Green Hell Showdown: German Giants Primed for Nürburgring 24 Hours 2025
Home advantage in the Eifel
The 2025 Nürburgring 24 Hours promises a battle of Germany's automotive titans on home soil.
After the 24 Hours of Le Mans, teams have sprinted from La Sarthe to the Eifel mountains for another gruelling endurance classic. A colossal 141-car grid, the largest in half a decade, will take the start on Saturday, 21 June. At stake is not only victory in the world's toughest GT race but also national pride: Porsche, BMW, Mercedes-AMG, and Audi each aim to reign supreme in front of their home crowd. These marques, steeped in Nürburgring history, are fielding factory-supported and customer entries loaded with talent. All four are determined to keep the winner's trophy in German hands after an Italian upset in 2023. The scene is set for a titanic 24-hour showdown in the "Green Hell."
Stakes are high, and skies are uncertain
This year's edition carries extra significance. It doubles as round two of the Intercontinental GT Challenge, meaning global championship points are on offer alongside local glory. The pressure on manufacturers is immense, especially just one week after Le Mans and one week before Spa. Top drivers are attempting an epic triple-header: ten GT3 aces, from Maxime Martin and Luca Stolz to Laurens Vanthoor and Kévin Estre, raced at Le Mans last weekend and will tackle Spa a week after Nürburgring. Fatigue management and logistics are part of the 2025 challenge.
Unpredictable Eifel weather looms as ever. The late June date offers long daylight hours, but conditions can swing wildly. Dense fog halted the race a year ago after only seven hours and 24 minutes, the shortest running in event history. Forecasts hint at warm temperatures this time, even the possibility of thunderstorms by Sunday. Teams must be prepared for hot, slick track surfaces by day and the threat of sudden rain or night-time mist. If the weather stays clear, a flat-out pace could see distance records challenged on the 25 km circuit. But any Nordschleife veteran will caution that nothing is predictable here, especially with 140+ cars ranging from GT3 beasts to amateur touring cars all sharing the narrow track in darkness. Caution periods for crashes or fickle mountain weather can upend even the best-laid strategies. The mental and mechanical endurance test that defines the Nürburgring 24 will be as stern as ever in 2025.
Porsche: strength in numbers and legacy
Stuttgart's pride comes armed to the teeth, hungry to extend a winning legacy. Porsche has more entries in the top class than any other marque, with seven new-generation 911 GT3 R (992) machines on the grid. Five of those are in the premier SP9 Pro category, and they've been the form cars in the build-up. In May's N24 Qualifiers races, Porsche customer teams swept both four-hour victories, making the 911 GT3 R look practically invincible this season. The Scherer Sport PHX squad, last year's overall winner, even switched to Porsche and promptly won both qualifier events with its blue #16 machine. That car, shared by Laurens Vanthoor, Patric Niederhauser and Ricardo Feller, starts among the favourites.
Porsche's attack blends factory might and customer passion. Manthey EMA's #911 "Grello", the neon-green fan-favourite, returns with Kévin Estre, Ayhancan Güven and Thomas Preining, aiming to deliver Manthey's record eighth win. The Manthey team is already tied for the most overall victories (seven) in N24 history, and another triumph would further cement its legend at the 'Ring. Estre, a Nürburgring specialist, calls driving the Grello "truly special," noting that their preparation has included running in all conditions, slicks and wets, during the NLS races, leaving him feeling "ready" for whatever the race brings.
Several Porsche privateer outfits bolster Stuttgart's ranks. Falken Motorsports fields its pair of sky-blue 911 GT3 Rs (cars #33 and #44) on Falken tyres, hoping to finally claim an overall win for the Japanese tyre brand. Porsche Junior Julien Andlauer and Nürburgring veteran Sven Müller lead Falken's #33 crew, and they've set a "top-five finish as our minimum goal, but of course, we'd love a podium or even a win," Andlauer says, adding that good weather would be a welcome bonus. Newcomer team Dinamic GT (car #54) and others like Black Falcon Team EAE and Huber Motorsport (one in Pro-Am) add depth to Porsche's effort. Historically, Porsche has 13 overall wins here and dominated the 2000s; a victory this year would mark its 14th and underscore that the 911 GT3 R is once again the car to beat. Expect the Porsche squads to leverage their numerical superiority with coordinated strategies and perhaps to set a blistering qualifying pace as they did by sweeping the top three spots in time trials. But sheer numbers don't guarantee durability over 24 hours. The question is whether Porsche's armada can convert its current performance edge into endurance success when the Green Hell bares its teeth.
BMW: a lone wolf with big ambitions
In contrast to Porsche's swarm, BMW has taken a "quality over quantity" approach, pinning its hopes on a single, all-star entry. Just one BMW M4 GT3 will fight for the win this year in SP9, but it's a formidable one: the #98 ROWE Racing car stacked with four BMW works aces. ROWE's driver roster reads like a "who's who" of GT endurance racing: Augusto Farfus, Jesse Krohn, Raffaele Marciello, and Kelvin van der Linde. Farfus, who helped BMW to victory here in 2010, and van der Linde, a two-time N24 winner (2017, 2022) in his Audi days, bring a winning pedigree. For Marciello and Krohn, a first Nürburgring crown is the target. This quartet has gelled quickly in the updated BMW M4 GT3 Evo, a package aiming to iron out the M4's few weaknesses and build on its strength in high-speed corners.
ROWE Racing knows how to conquer the 'Ring; the team took BMW's last win here in 2020 and has been on the podium multiple times. Team principal Hans-Peter Naundorf's outfit has become BMW's de facto Nordschleife spearhead since 2016. "This year, ROWE Racing aims for its second victory and BMW's 21st win at the endurance classic," Car Racing Reporter notes. Indeed, BMW is the most successful manufacturer in Nürburgring 24h history with 20 overall wins, dating back to the race's inaugural running in 1970. The marque's Nordschleife heritage runs deep, from the early days of the 2002 Ti and CSL through the M3's dominance in the '80s and '90s to modern triumphs with the Z4 and M6 GT3. That history adds motivation: Munich dearly wants to reclaim the throne on its home turf after a five-year gap.
Without any sister cars in the fight (other BMW customer teams have diverted to different classes or even other brands this year), the #98 crew must be self-reliant. The upside? Total focus and no intra-marque traffic. The team can optimise strategy for one car, whether that means aggressive double-stinting in the cool of night or playing it safe if rain falls. The new M4 GT3 Evo's reliability will be crucial, as will keeping the car out of trouble in traffic. The lone BMW must also avoid inevitable 2-on-1 situations from Porsche or Mercedes squads. Still, if anyone can go it alone, it's ROWE. As Farfus quipped, the Nürburgring 24h is "the race every BMW driver wants to win," his crew is determined to deliver a storybook win for Bavaria's lone wolf in 2025.
Mercedes-AMG: double attack from Affalterbach
Mercedes-AMG arrives with a streamlined but potent assault, seeking to translate consistency into victory.
Since the SLS AMG GT3 first tackled the 'Ring in 2011, Mercedes has been a perennial contender, amassing 13 podium finishes (and two wins) in 15 consecutive attempts. This year, the three-pointed star fields three AMG GT3 Evo machines in total, with its main hopes on a pair of factory-blessed entries run by GetSpeed Performance. Car #14 and #17 from GetSpeed carry eight works drivers between them, effectively two "dream team" line-ups drawn from Mercedes' GT roster. The #14, painted in Bilstein yellow, features Nürburgring maestro Maro Engel, sportscar veteran Maxime Martin, young charger Fabian Schiller, and 2016 winner Luca Stolz. The sister #17 brings endurance stalwarts Adam Christodoulou (2016 winner) and Ralf Aron alongside DTM star Lucas Auer and rising talent Mikaël Grenier.
This two-pronged factory effort is spearheaded by a team based just a stone's throw from the track. GetSpeed, headquartered at Nürburgring's industrial park, has quickly become Mercedes' Nordschleife specialist. They've run AMG GT3s since 2019 and earned factory support after back-to-back podiums, including a double-podium in 2022. GetSpeed is hungry to add a winner's wreath to those accomplishments. "In 2024, GetSpeed was named the most successful Customer Racing Team in Mercedes' internal championship," the team proudly notes. But an N24 overall win is the real prize they seek. Tactically, having two bullets in the gun allows Mercedes to split strategies if needed; one car could push flat-out through the night while the other plays the long game, ready to capitalise on any late-race mayhem.
Mercedes' factory drivers also carry the confidence of knowing what it takes to win here. The AMG GT3's finest hour at the Nordschleife came in 2016 when Mercedes cars swept an incredible 1-2-3-4 finish. In that historic race, the closest finish ever, decided by a last-lap pass, Maro Engel and company delivered AMG's second N24 victory by outdueling their teammates. Memories of that triumph still fuel the brand's mythology at this track. Outside of those two wins (2013 and 2016), Mercedes has often come achingly close, only to be foiled by bad luck or weather. There's a sense that AMG "is due" for another. The current AMG GT3 Evo is a proven endurance machine known for its bulletproof reliability and brute torque on the long Dottinger Hohe straight. If conditions turn to heavy rain or fog, Mercedes will recall that it has weathered chaos here before, and that consistency can prevail when outright pace isn't enough. With a leaner contingent than in years past, AMG's 2025 mantra will be efficiency and execution. Don't be surprised if the yellow-and-blue GetSpeed cars are in the hunt come Sunday morning, aiming to turn podium consistency into a breakthrough win for Affalterbach's finest.
Audi: defending champions with a point to prove
Audi Sport finds itself in an unfamiliar position – the underdog – despite entering as the defending winner. Last year, Audi prevailed in a fog-shortened contest, with Phoenix Racing (now Scherer Sport PHX) taking Audi's sixth Nürburgring 24h win and tying Manthey's record of seven team victories. In 2025, however, Audi's presence at the sharp end has slimmed. The once-mighty Audi Sport fleet is down to a single factory-supported R8 LMS GT3 EVO II in the Pro class. That car, carrying #1, is fielded by Scherer Sport PHX in pursuit of an outright record eighth win for the Phoenix crew. Fittingly, it's loaded with Nürburgring veterans Christopher Haase, Markus Winkelhock, and Luca Ludwig (son of racing legend Klaus Ludwig) form the driving trio. Haase and Winkelhock have both stood atop the podium here before, and they know how to extract the best from the ageing but still competitive R8.
Interestingly, the PHX team is hedging its bets this year by running a Porsche 911 GT3 R (the aforementioned #16) alongside its Audi. This marks a crossover of expertise and an acknowledgement that the 14-year-old R8 platform has finally met its match in newer machinery. Still, never count Audi out at the Nürburgring. Ingolstadt's GT3 contender has won this race in various scenarios: from a rain-soaked 2014 to a fuel-mileage nail-biter in 2017 to outright pace battles. Audi will also have three additional privately entered R8s in the field (from teams like Juta Racing and équipe Vitesse) that could play spoiler. One of those features Nordschleife legend Frank Stippler, an Audi icon who has two N24 wins to his name, ensuring the Four Rings still have a fighting chance if the factory car falters.
The Audi camp's morale was boosted with last year's win, especially after a Ferrari upset in 2023. However, they know that the R8 is an elder statesman now. 2025 could represent the R8's final appearance in the 24 hours before a new Audi GT3 car arrives. That adds sentimental motivation: the drivers would love to send off the R8 with one more triumph. Expect Audi's strategy to be shrewd and patient. With fewer bullets to fire, they'll aim to keep the #1 out of trouble and let the race come to them. If their rivals stumble or the weather gods smile on Audi, they have the experience to pounce. After all, Audi Sport has built its Nordschleife legacy on precise execution and endurance nous. Audi carries the torch for Ingolstadt's honour as the lone full-factory German marque not named Porsche, BMW or Mercedes this year. Winning from the underdog role would suit them just fine, and it would break new ground as Phoenix's eighth and Audi's seventh overall win. That prospect motivates the Audi boys to give the Green Hell one more hell of a fight.
Finale: the pride of Germany on the line
As the clock ticks toward 16:00 on Saturday, the stage is set for an intense 24 hours. Germany's automotive powerhouses will wage an internal war for bragging rights, even as global competitors like Lamborghini, Aston Martin, Ferrari and the new Ford Mustang GT3 lurk with their own ambitions. For the German marques, there's more than a trophy at stake: heritage and home pride hang in the balance. Porsche seeks to underline its dominance at its favourite stomping ground. BMW fights to remind everyone that it still owns the Nordschleife's soul. Mercedes-AMG craves to turn consistency into a long-awaited home victory. Audi hopes to defend its crown and cap off an R8 era on a high.
All four know the Nürburgring can be cruel as much as it is glorious. As night falls and the Eifel fog potentially creeps in, each team will tighten its focus on mistake-free running; one errant move through Flugplatz or a slow zone misjudgment can undo hours of hard work. Come Sunday afternoon, if a German manufacturer stands atop the podium, the collective roar from tens of thousands of home fans around the circuit will affirm a mission accomplished. In the Green Hell of 2025, the battle lines are drawn in black, red and gold. The only certainty is that an epic contest awaits, and the Nürburgring will again demand everything from those who dare to conquer it. Let the 24-hour duel of Germany's finest begin.
