- Overall victory for SCHERER SPORT PHX at the Nürburgring 24 Hours
- More trophies for the Audi R8 LMS in the southern hemisphere
- Two race wins and championship lead for Audi RS 3 LMS in Australia
For the second time this year, a private team from Audi Sport customer racing has won a 24-hour race. In addition to this success at the Nürburgring, there was also cause for celebration for the brand’s customers in other GT and touring car series.
Audi R8 LMS GT3
Convincing private teams: Following the success of the Austrian team Eastalent Racing at the Dubai 24 Hours in January, a private team with an Audi R8 LMS came out on top in an endurance classic for the second time this year. SCHERER SPORT PHX won the Nürburgring 24 Hour race that was characterized by difficult weather conditions. However, before race control brought out the red flag shortly before midnight due to dense fog, a real battle had unfolded between six brands in the top six places. In constantly changing weather conditions with rain and a drying track, team boss Axel Randolph and his team implemented a clever tire choice and a good strategy for their leading quartet of drivers.
In the end, Ricardo Feller and Dennis Marschall each celebrated their first success and Christopher Mies and Frank Stippler their third victory in this endurance race. It was Audi Sport customer racing’s seventh triumph in the Eifel after 2012, 2014, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2022. The Audi R8 LMS has now clinched 18 overall 24-hour victories worldwide. The Audi R8 LMS recorded its second win of the season in the Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS. Will Brown/Brad Schumacher from the Shaw & Partners Kelso Electrical team celebrated their first victory on The Bend race track. Their car, entered by the Melbourne Performance Centre, had a lead of more than 17 seconds in the second race. Valmont Racing, another Audi customer team, also recorded an Am class victory in the first race with Marcel Zalloua/Sergio Pires. An Audi customer also prevailed in South Africa.
Team Promigen won the third round of the South African Endurance Series. The driver duo Paul Hill/Bradley Liebenberg in the Audi R8 LMS had a lead of 19.6 seconds after five hours on the Aldo Scribante circuit. In the second round of the Campionato Italiano GT Sprint, Tresor Audi Sport Italia took second place. Andrea Cola/Leonardo Moncini finished 1.3 seconds behind the winners in the first race in Imola. It was their first podium result in an Audi. As a result, they are second in the standings at the halfway point of the sprint racing season.
Audi R8 LMS GT4
1-2 class victory in South Africa: The Audi R8 LMS GT4 was unbeatable in its class at the third round of the South African Endurance Series in Aldo Scribante. Gianni Giannoccaro/Ant Blunden/Ricky Giannocaro shared the winning Audi of the G&H Transport/Sajco team in the 5-hour race, which finished ahead of the Bucketlist Racing car driven by Ryan Naicker/Anthony Pretorius.
Audi RS 3 LMS (TCR)
Zac Soutar new championship leader: Team Tufflift Racing achieved its best performance of the season so far at the fourth round of TCR Australia at The Bend race track. Zac Soutar led the second sprint from the start in his Audi RS 3 LMS. The action behind him was so turbulent that the safety car had to be deployed. At the subsequent restart, Soutar kept his nerve and won by seven and a half seconds. In the third race, the Audi privateer managed to keep his hard-charging rival Josh Buchan from Hyundai at a distance of 0.5 seconds to celebrate his second win of the season. Zac Soutar now has a 21-point lead in the standings after four of seven events.
Coming up next week
07–09/06 Mid-Ohio (USA), round 3, Kumho FIA TCR World Tour
07–09/06 Zandvoort (NL), round 3, DTM
07–09/06 Zandvoort (NL), round 2, ADAC GT Masters
07–09/06 Mid-Ohio (USA), round 4, IMSA Michelin Pilot Challenge
07–09/06 Pergusa (I), round 2, TCR Italy
07–09/06 Shanghai (CHN), round 1, GT Sprint Challenge
07–09/06 Shanghai (CHN), round 2, TCR China Championship
07–09/06 Shanghai (CHN), round 2, TCR China Challenge
08/06 Oulton Park (UK), round 3, TCR UK
08–09/06 Navarra (E), round 2, Campeonato de España GT
08–09/06 Slovakiaring (SK), round 3, TCR Eastern Europe
