Nürburg, Germany — More than 130 competitors and 280,000 attendees gathered this weekend for one of GT racing’s most daunting 24-hour endurance races, the 53rd edition of the ADAC RAVENOL 24h Nürburgring. The No. 65 HRT Ford Performance Mustang GT3 overcame the challenges of the “Green Hell” to score an SP 9 pro-am class victory.
“This is a testament to having great people and partners who share the same determination to win,” said Mark Rushbrook, Ford Performance global director. “Nürburgring is a battle and to come out on top in our class is a significant accomplishment for everyone involved in this Mustang program. We’re proud of the team’s relentlessness and look forward to going to Spa next week for our third 24-hour race in three weeks.”
The No. 65 HRT Ford Performance Mustang GT3, driven by German racing talents David Schumacher, Dennis Fetzer, Salman Owega and Jusuf Owega, advanced to the Top Qualifying round and to a 25th-position start in the overall grid. The team battled the unforgiving nature of the 15.77-miles (25.378-kilometer) Nürburgring Nordschleife — also known as the “Green Hell” — through the night, giving Mustang consistent representation in the top five. The No. 65 finished the race fourth overall and as the only pro-am competitor in an all-pro top 10.
“This weekend was bittersweet because we lost two overnight, but winning the pro-am class and placing fourth overall is really more than we expected,” said Ulrich Fritz, Haupt Racing Team GmbH managing director. “It’s the first major Mustang GT3 win in Europe. It was a great team effort, and the drivers received no penalties. We’re very happy. Thank you to everyone involved.”
The HRT Ford Performance 24-hour Nürburgring program included two additional Mustang GT3s, both of which demonstrated grit but fell victim to early retirements. The No. 63, driven by Germans Dirk Müller, Patrick Assenheimer, Vincent Kolb and Hubert Haupt, competed in the SP 9 pro-am class. The all-pro No. 64, driven by Arjun Maini (IND), Dennis Olsen (NOR), Jusuf Owega (GER) and Frank Stippler (GER) completed the full lineup.
HRT Ford Performance, a first-year collaborative program with Haupt Racing Team, features 10 Mustang entries across Europe’s major GT racing series, which includes DTM and SRO-sanctioned GT World Challenge Europe. The team prepared for the 24-hour through its two-car effort in the ADAC Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie, where it posted a second-place pro-am performance in its second series appearance.
The month of June has featured three major 24-hour endurance races, which include Le Mans, Nürburgring and next week’s Spa-Francorchamps. The class victory at Nürburgring, however, extends the endurance racing success of Mustang GT3 beyond the three-week span, as the factory Ford Multimatic Motorsports team won the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship GTD PRO class in the Rolex 24 at Daytona earlier this year. So far, Mustang GT3 has captured two victories in its last three 24-hour endurance races.
“A pro-am class win for the Mustang GT3 at its first 24h Nürburgring is a huge accomplishment,” said Alex Allmandinger, Ford Performance global sports car manager. “It is a very challenging race, but the No. 65 was able to stay in the fight and keep competing.”
