News

The Sumitomo Rubber Group is pleased to announce that our European tire sales subsidiary, FALKEN Tyre Europe GmbH, took an overall victory with its Porsche 911 GT3R, Car No. 3, in the premier SP9 PRO class in the 4-hour race in the second round of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (official name: Nürburgring Langstrecken-Serie) held in Germany on April 26, 2025, following its victory in the season opener. A FALKEN tire-equipped car also claimed victory in the AT3 class.

Cars No. 3 and No. 4 in the race	Drivers celebrating the victory   (From left: Alessio Pcariello and Dorian Boccolacci)

Following a good start in the season opener in March by securing a one-two finish, Team FALKEN Motorsports maintained its momentum in the second round. In the morning qualifying session, Car No.3 and Car No. 4 finished second and third place, respectively, securing good starting positions for the final race.

In the final race held in the afternoon of the same day, the Porsche 911 GT3R racecars with FALKEN colors got off to a solid start and kept third and fourth places in the early stage of the race. Then, the two racecars gradually moved up their places, successfully overtook the cars ahead around 40 minutes after the start of the race, and maintained a one-two lead as they did in the season opener.

In the middle stage of the race, Car No. 4 faced unexpected trouble, which forced the car to spend more than 40 seconds in the pit for repair and to fall in the rankings to ninth place temporarily. However, with its characteristic speed and powerful performance, the racecar came back and moved up to fifth place. This demonstrated the team’s true strength.

Meanwhile, Car No. 3 had no trouble and led the race by properly assessing the situation from start to finish. In the end, Car No. 3 saw the checkered flag first, winning the race with a lead of more than 30 seconds ahead of the runner-up. This marked the second consecutive win for the car following its victory in the season opener.

In addition, Max Kruse racing celebrated an impressive win in the AT3 class, with its No. 10 and No. 76claiming a one-two finish, earning two consecutive class victories. FALKEN Tyre Europe supplies tires to this team of former Team Germany footballer Max Kruse.

Max Kruse racing Car No. 10 (AUDI RS3), the AT3 class winner	Max Kruse racing Car No. 76 (VW Golf GTI Clubsport 24h), the AT3 class podium finisher in second place

 Sumitomo Rubber actively utilizes motor sports activities as opportunities for research and development. In collaboration with Team FALKEN Motorsports, we are conducting verification tests of SENSING CORE in the Nürburgring Endurance Series. SENSING CORE is our proprietary sensor-less technology that was developed by applying vehicle wheel speed analysis. We are currently developing a system for detecting changes in tire internal pressure early during races.

* FALKEN Claims NLS Speed Trophy Victory

(News Release issued on November 27, 2024): https://www.srigroup.co.jp/newsrelease/2024/sri/2024_082.html

■ Outline of the Nürburgring Endurance Series

The Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) is an eight-round endurance racing series held at Nürburgring in Germany. Unlike the 24-hour endurance race that takes place only once a year, the NLS races range in duration from 4 to 12 hours. Many top-tier teams compete in the NLS as vehicle manufacturers as well as tire manufacturers use the endurance races as testing grounds for their pursuit of victory in the 24-hour race. The racecourse is nearly identical in length to that of the 24-hour endurance race, with a single lap spanning approximately 25 km. Featuring around 170 corners, an elevation difference of approximately 300 meters, narrow track widths, and undulating, slippery road surfaces, the circuit is among the most arduous racetracks in the world.