– The Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) is entering the home stretch of the 2026 season and has a very special highlight in store for motorsport fans: An action-packed double-header is scheduled for the legendary Nordschleife next weekend (September 12 and 13).
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As the early late summer settles over the Eifel forests, races eight and nine go down to the wire. With the 65th ADAC Reinoldus Endurance Race on Saturday and the 66th ADAC ACAS Cup on Sunday, two four-hour races await the drivers, which can significantly influence the title fight.
Loek Hartog starts in the Porsche from Dinamic GT
The most emotional story in the paddock is provided by the Dutchman Loek Hartog. Just a few days ago, the 23-year-old driver became an internationally celebrated hero at the China GT race in Shanghai. When his competitor Ollie Millroy’s car was engulfed in flames after a crash, Hartog did not hesitate for a second.
He stayed at the accident site, grabbed a fire extinguisher, and helped to rescue the injured Briton from the burning wreck. After this courageous rescue, the Dutchman is now focusing again on the sporting competition.
In the Eifel, Hartog will take the wheel for the Dinamic GT team this weekend and share the cockpit of the Porsche 911 GT3 R with the starting number 54 with the Dane Michael Christensen. The starting field for the championship sprint presents itself with 136 registered vehicles from 14 different brands as extremely strong and varied.
Prominence and concentrated power in the fight for the overall victory
Especially in the top categories, spectators can expect an extremely close level of performance: To the 22 purebred GT3 cars of the SP9 class, four high-caliber vehicles from the AT 1 class for alternative fuels are added. Since these operate technically and in lap times at the same level, the number of contenders for the overall victory rises to 26 vehicles.
The premier class impresses with an enormous variety of brands – seven manufacturers (Porsche, Audi, BMW, Mercedes-AMG, Aston Martin, Ford, and Lamborghini) are fighting for the overall victory in the Eifel. Accordingly, the field is highly competitive: In addition to Schubert Motorsport (BMW M4 GT3 EVO) or the Haupt Racing Team with the Ford Mustang GT3, the KCMG team attacks in the Mercedes-AMG GT3 with Le Mans winner Kamui Kobayashi.
Top teams such as Falken Motorsports and Dinamic GT on Porsche, Walkenhorst and PROsport with Aston Martin, as well as Renazzo Motorsport, which fields a Lamborghini, also join. Adding extra spice is Max Kruse Racing: The team around the former national football player not only brings a VW Golf GTI for the player himself but also fields three Audi R8 LMS GT3 cars in the AT 1 class.
Double points haul: The title fight intensifies
With the two back-to-back races, a lot is at stake for the title contenders this weekend – especially since all races count towards the standings this season without any dropped results, and every point counts in the title fight. In the overall standings, the trio Edoardo Bugane, Yannick Fübrich, and Sven Markert lead the table with 79 points.
The three drivers start for the Adrenalin Motorsport team in the BMW M240i Racing Cup and have so far presented a flawless record in their class: They have won all previous season races.
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Their closest pursuers are Alexander Fielenbach and Oskar Sandberg in second place with 64 points, who compete in the Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 CS for Smyrlis Racing. The duo had to endure a painful retirement this year and is therefore behind but is waiting for their chance.
Close behind follows the PROsport racing trio Anton Abee, Yannik Himmels, and Jörg Viebahn (Mercedes-AMG GT4) with 56 points in third place.
In the prestigious NLS Speed Trophy, Schubert Motorsport dictates the pace and leads clearly with a commanding 121 points in the BMW M4 GT3 Evo ahead of the Black Falcon team (Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo), which has 75 points.
The Mercedes-AMG GT3 from Winward currently holds third place with 60 points. The junior talents in the Junior Trophy are also fighting hard: Raphael Rennhofer (Black Falcon, Porsche 911 GT3 Cup) has slightly pulled ahead with 55 points from Tim Lukas Müller, who has 45 points but ended his season early.
Behind them, a chasing field forms with 40 points each around Ryan Harrison, Leon Wassertheurer, and Santiago Baztarrica. However, since Harrison and Wassertheurer share the cockpit of the Cup Porsche directly with leader Rennhofer, they cannot make up points on him in a direct duel.
The best cards for a comeback therefore lie with Santiago Baztarrica (Adrenalin Motorsport, BMW M2 Racing): As the only active pursuer behind the wheel, the Argentinian can independently make up ground in the title fight at the double-header.
Tickets cost 25 euros per day (children up to and including 14 years are free) and are available at VLN.de/tickets as well as at the box office. The ticket includes unrestricted access to the open grandstands on the Grand Prix circuit, the popular spectator areas Brünnchen and Pflanzgarten, as well as the paddock, pit lane, and starting grid.
The schedule offers packed Nordschleife action on both days. Qualifying takes place on Saturday and Sunday mornings from 08:30 to 10:00. Afterwards, fans have a great opportunity to experience the fascinating cars and their drivers up close during the pit walk from 10:20 in the pit lane and the subsequent grid walk from 11:10 at the starting grid.
The two four-hour races will start punctually at 12:00 on both days. Those who cannot follow the spectacle on site can tune in to the official livestream on VLN.de from 08:15 or follow the dramatic events via “Radio Nürburgring” on rpr1.de as well as in the RPR1 app.
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