With a powerful final sprint, Mario Farnbacher clinched a podium finish for himself and his team at the 24 Hours of the Nürburgring. Despite setbacks during the night, the team fought its way forward in the Ring Racing team’s Lexus RC F to second place in the SP8 class.
After a sound start, the team with the Farnbacher brothers Mario and Dominik and the Japanese drivers Hiroki Yoshimoto and Kota Sasaki swiftly worked its way up to third position. “We made a good start, although our competitors from Audi and Porsche were much faster. That’s why we focused on consistent lap times and to keep on going without problems, so that we could maintain our chances for a good result”, the Lexus driver explained.
Car problems began as darkness fell. Two tyre failures and a technical problem during the night phase caused the German-Japanese quartet to lose three laps to the class leaders and fall back to sixth position. However, the Franconian and his team mates kept their cool and brought themselves back into the podium fight with consistent lap times.
“That was an amazing weekend”, said a happy Farnbacher after crossing the finish line. “After the problems at night, we were lagging way behind, but the whole team did a fantastic job and we were able to push back to the front. When the race was stopped, we were in the same lap with the drivers in second and third position in our class. I gave my all in the final phase and was able to make second place. After that it was my job to stay out of trouble during heavy rain and thick fog and take the result back home. I must say I’m particularly happy about celebrating this podium finish together with my brother.”
This second place in the SP8 class is the second podium finish in a row for the young German from Ansbach. “The 24 Hours of the Nürburgring is one of the most challenging endurance races of all time, both for us drivers and also the cars. And we made it to the finish without a single scratch! Credit goes to my driver team mates and of course to the whole team for their absolutely flawless work throughout the entire weekend.”
