The 2013 Nurburgring 24-Hour is under red flag conditions. The race director has shut things down for the minute, as heavy rain batters the circuit and fog begins to gather.
I abandoned the track just after the flag was waved and headed for the hills. Literally as it turned out, with major sat nav detours up and down the hairiest hairpins on the back roads around the circuit, to avoid the swathes of soggy people retreating to caravans and tents.
The drive back to the hotel over 20 miles away was a voyage of discovery: rain was biblical and the road almost invisible under rivers of rainwater flooding off the hills. The race could not have continued in such poor conditions, so am glad they called it off for a while.
Now the drivers must wait. It’s a tricky situation, as who knows how long to nap when things are like this. We’ll see what it’s like in the morning.
Currently, it’s Aston P1, Manthey Porsche P2 and P3 and the terrific Falken Porsche team holding a solid eleventh place. Here’s the list:
Manthey Porsches lie second and third at the 2013 Nurburgring 24-Hour. The positions were earned on merit: it’s a very encouraging situation for the team that mirrors some of its best results in last year’s WEC (below). The reason is rain.
Time here now is 22:00 and we’ve been racing for five hours. It’s been an epic opening quarter, with super-close racing up front for the lead and tactical play further back from the canny local Porschers.
Weather forecasts were expecting a month of Nurburg rain to fall in a day over Sunday and Monday. As the race started, unbrellas went up in the grandstands, but the heaviest downpours never materialised. Cars raced on in the dry, and Manthey Porsche 50 held third place for a few laps, before slipping back to fourth behind the number 1 Audi. Holzer had the first stint and he was really flying: a top job as always by Marco. Great pic below by Chris Gurton.
Up front, a fierce battle raged between Audi R8 number 4 of Ammermuller et al, and the awesome 007 Aston of Turner and co. The British push came in the second stint, when the Aston nabbed a tow from the Audi down the Dottinger Hohe, and held the inside line for all it was worth though the first chicane: a really ballsy move that pleased all in the Aston garage.
I’m working on the Aston story for TopGear.com this weekend, and was watching the main control screens when the move came off. We all had a good cheer in response. Standing alongside me was none other than Aston Martin’s Chairman, Dr. Ulrich Bez, who grinned as wide as the front of the Vantage and said “I think we can finish the race right now!” A sweet moment shared.
As I write, the 007 Aston leads the 81 Manthey of Lieb/Dumas, which lies just a few tenths up from Holzer and Tandy. Stuttgart is conspicuous by its absence from N24 coverage, so perhaps it will get something out there now two of its cars are in the top three.
I’m here for another while yet before heading back to the car for some shut eye, so will keep you informed of anything new.
