Martin Rump second on GT3 Nürburgring debut, ahead of Max Verstappen

Estonian racing driver Martin Rump brought new meaning to the term endurance racing over the weekend by competing in two countries in as many days, winning his class in one race and finishing second in the other, ahead of four-time Formula One world champion Max Verstappen.
Rump's hectic weekend began in Belgium, where he took part in the second round of the 24H Series European endurance championship at the famous Spa-Francorchamps circuit. The 12-hour race was split into two stages across Saturday and Sunday, though Rump only competed on the first day, driving one stint of around one hour and 15 minutes.
This shortened participation was needed in order to continue in the series standings. After 12 hours' driving, along with teammates Conrad Tox Leveau, Tim Scheerbarth and Julian Hanses, he played a major role as the team claimed victory in their class and finished fourth overall.
Next stop, Germany, where Rump arrived Saturday evening: Two qualifying races at the Nürburgring 24 Hours were going on – one that evening and then one on the Sunday evening. While Saturday's stage was halted and then canceled due to a serious accident, the second, four-hour race on the Sunday did take place as planned. Rump competed in the Nürburgring race in a GT3-class car for the first time, behind the wheel of a Porsche 911 GT3 R. His teammate was German driver Ben Bünnagel, and the pair started fourth in class and 13th overall. GT3 cars are the fastest category in this race; four-time Formula One world champion Max Verstappen (Netherlands) was also competing in that same class.

"Since it was also the team's first race with a GT3 car at the Nürburgring, we had to work really hard," Rump commented. "I managed the traffic among the slower cars well, and found a good rhythm, but without taking unnecessary risks. The car definitely still has more potential to show on the track. Next time, by which time it's already the 24-hour race, we will certainly be able to gain more speed, thanks to what we've learned."
In Nürburgring 24H classification, GT3 cars are also divided according to driver level. Rump and Bünnagel's car competed in the Pro-Am class, with the main focus on the result against other drivers of the same level. During the course of the race, they managed to climb to third place, and on the final lap Bünnagel overtook the Pro-Am car which had been running in third. After four hours' racing, Rump/Bünnagel took a very positive second place in class, finishing 11th overall on their debut.
Rump conceded that with GT3 cars, both in terms of pace and the pressure on every lap, are much more intense than with the Porsche 992 Cup cars he has mostly been driving at the Nürburgring this year. "Every stint in a GT3 car is extremely valuable," he added. "In the top class, everyone is pushing at the maximum and trying to get past the slower cars as quickly as possible, which is why there are also a lot of incidents on track. Despite this, "The team was very happy with my pace," Rump added.
The icing on the cake was the fact that Verstappen finished clearly behind Rump's car. The front end of the Dutchman's Mercedes-AMG GT3 was damaged and had to be repaired in the pits for more than 30 minutes. Verstappen and his teammate Lucas Auer brought the Winward Racing car to the finish in 38th place overall.
Next up, Rump will compete in the Nürburgring 24 Hours, which takes place on May 16 and 17. It is also certain that the Estonian driver will once again be behind the wheel of a GT3-class Porsche 911 at that event, competing against the top names in endurance racing.
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Editor: Andrew Whyte, Maarja Värv









