Manthey-Porsche #911 wins the "Eifel Sprint" 06.06.2021: Two records in one fell swoop: record winner Manthey-Racing has won the shortest ADAC TOTAL 24h race in history. A total of 14.5 hours of fog interruption had turned the 49th edition of the legendary "Eifel Marathon" into an "Eifel Sprint". In the e

Two records in one fell swoop: record winner Manthey-Racing has won the shortest ADAC TOTAL 24h race in history. A total of 14.5 hours of fog interruption had turned the 49th edition of the legendary "Eifel Marathon" into an "Eifel Sprint".




In the end, Frenchman Kevin Estre in the Manthey Porsche #911 took the seventh victory overall for the team from Meuspath after a furious start phase and a flawless final stint - the perfect present for the 25th anniversary of the racing team.


Italian Matteo Cairoli and Dane Michael Christensen cheered their team-mate as Estre rolled across the finish line in the "Grello" with an 8.8-second lead over the #98 Rowe BMW with final driver Sheldon van der Linde, Martin Tomczyk, Marco Wittmann and Connor de Phillippi.



It was the second closest finish in the history of the race. Third place was secured by the GetSpeed Mercedes-AMG #7, meaning that three different brands finished on the podium.



"Even though it was a shame for the spectators here at the track and at home in front of the TV: The cancellation of the race tonight was without alternative in terms of safety," said Manthey Managing Director Nicki Raeder. "



This turned the 24-hour classic into two extremely exciting sprint races over the shortest distance in the history of this event. Nevertheless, we had to attack to the maximum and give everything from the first to the last lap under the most difficult conditions. But we are maximally happy about this success, which we particularly enjoy celebrating in time for Manthey's 25th anniversary."



For each of his three drivers, it is their first victory in the ADAC TOTAL 24h Race. "It's incredible, I'm at a loss for words. It was such a tough race, very intense. I gave it everything, it was very hard to get through without making any mistakes. I'm crazy proud of this team," said Estre.



Rowe Racing on the podium again


"The race was a bit short, but very fierce and exciting," said team boss Hans-Peter Naundorf, whose squad finished on the podium again with the #98 Rowe BMW after winning last year. "Second place means a lot to me. Of course it's a shame when you miss out on victory by such a narrow margin. But standing on the podium at the 24h race is always something special.



It's also an accolade for the team. Now it's time to celebrate," said Martin Tomczyk. For the Rowe-BMW #1, which had also been in the leading group for a long time, the mission to defend the title came to an early end after a technical defect.



Anniversary edition in May 2022


With a distance of only 59 laps and 1,497.302 kilometres, the 49th edition of the ADAC TOTAL 24h Race was the shortest ever. Thus, the mark of 76 laps from 1992 was clearly undercut. In total, the wheels rolled for only 9.5 hours of the actual 24 hours.



All participants, organisers and fans are now hoping that the 50th anniversary of the ADAC TOTAL 24h Race from 26 to 29 May 2022 will again go the full distance and take place in front of full grandstands.



Eifel weather caused interruption


At 9:29 p.m. on Saturday evening, it had become quiet in the Eifel when race director Walter Hornung interrupted the race with the red flag due to increasingly thick fog. "We would have liked to offer the teams and the spectators at the track and at home the typical 24h feeling at night, but in these weather conditions that was no longer possible. Safety is absolutely paramount there," said Hornung.


"It was not easy - due to the humidity, the fog and also some oil on the track. The red flag was the right decision, it would not have been possible to still drive," agreed Michael Christensen.



After a total 14.5-hour fog break, the race was reopened at 12:00 after an introductory lap. Philipp Eng in the Rowe-BMW #1 maintained the lead ahead of Maro Engel in the HRT-Mercedes #4.



Both of them pulled away from the Manthey-Porsche #911 with Kevin Estre, who had moved up from fifth to third place, during the first three laps. Shortly before the end of lap 38, Mercedes driver Engel flew heavily into the crash barriers at the Hohenrain chicane, but remained uninjured.



Behind the leading Rowe-BMW #1 and the Manthey Porsche #911, Martin Tomczyk in the second Rowe-BMW #98 started the last three hours of racing in third place.





Part one of the race already offered pure excitement


Directly after the start of the race on Saturday afternoon, the first hour was marked by spectacular chases and chaotic weather conditions.


Kevin Estre had taken the lead in the "Grello" with several spirited overtaking manoeuvres from grid position eleven, Martin Tomczyk had brought the Rowe-BMW #98 forward from grid position 25 to fourth.



In the meantime, heavy rainfall caused numerous accidents on the track and forced most teams to change to rain tyres early on. After that, the action on the track calmed down a bit until the fog brought all the wheels to a standstill.




- ProMotion - photos Gruppe C