Visitors to the 51st Oldtimer Grand Prix at the Nürburgring, which will take place from August 9 to 11, 2024, can look forward to well-staffed starting fields and legendary historic racing cars.
Even though the entry deadline for the twelve racing series, invitational races and driving events is still running, the first organizers are already reporting "full house".
Numerous historically valuable racing cars from over 100 years of motorsport will be taking part, quite a few of them interrupting their stay in the protected environment of museums and exhibitions especially for the classic car grand prix. Among the highlight races will be the field of Formula 1 cars from the early Grand Prix years, in which the organizing British drivers' association HGPCA reports great interest. Of course, the sports cars of the 1950s will also be a racing jewel, where, especially on Saturday evening, you can get an idea of how things once went at the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans.
The spectacular sports cars and GTs of the CanAm & Sportscars promise plenty of action, with cars with up to nine liters of displacement to marvel at (and listen to). The touring car and GT races are also extremely well-staffed, presenting all the important eras from the 50s and 60s to the DRM era and the DTM and STW of the 90s and 2000s.
100 years of racing history in motion
The weekend's oldest vehicles are over 100 years old and are housed in the Nürburgring's historic paddock in true style. Although they no longer compete for race wins in the "Vintage Sportscar Trophy", they do so to the delight of the spectators. A whole group of American La France models have announced their participation, the oldest of which dates back to 1918 and is therefore almost ten years older than the Nürburgring itself!
But of course, the classic sports cars of the 20s and 30s, such as the BMW 328, supercharged Mercedes or Bentley and Alfa Romeo models, are not missing. The historical spectrum ranges from aged and beautiful pre-war racing cars to the sports prototypes of the 1990s and 2000s. They will be competing in the "Historic Championship CanAm & Sportscars" for race wins in the two races on Saturday and Sunday.
The large-volume prototypes at the front of the field, such as the McLaren M6B and M8C, which originate from the former CanAm, promise to be a spectacle for the eyes and ears. Even vehicles from the USA have announced their presence: the three Shadow prototypes from the 70s have up to nine liters of displacement. The power development of the top of this starting field will therefore be extremely impressive. But people in this country also knew what to do with sports prototypes - as demonstrated by the Zakspeed-Ford Probe from Group C from 1989, which has registered.
Racing highlights from the 50s and 60s
The starter fields from the 50s and 60s are also "not to be missed". The more than three dozen cars from the British HGPCA are impressive: they bring the early Grand Prix years back to life at the Ring and allow a great glimpse into the childhood of today's Formula 1, in which the monoposti were still front-engined in the 50s. It was only at the beginning of the 1960s that the engine was moved to the rear and a new era began. Consequently, the front-engined cars à la Maserati 250F, Ferrari 246 Dino and Cooper Bristol will contest the first race on Saturday separately from their rear-engined counterparts. The latter include the contemporary models from Lola, Cooper and Heron as well as the early Lotus.
On Sunday, it will be a special spectacle when early formula cars take to the grid in a joint race. And while we're on the subject of a spectacle, the races of the two-seater sports cars and GTs up to 1971 will be even more so. Despite the fact that entries have only just begun, it is foreseeable that the 47 available starting places will be filled to the last seat - and with hand-picked racing icons that will make the experts' tongues wag: extremely rare and otherwise well-kept sports prototypes such as the Maserati 450 S can be seen on the race track again and will meet up with worthy rivals. Sports cars such as the Ferrari 250, Porsche 904 and Mercedes 300 SL will be at the starting line, as will legendary GTs such as the Porsche 356A. Their race on Saturday evening runs into the evening twilight and forms the atmospheric highlight of the race weekend.
Junior formulas of the past
The formula races, which are dedicated to the former junior classes, are somewhat more "modern". Long-time visitors to the classic car grand prix will be particularly excited to see a field of entrants that is new to the weekend's program and can virtually claim "home rights" at the Nürburgring. The historic Formula Vee saw the light of day in this country in 1965. It completed its second race on German soil on August 1 (almost exactly 59 years before the OGP weekend) on what was then the southern loop of the Eifel racetrack.
The historic racing series now has over 40 vehicles from all periods competing in its season races and expects a similarly packed field at the Oldtimer Grand Prix. These fantastic vehicles, which were originally powered by the 1200cc and 1300cc engines from the VW Beetle, learned their trade from icons such as Keke Rosberg and Nelson Piquet, Jochen Rindt and Niki Lauda: it is still regarded today as the largest one-make formula ever created.
The ADAC Graf Berghe von Trips Cup also heralds an exciting and diverse field of starters, with young monoposti from the 70s and 80s in particular, while the focus within the three dozen cars is on Formula 3 racers. And some of them have a dazzling history. For example, the former Formula 3 cars of ex-Formula 1 star Nicola Larini, Kris Nissen, Emerson Fittipaldi and sports car ace Marco Werner can be seen at the Ring.
Huge crowds and huge action: the touring cars and GTs are on the move
The touring car and GT races at the Oldtimer Grand Prix are as historically exciting as they are full of motorsport action. Especially in the two starting fields, in which points are awarded for the German Historic Car Championship, the limits of the number of starters permitted by the DMSB track approval are easily reached. The somewhat older vehicles in the HC'65 will be taking part in two sprint races at the weekend, which will see a reunion with legendary racing cars: Austin Healey and Jaguar E-Type, for example, or Ford GT40, Falcon and Mustang - here it is mainly the touring cars and GTs of the 50s and 60s that will drive their way into the hearts of the spectators.
Several Porsche 356s have been announced as well as early 911s, Lotus models and many more. The Porsche 911s are then a common sight in the younger HC '81 field, where they will take on the likes of the Ford Capri and BMW M1 Procar. The touring car classes are also strongly represented here, with the "dog bone" Escort, BMW 2002, Alfa Romeo 1750 GT-Am and the first generation of the VW Golf competing.
DRM and DTM: Traditionally full grandstands at the "made in Germany" highlights
The grandstands are finally full when the two highlights of the weekend program in touring car and GT racing are on the grid: In the "Golden Era" touring cars, the focus is on former DTM cars, but related series such as STW, BTCC and the German DTC are also represented with former participant cars.
In order to put the spotlight on these slightly smaller displacement racers, there will be a special "Golden Era Special" on Saturday morning under the title "Iconic Two Liters". In the joint races of the entire starting field, there will be a reunion with many former motorsport stars and unforgotten vehicles from the Ford Sierra RS 500 and the 190 Mercedes to the Audi 200 and BMW M3 E30. Last but not least: the DRM revival race! The two races on Saturday and Sunday always ensure full grandstands at the Nürburgring and prove that this predecessor series to the DTM has lost none of its popularity. BMW 2002 and 320 Group 2, Ford Escort RS200 and Opel Kadett compete here in the touring car classes, while the mighty GTs dominate at the front of the field: Several Ford Capri Turbos battle it out against de Tomaso Pantera, BMW M1 and Group 5-2002 as well as Porsche 934 and 935 - all still spectacular cars.
The program at the classic car grand prix also builds a bridge to more recent sports car history: the drivers of the FCD Racing Series are responsible for this, who, under the aegis of the Ferrari Club, cultivate Germany's best club racing with Italian luxury sports cars.
Further information about the event and the opportunity to secure tickets in advance can be found on the event website.
