BMW Sports Trophy Team Marc VDS take three BMW Z4 GT3 to the Nürburgring this weekend to get crucial mileage ahead of the 24 Hours of Nürburgring. The three cars will see eight drivers take part. Dominik Schwager and Andrea Piccini join Yelmer Buurman in #25, regular team drivers Maxime Martin, Markus Palttala and Henri Moser in #26 and a third for Richard Göransson and Bas Leinders – #27.
With less than a month before the big race, the team as yet have had no chance to run at the Nordschleife in 2013 after bad weather badly disrupted the circuit’s schedule at the start of the season. The decision was therefore taken to run a third car, which the team had as a spare in the garage, in this weekend’s VLN race – the second to take place this season.
If the decision had not been taken, it would have been unlikely that either Göransson or Leinders would have had a chance to drive. The aim for the team is testing, not triumph – data will be more important for what is one of the world’s toughest races.
The team have forged a partnership with BMW Motorsport for this season’s Nordschleife racing, looking towards success at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring. The squad will work closely with the manufacturer’s team to hone their knowledge of the car and its performance to the finest details.
The track itself is a staggering challenge. There are 20km of fast, narrow and often blind turns, with no run off, which makes for a unique challenge. With over 200 cars on the track, ranging from the GT3 spec SP9 class that Marc VDS compete in down to tiny hatchbacks, the challenge is increased by traffic. An SP9 car will pass literally dozens of slower cars every single lap, whilst racing the other 31 cars in the same class. It is all part of the fun.
The four hour event takes place on Saturday 27 April and gets underway at midday local time.
Andrea Piccini, #25 BMW Z4 GT3
“Actually it’s my first race this year, so of course I’m very excited. I’m looking forward to working with Marc VDS. I tested with them earlier this season and I saw that the team are prepared, and that the car is competitive. My team mates are very fast. I met Yelmer already and I know Dominik but have never raced with him. We can do well even if it is not a race to win, but to test. These miles will be crucial – I’ve done two 24 hours and a lot of VLN but still I learn whenever I’m on this track. One thing I don’t have is much wet weather experience here – but looking at the forecast it looks like I’ll get some this weekend!”
Markus Palttala, #26 BMW Z4 GT3
“All the preparation on the Nordschleife is important – every mile is useful. Having the cancellations has compressed the schedule, and this weekend is the only one where we can prepare for the 24 hours; realistically this is more a test than a race for us. We had a great rookie year, and the only target we can have is for the podium in the 24. Having said that, with teams around us having years of experience, we are still effectively a rookie team, but we have a very strong package from driver line-up to engineers and mechanics. Really, the BMW link doesn’t make a huge difference to my approach – this is already a very professional team. But to have a link up with BMW is fantastic, and it’s honour to represent them in their home country.”
Bas Leinders, Team Principal
“After all the cancellations, we need as much running as possible prior to the 24 Hours of Nürburgring – every mile is precious. The aim is not to win this race, but to gather data and learn as much as possible. Next week we have a two day test in France for further testing, because we need to not just learn the track and car but the new drivers. We’re very happy to collaborate with BMW Motorsport for this 24 Hour of Nürburgring project. It’s important for us as a private team to work with a constructor directly. Directly and indirectly, it will serve an opportunity to improve the performance of the Marc VDS Racing Team even further.”
Source : Marc VDS Racing Team