Falken Motorsports will field its Porsche 997 GT3 R in this year’s VLN Endurance Championship Nürburgring and Nürburgring 24 Hours events. It says a raft of performance upgrades for its Porsche have been carried out and, coupled with an unchanged driver line up of Sebastian Asch, Peter Dumbreck, Wolf Henzler and Martin Ragginger, Falken Motorsports says it holds the “clear aim of a top ten finish in the 24 Hour event.”
The Porsche has been upgraded with a new aero package that includes wider wings, new splitter and double canards at the front with a larger rear wing to increase downforce. Enlarged cooling vents around both the front and rear arches has also been enhanced and the car is now able to run 12-inch wide rims at the front, half an inch wider than last year. Crucial for the 24 Hour race, the 997 now sports four front headlamps. In addition to the vehicle upgrades, Falken’s engineers in Japan have developed a range of new tyres for this season, with first track testing of the new covers set for the 16 March at the annual VLN Set-Up day. As mentioned, Falken Motorsports is retaining its driver line-up from last year. “After a really exciting 2012 season under our belts, it makes us all the keener to get start the 2013 season underway in a few weeks,” commented Austrian racer Martin Ragginger. “We are gearing up to give it everything we’ve got for the fans and aiming for a top ten place in 24-Hour Race.” In addition to the VLN set up day, Falken Motorsport will compete in seven of the ten VLN rounds this year.
