Porsche Wins Nurburgring Endurance Race, But Not without Epic Three-Car Battle with Audi

Even if you’re not a Porsche fan, you can't help but admire Zuffenhausen’s performance in their second comeback year. After having won Le Mans back in June, Porsche now grabbed a 1-2 finish at the Nurburgring, marking the second consecutive WEC (World Endurance Championship) win for the German carmaker.

The Nurburgring race also brought Mark Webber and his two teammates, Timo Bernhard and Brendon Hartley, a series first win in their No.17 car. Mark must’ve enjoyed his trip to the ‘Ring before the race, which was completed in his just-delivered 918 Spyder - the car uses a livery inspired from that of Mark’s 919 racecar.

This puts the trio just 17 points behind their Porsche teammates Lotterer, Fassler and Treluyer, with the latter having taken second place at both Silverstone and Spa in their No.19 racecar.

However, it’s the No.18 Porsche 919 Hybrid, which is driven by Marc Lieb, Neel Jani and Romain Dumas, that we want to focus on. An engine sensor controlling the fuel flow failed, causing the racecar to exceed the fuel allowance and receive no less than three stop-and-go penalties. While the first was a five-second one, the following two saw the car freezing for 30 and 60 seconds, respectively.

After the first penalty, Lieb was so eager to make up that he engaged in a fight with Webber, with the two cars slightly touching each other in a side-by-side episode. Nevertheless, the other two penalties, which were considerably longer, ruined any chance for the podium.

However, with Jani behind the wheel, the No.18 Porsche took on a fight with both Audi R18 etron quattros. You can check out the footage below to see the fight, which once again shows WEC is above F1 nowadays, at least in terms of the show.