Nürburgring, Germany – 18 June 2025: As the motorsport world braces for the second of three iconic endurance marathons in as many weeks, Aston Martin prepares to make history at the formidable ADAC Ravenol 24H Nürburgring. Backed by an all-star roster of partner teams and drivers, the British marque is gunning for a landmark achievement: to become the first British manufacturer to claim outright victory in the legendary German 24-hour race.
Fresh from a hard-fought fourth-place finish at Le Mans with Heart of Racing, Aston Martin now turns its focus to the infamous 15.8-mile Nürburgring Nordschleife – affectionately dubbed the ‘Green Hell’. This year’s entry is the brand’s most ambitious to date, with nine Vantages (GT3 and GT4) contesting multiple classes, reinforcing Aston Martin’s enduring legacy at this storied circuit.
A Legendary Return to the Green Hell
Aston Martin’s relationship with the Nürburgring stretches back more than six decades, to the days when Sir Stirling Moss claimed a hat-trick of 1000km wins in the late 1950s. Fast forward to the modern era, and the Vantage nameplate has become a fixture at the 24-hour race, earning 10 class wins and over 25 podiums since the brand’s return to endurance racing in 2006.
This year’s campaign is headlined by a powerful alliance with Walkenhorst Motorsport – one of the most accomplished GT teams in Europe – whose multi-car Vantage GT3 effort includes a Pro-class entry boasting four endurance racing titans.
Star Power and Proven Machinery
The #34 Vantage GT3, contesting the fiercely competitive SP9 Pro class, brings together a formidable driver lineup:
- David Pittard (GBR), Nürburgring 24H winner (2023)
- Nicki Thiim (DEN), two-time FIA WEC GT champion and 2013 Nürburgring overall winner
- Mattia Drudi (ITA), Spa 24H victor in 2024, making his Nürburgring debut
- Christian Krognes (NOR), 2018 Spa winner and Nordschleife expert
This squad blends pace, experience, and a proven track record across Europe’s top endurance events. They will be piloting a Vantage GT3 derived from Aston Martin’s most focused road-going sportscar, complete with a bonded aluminium chassis and twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 engine.
Walkenhorst also enters two more Vantage GT3s in the SP9 Pro-Am and Am classes. The #35 car features Oliver Söderström, Anders Buchardt, and Nico Hantke, with Krognes pulling double duty. Meanwhile, the #30 machine boasts four Nürburgring class winners, including team founder Henry Walkenhorst.
Rounding out the German team’s effort is a Vantage GT4 entered in SP10, driven by a multi-national quartet including Aris Balanian, Hermann Vortkamp, Jean-Christophe David, and Josh Hansen.
Strength in Depth: PROsport and Dörr Join the Charge
PROsport Racing, a staple in Aston Martin’s endurance efforts, returns with three entries across three classes. Headlining their charge is the #37 Vantage GT3 in SP9 Pro-Am, helmed by Nico Bastian, Marek Böckmann, and Steven Palette. The team’s GT4 entries include the #175 car in SP10 – a multiple podium-finisher this season – and the #140 in SP8T, piloted by the accomplished Dumarey father-and-son duo, alongside Raphael Rennhofer and Marcel Marchewicz.
Dörr Motorsport adds further firepower with two Vantage GT4s in SP10. Known for their class-winning debut with Aston Martin in 2022, Dörr brings both experience and local knowledge to the grid. The #169 and #179 entries will be led by Peter Posavac, Michael Funke, Sven Schädler, and Frank Weishar, with additional drivers to be announced.
A Race Like No Other
What sets the Nürburgring 24 Hours apart is not just its brutal 15.8-mile layout, but the scale of its challenge: narrow tree-lined straights, rapid weather shifts, and nearly 150 cars across a multitude of classes. Victory here requires more than just pace – it demands resilience, strategy, and mechanical perfection.
“For fans of endurance racing, 2025 is a particularly special year,” said Adam Carter, Aston Martin’s Head of Endurance Motorsport. “With Le Mans, Nürburgring and Spa running back-to-back, the Vantage platform allows our partner teams to be competitive at every level. The Nürburgring is arguably the toughest of the three, and to potentially become the first British marque to win outright would be a monumental moment in Aston Martin’s history.”
Legacy in the Making
Aston Martin’s Nürburgring story began in earnest in 2006, with a near-production V8 Vantage that paved the way for one of GT racing’s most successful platforms. Since then, highlights include a near-overall win in 2018 and a succession of class victories across SP8T and SP10.
Most recently, Dörr Motorsport secured the SP8T win in 2022 on its Aston Martin debut, with PROsport also delivering a double-podium in SP10 – signs that the GT4 programme continues to thrive.
As the lights go green at 16:00 CET on Saturday, Aston Martin’s nine-car assault stands not only as a testament to the Vantage’s racing pedigree but as a bold statement of intent: to etch its name in the annals of Nürburgring history as the first British brand to claim the ultimate prize.
