Qualifying: drying but slippery
Although the rain had stopped, the track was still very slippery when qualifying started. Two red flags did not help. They were not for anything serious, just cars with electrical issues. Jan van der Kooi and Philippe Vermast claimed the front row in their nimble but nervous Lotus Elans. Oliver Douglas jumped to third at the last moment on the drying track in the rumbling Cobra Daytona, while Carlo Hamilton clearly was not fazed by a bit less grip. He would start 4th and first of the touring cars in his Ford Falcon Sprint in Race 1. Row 3 will be shared by Roelant de Waard (Shelby GT350) and Luc de Cock (Lotus Elan). Then it’s the heavy brigade with Norbert Gross, Van der Ende/Bijleveld and Bart-Jan Deenik in Ford Falcons. Florian Lübbert will start 10th in the GTS11 leading Triumph TR4. His first pursuers are Nick Paul/Didier Bourdot in the MGB with the Van Gammerens 3rd in the Porsche 911. In CT07 Bernd Horlacher was going well with a freshly rebuilt motor in his Cooper S, with Fernand Lelong second. Magnus Lillerskog will start first in CT08, but expect fellow Lotus Cortina racers Hanna Grade and Marcel Wentzel to challenge him tomorrow, now that their alternator is fixed. We have only 1 GTP competitor this weekend: Frank Weidema in the Mini Marcos. After being towed into the pits he replaced a fuse and went on to qualify a solid 14th.
Race 1: Vermast takes the flag
Philippe Vermast dominated the first SuperSixties race at the Nürburgring in his Lotus Elan. Oliver Douglas led into the first corner in the Cobra Daytona, but the Elans could brake later and Vermast was never headed, while Douglas and Jan van der Kooi disputed second for most of the race. Douglas finished second in the road but third in the results due to a pitstop that was too short, a fate that befell no less than 10 drivers. Carlo Hamilton was uncatchable for all the other Ford Falcons and came 4th overall, with Roelant de Waard 5th in the Shelby Mustang and Norbert Gross 6th thanks to good pit strategy. Luc de Cock in his Elan and Martin Bijleveld and Bart-Jan Deenik in their Falcons were next with various time penalties while Hemmo Vriend finished an unlucky 10th. He would have been 9th but somehow did not profit from the penalties. Florian Lübbert won GTS11 with some spectacular cornering in his Triumph TR4, from Theo and Thijs van Gammeren in the Porsche 911 and Egbert Kolvoort in the first of the MGB’s. In CT08, Lotus Cortina land, Magnus Lillerskog took the win from Hanna Grade/Marcel Wentzel and the Cooper S contest in CT07 was won by Bernd Horlacher from Fernand Lelong. Everyone made it to the finish, a rare sight in historic racing!
Race 2: Victory for Van der Kooi
Roelant de Waard took the initiative at the start of Sunday’s SuperSixties race at the Nürburgring. The Shelby Mustang soon had to concede to the Lotus Elans though, and Philippe Vermast pulled away with Jan van der Kooi in second. Van der Kooi had planned to attack after the pitstops but this proved unnecessary, as Vermast was sidelined by a flat tire. De Waard was safe in second, with Oliver Douglas third in the Cobra Daytona. The hardest working man on the track was Luc de Cock who had to pass no less than 4 Ford Falcon aircraft carriers to reach the finish in 4th. He dealt with Jaap van der Ende, Bart-Jan Deenik, Norbert Gross and finally, after a particularly tough fight, Carlo Hamilton. Florian Lübbert again won GTS11 in his TR4, from the Van Gammeren 911 and Egbert Kolvoort in the MGB. In CT07, Bernd Horlacher managed to finish ahead of Fernand Lelong again, but Fernand is getting closer. In CT08, Magnus Lillerskog crossed swords with Marcel Wentzel until an electrical issue sidelined his Lotus Cortina. Jurgen Felske was also stranded, but a fiddle with the kill switch restored power to the fuel pump and starter motor of the MGB, so he could continue. Finally, Nick Paul and Didier Bourdot had miscalculated the fuel load in their MGB and dropped out at three quarter distance. With tropical temperatures there was a lot of sliding going on, but apart from an occasional wheel on the gravel there were no misdemeanors. So a big thank you is in order to all SuperSixties drivers for another weekend of fast, fair and safe racing!
Full results:
More news from the Ring in SuperSixties Magazine 2025#3, download here: Super Sixties Magazine Nurburging edition
Points after 6 of 12 races: https://www.supersixtiesracing.com/standings/
NEXT RACE: Czech Truck Prix & NASCAR – Most, August 29-31
Check out our YouTube channel for action clips: https://www.youtube.com/@Supersixties
