Nürburgring GT World Challenge Europe: Free Practice and Pre-Qualifying Report
Nürburgring, Germany — Tim Heinemann of Herberth Motorsport topped the timesheets in Free Practice for the GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, setting a swift lap of 1:55.249 in the #92 Porsche 911 GT3 R (992). This performance places the German squad in a strong position as they approach the penultimate round of the championship.
Jens Klingmann followed closely, clocking a 1:55.297 in the Gold Cup-entered #777 AlManar Racing by WRT BMW M4 GT3 Evo. Maxime Martin secured third overall and was the quickest Pro class driver with a time of 1:55.341 in the #9 Boutsen VDS Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo, showcasing resilience as conditions improved post-rain.
HRT Ford Performance showed competitive form, placing both of their Mustang GT3s in the top five. David Schumacher led the Silver Cup with a time of 1:55.417, narrowly ahead of teammate Arjun Maini. Daniel Harper claimed the top spot in the Bronze Cup in sixth place.
Significantly, the championship-leading #48 Mercedes-AMG Team MANN-FILTER AMG GT3 Evo ended the session in 15th place, just one position ahead of their closest competitors, the #32 Team WRT BMW, who experienced chassis changes ahead of the race.
The session was briefly interrupted due to a Full Course Yellow, triggered by an incident involving Sai Sanjay’s #112 CSA Racing McLaren GT3 Evo.
Pre-Qualifying Insights
In the subsequent Pre-Qualifying session, qualifying was cut short to just 23 minutes due to track damage. Despite the reduced time, Ferrari’s Antonio Fuoco set the fastest lap of the weekend with a time of 1:54.959 in the #50 AF Corse – Francorchamps Motors Ferrari 296 GT3.
Augusto Farfus and Lucas Auer followed in second and third, respectively, driving the #98 ROWE Racing BMW M4 GT3 Evo and the #48 Mercedes-AMG Team MANN-FILTER AMG GT3 Evo. Al Faisal Al Zubair led the Gold Cup in fourth place aboard the #777 AlManar Racing by WRT BMW.
Notably, 21 cars were penalized after failing to meet the eight-lap requirement due to the session’s abrupt end, impacting the positions dramatically.
Qualifying is set for 09:00 CEST, followed by the three-hour race at 15:00 CEST.
Results Summary
- Free Practice:
- Tim Heinemann (#92 Porsche) – 1:55.249
- Jens Klingmann (#777 BMW) – 1:55.297
- Maxime Martin (#9 Mercedes) – 1:55.341
- Pre-Qualifying:
- Antonio Fuoco (#50 Ferrari) – 1:54.959
- Augusto Farfus (#98 BMW) – 1:55.108
- Lucas Auer (#48 Mercedes) – 1:55.348
Preparations continue as teams gear up for a critical weekend at the Nürburgring.
