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Second place in the standings for Tresor Audi Sport Italia after the endurance season opener Third victory in a row for PB Racing by JMH in British endurance racing Class title for Wolfbrook on New Zealand’s North Island While Tresor Audi Sport Italia competed for victory with the Audi R8 LMS at the start of the Italian endurance racing season, PB Racing by JMH recorded its third win of the season in Great Britain and Team Wolfbrook celebrated a class title in New Zealand. Audi R8 LMS GT3 Strong start in Italy: Tresor Audi Sport Italia got the season off to a good start in the Campionato Italiano Gran Turismo Endurance at Vallelunga. The driver trio of Alex Aka/Pietro Delli Guanti/Rocco Mazzola started the three-hour race from third place. Aka made up one place in the Audi R8 LMS on his debut on the race track just outside Rome and was then able to put pressure on the leading former Formula 1 driver Giancarlo Fisichella in a Ferrari. His team-mates Mazzola and Delli Guanti continued the battle for the lead. However, after the number 12 Audi incurred a five-second penalty, the trio of drivers ultimately had to concede defeat by a narrow margin of 5.8 seconds. The second Audi with Glenn van Berlo/Andrea Cola/Leonardo Moncini in fourth place was a mere four tenths of a second off the podium after a strong fightback from 18th on the grid. In the British Endurance Championship, the Audi customer team PB Racing by JMH celebrated a victory at Silverstone from pole position. In changeable weather, Peter Erceg/Marcus Clutton confidently drove the Audi R8 LMS to their third win of the season in the two-hour race with a three-lap lead. In the North Island Endurance Series in New Zealand, Team International Motorsport was narrowly beaten this time after three titles in the past. Luke Manson/James Penrose in the Audi R8 LMS were tied on points with a trio of McLaren drivers for first place in the standings after finishing fourth in the finale at Hampton Downs.

This is where Audi Sport GmbH is based and where the Audi R8 high-performance sports car and the all-electric Audi e-tron GT are built. In 2005, the opening of Audi Forum Neckarsulm. The exhibition and visitor center offers 10,000 square meters of experiential tours of Audi’s modern automobile production and a colorful program of cultural events. An Audi exclusive studio also went into operation for the first time with its establishment, where Audi customers can obtain personal and particularly comprehensive advice on refining and individualizing their model. On October 14, 2023, an event celebrating the 40th anniversary of Audi Sport GmbH will be held for customers and fans in and around Audi Forum Neckarsulm. Manufacturing meets smart factory: The Böllinger Höfe production facility opened in 2014, part of the Neckarsulm plant, has a production area of around 40,000 square meters. With the Audi R8 high-performance sports car and the fully electric e-tron GT and RS e-tron GT models, completely different vehicle concepts are created in one plant. To integrate the electrically powered models into the production process, assembly was expanded by 20 to 36 work cycles. New competencies in the areas of electrification, automation, and digitalization were also added. The strengths and experience of the manufacturing plant were retained. The result was a unique interplay of new technology and craftsmanship for the smart factory and manufactory operation.

At the halfway point of the 2023 Nürburgring 24 Hours, car number 39 remains the best Audi in the field. Christopher Haase, who had taken over the Audi Sport Team Land R8 LMS from Christopher Mies, was in tenth place after 79 laps. The remaining five Audi R8 LMS cars were spread across positions 13 to 18. Frédéric Vervisch was 13th in the #1 car for Audi Sport Team Scherer PHX, followed by Frank Stippler (#5) from Team Scherer Sport PHX and Max Hofer (#22) from Audi Sport Team Car Collection. Mike Rockenfeller (#40) from Audi Sport Team Scherer PHX in 17th position and Michele Beretta (#16) from Scherer Sport PHX one place behind complete the results. This means that all six R8 LMS cars that started are still in the race.

After two thirds of the race at the 2023 Nürburgring 24 Hours, Audi Sport Team Land continues to be the best team of the four rings. Audi Sport driver Patric Niederhauser was seventh in the R8 LMS (#39) on the same lap as the leader. The second-best Audi in the field is piloted by four juniors from Audi Sport customer racing. Dennis Marschall (#22) in the R8 LMS of Audi Sport Team Car Collection with his teammates moved up to tenth place. Markus Winkelhock for Team Scherer Sport PHX (#16) followed behind. The three DTM Champions Mike Rockenfeller, Timo Scheider and Martin Tomczyk were in 12th position after 16 hours of racing. Two other R8 LMS cars are no longer racing. Shortly after the halfway point, two accidents occurred within seconds of each other. Frédéric Vervisch in the number 1 Audi Sport Team Scherer PHX and Frank Stippler in the number 5 Scherer Sport PHX had no chance when they hit oil on the track. Both race cars slid into the barrier in turn 3 on the Grand Prix circuit on lap 81. They retired due to the accident damage.

Christopher Haase/Christopher Mies/Patric Niederhauser best-placed Audi drivers All three teams with the Audi R8 LMS at the finish after 24 hours Many attractions around the 40th anniversary of Audi Sport GmbH Audi Sport customer racing achieved sixth place in the 2023 Nürburgring 24 Hours. Audi Sport Team Land achieved this result after a flawless drive by the three Audi Sport drivers Christopher Haase/Christopher Mies/Patric Niederhauser in the number 39 Audi R8 LMS. The brand also thrilled the 235,000 fans off the track throughout the weekend with many activities surrounding the birthday of its subsidiary Audi Sport GmbH. “The 24-hour race at the Nürburgring was the perfect backdrop to kick off the birthday celebration of our performance brand Audi Sport GmbH,” says Head of Audi Motorsport Rolf Michl. “Our teams also presented the brand with great commitment.” Five different manufacturers finished in the top six positions in the end. “We saw a fast and tough race with a great diversity of brands in the front field,” says Chris Reinke, Head of Audi Sport customer racing. “Wolfgang and Christian Land’s squad was flawless for 24 hours. We would have liked to defend our title. Thanks to everyone for their professional efforts and congratulations to Ferrari on their first victory.” Audi Sport Team Land – winner of the 2017 edition – had started the race from 16th place. The two previous winners Christopher Haase and Christopher Mies, together with driver colleague Patric Niederhauser, kept out of all critical situations in a turbulent race marked by several accidents. They came through a field of 131 race cars without any damage or penalties and finished sixth. The competition also started promisingly for last year’s winner Frédéric Vervisch. The Audi Sport driver was on the grid with his teammates Mattia Drudi, Ricardo Feller and Dennis Lind for Audi Sport Team Scherer PHX. In the course of the first race hours, the number 1 Audi R8 LMS was in the lead at times.

Twelve familiar and two new faces in the Audi Sport customer racing driver squad Audi Sport signs Simon Gachet and Max Hofer Audi Sport customer racing is relying on a mix of experience and youth for its 2023 driver squad. In addition to established drivers, the brand also includes two former customer drivers in the driver squad, Simon Gachet and Max Hofer. Audi Sport is relying on twelve familiar and two new faces for its driver line-up this year. The very different careers and experiences of the individual race drivers enable them to support the brand in the best possible way through their individual strengths in the diverse customer programs and strategic assignments. The 24-year-old Italian Mattia Drudi’s greatest success to date was winning the Campionato Italiano Gran Turismo Endurance in 2021. The talented youngster has also showed good performances in strategic endurance races. Last year, 22-year-old Luca Engstler, who previously won TCR touring car titles, managed to clinch a win both in the Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie and the South African Endurance Series at the first attempt in his debut season in the Audi R8 LMS. The Swiss driver of the same age, Ricardo Feller, winner of the 2021 ADAC GT Masters in an Audi, has also been part of the Audi Sport customer racing driver squad since last year. He has made a name for himself as a particularly fast and reliable driver. Christopher Haase from Germany is 35 years old and has been a permanent fixture for Audi for more than ten years. In addition to two championship titles, the Bavarian has already clinched four 24-hour overall victories for Audi: he was successful twice at the Nürburgring and once each at Spa and Dubai. His 46-year-old compatriot Pierre Kaffer has already driven sports prototypes, DTM race cars and GT3 models from Audi in his career.

Nico Müller joined Audi’s DTM driver squad in 2014 as a 22-year-old through a junior scouting program. In 2016, he celebrated the first of a total of eleven victories in the popular touring car racing series at the Norisring. In 2019 and 2020, he secured the runner-up championship in Audi Sport Team Abt Sportsline. In 2020, he raced on a par with three-time DTM Champion René Rast. In the end, he only narrowly missed out on the title. “I’ll never forget my first DTM race with Audi,” says Müller. “As a kid, I sat in the stands at the DTM finale at Hockenheim and admired the Audi drivers like Mattias Ekström. Standing on the grid together with them a few years later was a goosebump moment.” In addition to the DTM, Nico Müller was also repeatedly in action for Audi Sport customer racing in the Audi R8 LMS GT3 – in 2022 in the DTM and together with motorcycle legend Valentino Rossi in the GT World Challenge. “A very special moment in my career was winning the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring in 2015 – and not just because I had to have a bald head cut afterwards because of a bet,” says Müller. As a test and development driver, Nico Müller was also an important part of Audi’s Formula E project. In 2023, the Swiss will compete for Team ABT Sportsline in the electric racing series. “We will miss Nico not only as an outstanding race driver, but also as a likeable, sincere person and brand ambassador,” says Rolf Michl. “We wish him nothing but the best for his new stage in his career.” Video: Audi says “Thank you very much and all the best, Nico Müller”

Juni 17.30–18.05 Uhr Rennen 1 Samstag, 22. Juni 11.00–11.35 Uhr Rennen 2 12.20–13.05 Uhr Rennen 3 Zeitplan Teams und Fahrer Comtoyou Team Audi SportComtoyou Team Audi Sport Comtoyou Team Audi Sport Leopard Racing Team Audi Sport Jean-Karl Vernay (F) WTCR – FIA-TOURENWAGEN-WELTCUP NÜRBURGRING, 20.–22. JUNI 2019 Spotter Guide #10 #52 #69 #22 Aktuelle Informationen www.audi-mediacenter.com Samstag, 22. Juni 15.30 Uhr Start Sonntag, 23. Juni 15.30 Uhr Ziel Zeitplan Teams und Fahrer Audi R8 LMS 24 STUNDEN NÜRBURGRING, 20.–23. JUNI 2019 Spotter Guide #4 #14 #148#15 #29 #5 Phoenix RacingJeroen Bleekemolen (NL)Vincent Kolb (D) Kim-Luis Schramm (D) Frank Stippler (D) Audi Sport Team Land Christopher Haase (D) Kelvin van der Linde (ZA) Christopher Mies (D) René Rast (D) Audi Sport Team Phoenix Pierre Kaff er (D) Frank Stippler (D) Dries Vanthoor (B) Frédéric Vervisch (B) Car Collection Motorsport Stefan Aust (D) Oliver Bender (D) Christian Bollrath (D) Jean-Louis Hertenstein (CH) Audi Sport Team Car Collection Christopher Haase (D) Marcel Fässler (CH) René Rast (D) Markus Winkelhock (D) Giti Tire Motorsport by RaceIng Rahel Frey (CH) Bernhard Henzel (D) Pavel Lefterov (BG) Frank Schmickler (D)