The organisers of the ADAC 1000km Race are looking forward to the coming weekend with great anticipation. On Saturday, 16 September 2023, an impressive field of 90 top-class vehicles will gather at the tradition-steeped Nürburgring race track in the Eifel for the endurance classic. This entry result fulfils the expectations and thrills the numerous fans, as Henning Meyersrenken, the organisation manager, points out.
The number 1 car will be driven by last year's winning team, consisting of Olaf Manthey, Jürgen and Peter Schumann as well as Joachim Kiesch, who will once again enter the legendary BMW 635 CSi in the race. As last year's runners-up, Dr Alexander Kolb and his sons Vincent and Carl-Friedrich will compete in the Porsche 964 to claim overall victory this year. Michael Hess, who narrowly missed out on the podium last year, dares to try again and has two experienced Nordschleife connoisseurs at his side in Matthias Wasel and Frank Stippler.
There are several other favourites among the other Porsche 911s in RSR specification.
The field of Porsche 911s in RSR specification is peppered with other promising candidates. Kersten Jodexnis, the winner of the 2021 edition, brings two competitive vehicles to the start. Together with Richard-Sven Jodexnis, Robin Chrzanowski and Peter Scharmach, he takes up the challenge in the Porsche 911 RS. Dr Eddy Althoff, who replaces Richard-Sven Jodexnis this year, competes in the RSR and stands for fast lap times on the Green Hell.
This year's overall winners of the ADAC 24 Classic, Björn and Georg Griesemann, who drive a Porsche 911RSR, will also be in the field.
The circle of favourites is completed by the trio Markus Dünkelmann, Christoph Breuer and Andy Gülden - who drives almost daily on the Nordschleife - in a Porsche 911RSR. Last year they started the 1000km race from second position.
In his first full season in the Youngtimer Trophy, André Kunkel won't miss the 1000km race either and has joined Claudia Hürtgen and Michael Funke, who fought for victories in the German Touring Car Challenge some 30 years ago.
The Morgan Plus 8 team of Christian Bock, Michael Funke and Oliver Louisoder will provide a splash of colour among the numerous Porsche cars. Last year, they were able to get a taste of leading air and finished the race in sixth place overall.
But it is not only the overall victory contenders that offer interesting stories. For Ralf Oehme, the race is also something very special. He competes in the Porsche 911 ST together with his three sons Niklas, Leonard and Moritz. An all-women team is presented in the BMW 2002 by Gaby von Oppenheim, who shares the car with Claudia Hürtgen and Celia Martin. Old acquaintances are also at the start in the displacement midgets class. Tess-Racing and the drivers Frank Schmelter-Sonneborn, Rainer Oesterbeck and Mike Fiedler have already claimed class victory at the last two 1000km races.
The Volvo Classic-Racing Team, which was founded in 2020 and is supported by Baumann Container Raumsysteme Bonn, uses a Volvo 850 T5 Estate with the experienced drivers Helmut Baumann and Klaus Nießen.