In a thrilling Top Qualifying session at the Nürburgring-Nordschleife, the BMW M Team RMG celebrated a significant victory. Max Hesse, a young and talented driver, secured pole position for the #72 BMW M4 GT3, proudly displaying the design of BMW M Motorsport Premium Technology Partner Shell. This achievement makes Hesse the youngest driver to clinch the Glickenhaus Trophy for pole position at the 24h Nürburgring.
The 22-year-old Hesse and teammates Dan Harper and Charles Weerts form part of Gen2K, the elite group of BMW M works drivers born in 2000 or later. Their teamwork and dedication have paid off as they prepare for the gruelling 24-hour race.
Meanwhile, the #99 BMW M4 GT3 from ROWE Racing, driven by Sheldon van der Linde, Dries Vanthoor, Robin Frijns, and Augusto Farfus, secured a respectable seventh place. The sister car, #98, with Farfus, Marco Wittmann, Raffaele Marciello, and Maxime Martin, will start from 21st place. The race is set to begin on Saturday, June 1st, at 16:00 CEST.
During the initial part of Top Qualifying, 14 cars, including three BMW M4 GT3s, competed fiercely for a spot in the final qualifying round. In the ROWE Racing #99, Van der Linde led the field for a significant period, finishing with an impressive time of 8:11.716 minutes. In the #72 BMW M4 GT3, Harper closely followed with a time of 8:12.070 minutes, while Farfus finished ninth in the #98 BMW M4 GT3 with 8:14.696 minutes.
In the decisive Top Qualifying 2 session, Hesse took the wheel of the #72 and delivered an outstanding performance. With a time of 8:10.992 minutes on his first flying lap, he secured pole position. Farfus, driving the #99 BMW M4 GT3, achieved seventh place at 8:12.127 minutes.