Thrilling historic motorsport, a rain-soaked championship finale and numerous car meets: the ADAC 1000km Nürburgring race weekend offered a varied programme on Saturday and Sunday. Björn and Georg Griesemann dominated the two DHLM races, whilst Ralf Schall became the first champion to crown the inaugural season of the German Historic Endurance Championship.
DHLM one-two and title decider in the rain
The ADAC 1000km race weekend took place on 19 and 20 September 2026 on the full Nürburgring circuit. In addition to the two three-hour DHLM races, the programme included, for the first time, a standalone race for the Golden Era touring cars.
A focus on historic touring cars
Even aside from the endurance races, the weekend offered plenty of highlights. On Saturday, the programme featured qualifying for the Golden Era touring car series, as well as various make and club meets. A particular highlight was the gathering of Porsche Transaxle models in the historic paddock. The range stretched from vehicles preserved in their original condition to elaborately modified examples.
More than 120 BMW 1 Series M Coupés and E30 M3s also gathered on the Ring-Boulevard. The participants at the annual meet, who had travelled from all over Europe, joined the Porsche models in creating a diverse panorama of motoring history at the Nürburgring.
The Griesemanns win the DHLM Run 3
On the sporting front, brothers Björn and Georg Griesemann made their first big impression on Saturday. In the Kümmerling Porsche 911 RSR, they comfortably secured victory in the third round of the German Historic Endurance Championship.
Ralf Schall finished second in the Mercedes-Benz 190 E EVO II, keeping the title race wide open. Oliver Boyke and Michael Joos completed the podium in the Porsche 911 RSR IMSA. With the decisive Sunday race still to come, the championship remained a nail-biter.
Golden Age of Touring Cars: Seesing wins the overall race
Three laps of the 24.358-kilometre combination of the Grand Prix circuit and the Nordschleife provided a showcase of historic touring car racing at the Golden Era touring car race. Marc Seesing came out on top in his BMW M3 E30 and, with a time of 9:23.563 minutes, also set the fastest lap of the race.
Thomas Schmidt finished second in the BMW 120d S2000, just 3.185 seconds behind. Peter Rikli completed the podium in the Honda Accord Euro I. For the Ford Sierra drivers on the front row of the grid, however, the race proved disappointing: both pole-setter Sebastian Asch and Ralf Schrage were forced to retire early.
Rain-soaked final: Ralf Schall becomes the first DHLM champion
The fourth and final round of the DHLM got underway in ‘wet race’ conditions. Heavy rain characterised the first half of the race and presented the teams with additional challenges on the demanding full Nürburgring circuit.
Björn and Georg Griesemann weren’t deterred by this and, in their Porsche 911 RSR, sealed a DHLM one-two with their second victory of the weekend. André Kunkel and Heiko Hammel secured second place in the season finale, thereby clinching the runners-up spot in the championship. Ralf Schall crossed the finish line in third place in his Mercedes-Benz 190 E EVO II, thereby becoming the first champion of the German Historic Endurance Championship.
For Oliver Boyke and Michael Joos, Schall’s direct rivals for the title, the battle for the championship came to a premature end: following a collision, they were forced to retire their Porsche. Thus, the DHLM’s inaugural season drew to a close with a thrilling title decider under challenging conditions.
