– Bad news for all fans of IronForce Racing: The team around Jan-Erik Slooten and the two-time DTM champion Timo Scheider will not be starting at this year’s 24h race at the Nürburgring (May 14 to 17).
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IronForce wanted to start with a Porsche 911 GT3 RS MR, but after several months of intensive work and great commitment to realize the use of the modified road sports car at the endurance classic, the decision was made against a start after thorough examination and exhausting all options.
“After much back and forth, we have decided that we will not start at the 24-hour race. We simply still have some issues where we do not know for sure if we will be ready in time for the race,” Slooten explains the decision.
Technical challenges slow down IronForce project
Since the beginning of the year, the team has been working intensively to convert the road sports car according to the technical requirements of the regulations. However, the team encountered significant challenges especially in the areas of electronics and software.
“In the phase where components in the car had to be adapted to the regulations, we realized that in the remaining time until the 24-hour race, we cannot say with a clear conscience: ‘We will definitely be at the start,'” Scheider explains.
“That was the moment for us when we decided to make a cut here,” adds the two-time DTM champion. “It is difficult to find the right words. But because it was so difficult, it was also so special for us.”
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Slooten adds: “It is such an awesome project, and that is why it is of course more than sad that we cannot compete at the 24-hour race. I also feel really sorry for our partners and fans because I know that everyone was really looking forward to the race.”
Participation in the NLS remains the goal
Nevertheless, the cancellation of participation in the 24h race does not mean the definitive end of the project: IronForce Racing still plans to start the Porsche 911 GT3 RS MR as soon as possible at a race of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS).
For this purpose, the conversion of the Porsche is to be completed in the next few weeks and the car will then be extensively tested. “Before we promise something we cannot keep, we prefer to pull the emergency brake now and then do it right,” says Scheider.
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“We know exactly what a 24-hour race means, and that is exactly why we also know when the right time is to compete,” adds Slooten. IronForce plans an event in the workshop at the Nürburgring where the Porsche will also be shown.
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