There is no better way to honour a race car driver than to name a corner after them. This weekend, ahead of the VLN Nürburgring Endurance Series 6-hour race at the Nordschleife, the Nürburgring will officially rename the ‘unnamed’ T13 corner to ‘Sabine-Schmitz-Kurve’ in memory of the late Sabine Schmitz.
The name-change comes after a grassroots campaign to name a corner in honour of the two-time Nürburgring 24 Hours winner and 1998 VLN champion.
Sabine Schmitz grew up in Nürburg a stone’s throw away from the old entrance to the Nordschleife, commonly called T13 after the grandstand where cars turn from the modern Grand Prix track onto the daunting Nordschleife.
“I am very pleased that the Nürburgring is paying ‘Bienchen’ this very special honour for her great solidarity with the racetrack and her unique commitment as an ambassador. The inauguration at the seventh NLS race in memory of Sabine will be a very special moment for our entire team,” commented her longtime partner Klaus Abbelen. The Frikadelli Racing owner will himself take the wheel of the Pro-Am #30 Porsche 991.2 GT3R alongside Felipe Fernández Laser and Julien Andlauer.
Speedbeat Motorsport, run by Sabine Schmitz’ younger brother Beat Schmitz, also takes part in the 6-hour race for a one-off appearance. Having closed shop in early 2021, the squad is back for one last hurrah with the BMW 325i ‘Gisela’.
The NLS Rowe 6 Stunden ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen takes place on Saturday 11 September with the green flag scheduled for 12:00 CEST. Watch qualifying (8:30 CEST) and the race live on GT.REPORT/live.
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