At the 48th ADAC TOTAL 24h-Race 2020, held this weekend at the Nürburgring, Falken demonstrated the reliability of its performance tyres, finishing in 10th and 11th place overall in arguably the toughest endurance race.
As so often, the famous “Eifel weather” provided an additional challenge for everyone with constantly changing conditions over the entire race distance.
Despite the conditions causing many cars to fall off the track, Falken brought both Porsche 911 GT3 R home: 10th place for the #44 with Klaus Bachler, Sven Müller, Peter Dumbreck and Martin Ragginger at the wheel and11th place for the #33 with the double starters Klaus Bachler and Sven Müller alongside Christian Engelhart and Dirk Werner.
Qualifying brought its own challenges when Peter Dumbreck had an accident at “Fuchsröhre” in the night qualifying on Thursday evening. An ‘all-nighter’ from the Falken team got the #44 back in pristine condition with car qualifying 27th only for a penalty leading it to start 47th. Things went better for the #33, the quartet securing 21st on the grid.
The race started on Saturday at 3:30 p.m. in the most difficult weather conditions. Constant rain, which was to become heavier as the race progressed, as well as recurring fog, meant the “Green Hell” lived up to its name. The Falken pair ran seamlessly in the initial stages with the #44 up to 17th after a great first stint.
Around 10:30 p.m. the race director decided to stop the event due to increasing rainfall. After a nine and a half hour break the race finally resumed at 8:00 a.m. on Sunday morning and Falken could prove itself again with its cars ultimately crossing the line without incident.
Dirk Werner (#33): “This 24h race was a big challenge for all the participants. Rain, accidents, oil on track, fog, you never knew what to expect at the next corner. Just to finish is an achievement.”
Peter Dumbreck: “Over the entire distance it was a fine line between crashing & finishing. It was incredibly difficult to keep the car on the road, the track was extremely slippery. In the end it was all about getting to the finish. I am very satisfied with another Top 10 result.”
