The Marc VDS Racing Team look to add to their experience bank at the Nürburgring Nordschleife as they head back to the infamous German circuit this weekend for VLN Round 3. Maxime Martin, Bas Leinders and Markus Palttala will take their BMW Z4 GT3 to gain as much experience as possible in the four-hour event.
This is the last chance for the Belgian trio to gain precious mileage at the unique circuit, as the third round of the VLN series is the final event before the team take on the full 24 hours. It will be the third time they have tested their mettle on the circuit, having previously attended the test day and the first round.
Despite limited running and objectives focused solely on testing, not results, the team ran as high as eighth in their only previous race. They will be looking to repeat the consistency that brought the car home safely in round one. Though the team come to Germany on the back of a victory at the opening round of the Blancpain Endurance Series in Monza, this is a challenge wholly removed from that experience.
They will also be hoping the infamous Eifel weather does not interrupt their running – last time out, a dense fog meant the race was curtailed nearly two hours early. With over 20km of track to learn, most of it narrow, fast and with little run off, the drivers cannot afford to miss a single minute on track.
The race gets under way at 12:00, and all four hours are streamed live on the official website of the series – www.vln.de.
Maxime Martin:
“I’m excited to be back at the Nürburgring and I’m looking forward to reacquainting myself with the characteristics of a circuit that is unique in GT3 racing. It really is a special place and I still have a lot to learn about the nuances of the track. Last time I was here was for the VLN test, where I only managed to complete a couple of laps. Hopefully, in a four-hour race, I should be able to add a few more to my tally. Our objective this weekend is simple, to complete the full four hours, to finish the race and to learn as much as possible.”
Markus Palttala:
“This weekend forms our final preparation before the 24 Hours. We’ve already learned a lot but it feels like we’ve done just a handful of laps around the Nordschleife and we still have a long list of things to go through. I hope we’ll run trouble-free and collect useful mileage. We are not trying to challenge the big guys yet, but we saw last time that we have the pace to finish in the top ten, so I’m hoping for a positive run ahead of the main race. Nordschleife is a challenging but seriously cool place and I’m really looking forward to another weekend there!”
Source : Marc VDS Racing Team