The circuit has earned its nickname of “The Green Hell”, which it was first given by three-time Formula One world champion Jackie Stewart. The constant undulations of the track through the hilly landscape of the Eifel Mountains demands the highest level of driving ability. Then there are the weather conditions, which even in spring are unpredictable to say the least and make the teams’ lives even more difficult. It is by no means unheard of for the elements to cause the race to be suspended – as was the case on Saturday evening, when heavy rainfall and thick fog resulted in a stoppage lasting a full nine and a half hours. As such, the race was one of the shortest in the history of the classic at the Nürburgring.

Three MINIs successfully complete race
The good news: the miserable conditions in the Green Hell were unable to stop the majority of the teams that lined up with a MINI. Of the five MINIs that started the race on Saturday afternoon, three crossed the finish line at the end of the 24 hours. The performance of the Partl Motorsport team, which was the best-placed MINI in 2012, once again stood out. In a field of almost 180 cars, the Partl MINI started from 144th and, 73 laps later, came home in fourth place in its class and 68th overall. “We have done it,” said a delighted Team Principal Rainer Partl. “We made it to the end, and as the best-placed MINI. We are very proud of our team and our drivers.”

Just nine places back was the endurance MINI run by the Besaplast Racing Team, which had started the race from 120th. 77th overall also meant fifth place in the fiercely-competitive SP2T class, which consisted of nine cars. The NEXEN TIRE Motorsport Team’s MINI came home in 98th place to complete the trio of MINIs. Unfortunately there was to be no happy ending for the Schirra Motoring team at the Nürburgring-Nordschleife this year. Having started the race from promising positions with its two MINIs, neither car was able to complete the race.

That disappointment is all part of the challenge of the Green Hell. However, the clock is already ticking and the countdown to the 2014 Nürburgring 24 Hours is already underway. Let the preparations begin for the next trip to the Green Hell.

Source: MINI

In the SP 3T class the MINI with starting number 146 finished twelfth. So Hendrik Vieth, Jürgen Schmarl, Ralf Martin and Anja Wassertheurer will start from 95th overall on Saturday. Because of the changing weather the crew could not improve its 9:44,248 minute mark set on Thursday evening.

The same goes for car number 147 whose drivers Fredrik Lestrup, Nico Bastian and Harald Hennes recorded their best lap on Thursday with a time of 9:44,449 minutes, which puts them13th in the SP 3T class and 97th overall with 201 cars finally starting the race.

The private teams also had a strong qualifying. The fastest MINI John Cooper Works was number 152 entered by Schirra motoring in third place in the SP 3T class (59th overall).

“The prerequisites for our adventures in the ‘Green Hell’ are there,” said Dirk Hollweg, Head of MINI Motorsport. “We proved that the MINI John Cooper Works Coupé Endurance can be fast on the world’s most challenging track. Both cars were set up fine, the team worked very well together. So far we are very satisfied.“

Now the countdown is on for the 39th running of the Eifel long-distance classic. On Saturday at 4 PM CET the call to both MINI John Cooper Works Coupé Endurance cars will be: Start your engines!

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