RCN Round 5: Schneider/Reimer extend lead at Nürburgring

The fifth round of the 2026 Rundstrecken-Challenge Nürburgring (RCN) took place in ideal summer conditions at the Eifel circuit, attracting nearly 160 teams to compete in the "Um die Westfalen-Trophy" time attack event. After a six-week break, stable weather and close competition defined the day, though a prolonged Code-60 safety phase disrupted proceedings.

Jens Schneider and Robin Reimer (Engelsbrand/Schömberg) maintained their championship lead with their fourth class victory in R4, extending their advantage over rivals. "We could maintain our pace even in traffic," Schneider said. "The RCN title is now something we cannot ignore." Sven Markert and Lars Harbeck (Berlin, BMW 320i) followed closely as first pursuers after their fourth success in class H3, while Christian Koch (Wickede, BMW 325i) held third overall in H4. In the 22-car R4 class, potential challengers faltered: Jan Buchwald (Wenden) retired with a water pump failure, and Sachs Steinhardt (Hilden), moving from RS4 to series-production machinery, lost time in a Code-60 zone and missed his target class win.

Michael Luther and Markus Schmickler (Barsbüttel/Bad Neuenahr, BMW M4 GT4) claimed overall victory for the second time this season. David Vogt (Waldfeucht, Opel Astra TCR) finished second, while Markert and Harbeck completed the podium in third—their best RCN result to date. Rolf Weißenfels (Peterslahr, Peugeot 308 TCR) narrowly missed the podium in fourth, just four seconds adrift on his first outing of the year. Alexander Böhm and Jürgen Marzi (Drees/Trier, Porsche Cayman GT4 CS) won Cup 3 in fifth place.

Notably, Yannik Fübrich, current NLS championship leader, guest-drove for Dirk Maier (Albstadt) in a BMW M2 Competition. Although a communication error excluded him from the results, Fübrich praised the experience: "The RCN is an ideal series for motorsport newcomers. Driving against the clock was a real challenge."

In RCN Light, Nikolas Rheisner (Wittlich, BMW M3) took the day's honours and assumed the championship lead, displacing previous points leader Christopher Schwietzke (Nottuln, BMW 325i), who struggled with confirmation runs during the extended Code-60 phase.