ALZEN Team y sus 4 pilotos listos para las 24H.

[JK.]

Hankook Tyre and Team Jürgen Alzen Motorsport

Prolong Successful Partnership for the Endurance Racing Championships at the Nürburgring

Alzen Porsche will hit the famous Nuerburgring-Nordschleife

on Hankook tyres again in 2008

New tyre developments are set to ensure future successes

DTC Champion Markus Gedlich named second VLN driver

Strong quartet of drivers, including the 24-hour race.




Neu-Isenburg, March, 2008 – The successful cooperation begun last year between the racing team of Jürgen Alzen Motorsport and tyre manufacturer Hankook Tire for the International Endurance Racing Championships at the Nürburgring (VLN) will continue in 2008 as well. A contract to that effect, covering both the total of ten races in the popular German Endurance Series and the 36th International 24-Hour Race at the Nürburgring, has now been signed.

Team “Hankook/H&R Special Springs” will tackle the beginning of the season at the world’s most beautiful, most difficult, and certainly – at nearly 25 km – longest racetrack with the same Porsche 997 GT3 it used in the last two races of 2007. The Porsche powerhouse, dubbed “Little Nelly” after Alzen’s typical custom of giving each car its own name and painted in the well-known Hankook colour scheme of white, orange, gray, and black, has nothing to apologize for even if it is last year’s model. In the final race of last season, held on October 27, 2007, season head driver Uwe Alzen made a lap time of 8:15:483 minutes, the fastest ever achieved on the Nürburgring by a non turbo-charged race car. The record-breaking time also served as impressive proof of the outstanding performance of the Hankook Ventus racing tyres in just the first year of the company’s cooperative relationship with the racing team. The successful (4th place overall in the 2007 International 24-Hour Race) “Alman,” – so called for the first two letters of Alzen’s last name and the last three of its base model, the Porsche Cayman – which was built by Jürgen Alzen Motorsport itself and was extremely popular among the fans at the ring will not be ready for the season opening because it is being rebuilt to meet regulations.

Because the motor sports team, which is based in the Westerwald region of Germany, was able to continue its development work with technology and tyre partner Hankook Tire even over the winter break, it was possible to develop and test items including not only new mixtures, but also a new size for the front axle tyres for 2008. This year, the team will use the new dimension 280/670 R 18 in the front, in conjunction with the rear axle dimension 330/710 R 18, which was also used last year. Both sizes are available in varying mixtures and specifications both as slicks, under the product name Hankook F200, and as rain tyres under the name Hankook Z 207.

There are new developments on the driver’s side as well. Along with team head Jürgen Alzen, Markus Gedlich will also take the wheel of the fast Porsche during this season’s endurance races. Gedlich, a highly sought-after driving safety instructor, has more than 15 years of racing experience in touring cars, with a career whose highlights have included his overall win in the 2001 German Touring Car Challenge (DTC). In addition, the team has added Porsche specialist and Deutsche Post Speed Academy jury member Christian Menzel and ex-DTM star and 1999 STW champion Christian Abt, two extremely experienced – and no less fast – pros to drive for the Hankook/H&R Spezialfedern team in the 24-hour race.

“After our extremely successful first year of cooperation, we want to continue to tackle the competition with our tyre partner Hankook Tire in 2008,” says team leader Jürgen Alzen, explaining the team’s objectives for the coming season. “In 2007 we were able to gain a lot of experience and repeatedly missed out on a well-deserved victory by just a hair’s breadth. We intend to change that this year.” Manfred Sandbichler, head of the motor sports division at Hankook Reifen Deutschland, adds: “Building on our very strong lap times, especially toward the end of the season, and on the test results obtained over the winter, we are once again excellently equipped, tyre-wise. It is very important to us to ensure that after Uwe Alzen leaves, the team will remain in the absolute top league in terms of drivers as well.”

Nürburgring Endurance Championships (VLN): 2008 Calendar of Events

March 15 Test and tuning runs
March 29 56th ADAC Westfalenfahrt
April 12 33rd DMV 4-Hour Race
April 26 50th ADAC ACAS H&R Cup
May 10 39th Adenauer ADAC Circuit Trophy
May 24-25 36th ADAC Zurich 24-Hour Race*
June 21 48th ADAC Reinoldus Long-Distance Race
July 5 31th RCM DMV Grenzlandrennen
July 19 6-Hour ADAC Ruhr Cup
September 13 40th ADAC Barbarossapreis
October 11 32nd DMV 250-Mile Race
October 25 33rd DMV Münsterland Cup

[JK.]

Todas estas carreras son de 4 horas, a excepcion de las 24 Horas de Nurburgring y 2 carreras de 6 horas.
Este sabado estaremos en los test y pruebas oficiales que abren la temporada 2008.
Ahi les enviaremos algunas fotos.

[JK.]

Los Pilotos.
Jurgen Alzen. director y primer piloto.
Cristian ABT, de Audi ABT Sport Line. http://www.cristian-abt.de
Cristian Menzel http://www.cristian-menzel.com
Markus Gedlich, http://www.gedlich.com

Son los encargados de llevar el Little Nelly a pelear contra los grandes.

[JK.]

Markus Gedlich, manejara toda la temporada de la VLN Endurance races en Alemania junto a Jurgen Alzen.

[EVS]

HANKOOK!!