"Ich war Couch-Racer": Ralf Aron about his five-month break

– “I was a couch athlete!” – A huge weight was lifted from Ralf Aron’s shoulders at the 6h ADAC Ruhr-Pokal race. Not only did he complete three stints on the Nürburgring Nordschleife without pain. The victory together with Luca Stolz was the icing on the comeback cake. “Honestly, I am at a loss for words,” he says in an interview with Motorsport-Total.com after the race.

Title image for the news: Ralf Aron and Luca Stolz won the Ruhr-Pokal race of the NLS

The race was a demonstration of power in the winning car of the 24-hour race, the Mercedes-AMG #80 from Winward Racing. Aron’s big test came after about an hour, when Stolz handed over the AMG to Aron in the lead after the starting stint.

The double stint then went without problems, as Aron explains: “It was a very long race including a double stint. But I had no problems at all. That makes me very happy.” Another single stint at the end of the race was also no problem. Accordingly, he was also voted driver of the day.

Highlights NLS7 2026: 6h ADAC Ruhr-Pokal Race

“I had to be a bit tactical. Some other teams had problems with the tires, so we had to make sure we didn’t have any difficulties in that regard. But otherwise, it was a clean race. That makes the comeback perfect and I am overjoyed. I hadn’t even dared to dream of that beforehand.”

For Aron, this ended a five-and-a-half-month break, which began with the logistical challenge of bringing the seriously injured driver from his horror crash at the Bathurst 12 Hour in Australia back to Estonia. His parents, who traveled especially to Australia, helped him with this.

“We were able to fly business class, where you can lie down. I was not allowed to sit upright. It went surprisingly well and I was very motivated to make it home,” recalls the 28-year-old.

There began a two-month period of suffering during which he was not allowed to do anything. “At that time, I was a couch athlete,” he laughs. How painful was it to watch his colleagues race while he was condemned to do nothing? “I have completely forgotten that by now,” he waves off with a grin.

NLS7 2026: 6h ADAC Ruhr-Pokal Race

"Ich war Couch-Racer": Ralf Aron about his five-month break

From the third month, the preparation started again. The 6-hour NLS race was not the goal from the beginning, as he reveals: “At some point I had other goals, but I always kept it a bit open. To see how the recovery goes and so on. It’s hard to say exactly.”

It was not enough for the 24-hour races, but with the season highlight of the NLS, Aron chose the best possible race for him that matched his progress, after all, the Nordschleife is his favorite track.

With the victory, he proved that he is now fit for the season again. What happens next? “The goal is to fully rejoin the season. The exact program for the rest of the year is not yet fixed. But we’ll see.”