Matteo Cairoli finished fifth in the 51st edition of the 24h of the Nurburgring, one of the most challenging and prestigious races of the motorsport world. At the wheel of the Porsche 992 GT3 R of Rutronik Racing the 26-year-old performed pretty well in a race full of crashes and challenges which turned over the standings during the whole race.
Winner of the 2021 edition, Cairoli shared the Porsche 991 GT3 R with two drivers who knew really well the car as they both in fact are factory drivers: Julien Andlauer, on the GTE Am class podium at the 24h of Le Mans in 2022, and Dennis Olsen, 2019 Intercontinental GT Challenge champion and DTM race winner in 2022. With 235,000 people watching the race around the German track both Cairoli and his teammates were able to close a race with zero mistakes; after the 21st position obtained during the qualifying round, the Rutronik Racing drivers drove safely in the most challenging phases of the race, avoiding scary crashes that changed many teams’ plans. At the end of some very extenuating 24 hours of racing Cairoli crossed the finish line fifth, with the German team bringing home the best result made by a Porsche during this edition.
With the 24h of the Nürburgring in the bag Matteo Cairoli will now fly to Belgium for the official 24h of Spa tests on May 23-24; the driver from Como will then make his debut in the International GT Open for the second round of the championship, with the 140 minutes endurance race starting at 12:45 PM on Sunday, May 28.
Matteo Cairoli
“I’m pretty satisfied with the final result. The 24h of the Nürburgring has always been one of the most difficult races of the world and to finish the weekend with a fifth place in the bag and a race with no mistakes is a great satisfaction. I want to thank both Rutronik Racing and my teammates Julien and Dennis, we did a great job and in the end it really paid off. Now I can’t wait to go to Belgium and challenge myself on the circuit of Spa-Francorchamps, first with the 24h of Spa official tests and then with Huber Motorsport for the International GT Open race”.