Black Falcon, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 – Brembo Racing equipped
• Sixth: #17 Walkenhorst Motorsport, BMW Z4 GT3
• Seventh: #29 – Audi Sport Team WRT, Audi R8 LMS – Brembo Racing equipped
• Eighth: #11 – Bentley Team HTP, Bentley Continental GT3 – Brembo Racing equipped
• Ninth: #35 – Nissan GT Academy Team RJN, Nissan R35 GT3
• Tenth: #33 – Team Premio, Mercedes-Benz SLS AMG GT3 – Brembo Racing equipped

Bentley Continental GT3 running for the first time at Nurburgring 24. Photo Credit: Team HTP Motorsport.

Brembo Racing RB340

The Brembo RB340 material offers excellent wear resistance, high initial bite, stable friction levels (the performance does not degrade as much at elevated temperatures) and good modulation in a wide range of conditions. Brembo’s RB340 material is unique in construction as the optimal performance of the material is dictated by the energy of the brake system, not specifically the braking surface running temperature. This also means the material performance can be stable in a wide temperature range. The combination of wear resistance and a high initial attack means the driver does not need to use as much pedal effort to achieve the optimum stopping power and potentially fewer brake pad / disc changes in an endurance race.

Photo Credit: Aston Martin Racing

2015 24 Hours of Nurburgring – Overview

The 24 hour endurance event which has been running since 1970 and is one of the most important races that car manufacturers running FIA GT3 based cars (which is increasingly becoming the global platform for GT racing) focus on. Many teams, car manufacturers (Examples: Audi, AMG, Porsche, Subaru, Hyundai) and technical suppliers even have facilities near the Nurburgring for extensive testing of professional racing and production based cars. The 2015 24 hour endurance event had over 150 entries which included factory supported FIA GT3 spec cars as well as privateer teams running cars such as the BMW E46 M3, Subaru Impreza WRX STi, Opel Astras and Volkswagen GTi which all race on the same circuit in separate classes.

2015 Nurburgring 24 – SP3T Class winning Subaru WRX STI NBR equipped with Brembo brakes. Photo Credit: Subaru Global

The Nurburgring circuit is very difficult, fast, unforgiving and over 15 miles in length to complete one lap. 2015 featured several mandatory “slower speed zones” for driver and spectator safety as the modern GT3 specification cars are just as fast, if not faster than previous years in which they can easily hit 300 km/h plus on the straightaways. The reduced speed sections meant that teams could potentially add more down force and focus on overall grip versus overall top speed. With more down force comes the ability for higher braking performance. The 24 hour race always features changing grip levels on the track, slow & fast blind corners, rain, black ice and very fast straightaways which end in long as well as heavy brake zones. With the addition of “slow zones”, sudden traffic build up was a major factor as well especially at night-time. Brakes must offer a high level of performance, control, be consistent and have low wear (fewer pad changes in an endurance race means less time lost in the pits).

Falken Motorsport GT3-R with Brembo Type 3 discs. Photo Credit : Falken Motorsport

5th place finishing Black Falcon SLS AMG GT3. Photo Credit : Black Falcon Racing Team

The Nurburgring circuit and the 24 hour race in Germany is regarded as one of the most demanding events in the world on teams, equipment, and drivers. It is the event where the latest and most cutting edge professional GT sports car technology is showcased.