TIME PENALTY COSTS ROWE RACING

PODIUM PLACE AT 24H OF SPA

What a thrilling race at the 24 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps! The two BMW M4 GT3 EVOs from ROWE RACING were in the leading group right up to the very end and tried everything to achieve the next top result after their victory at the Nürburgring. After 549 laps, Augusto Farfus, Jesse Krohn and Raffaele Marciello crossed the finish line third with the #98. Due to a time penalty they dropped back to fifth place in the standings.

Philipp Eng, three-time Spa winner, Dan Harper and Max Hesse were also in a promising position for a long time with their #998, but had to park their car in the pits after a technical defect shortly before the end of the race. They finished 29th.

COMMENTS ON THE RACE

"We have had an incredibly intense and emotional two weeks. We celebrated a great success at the Nürburgring and continued this high level here at Spa. We were in the top three for twelve hours and kept the flags flying high for BMW M Motorsport and ROWE RACING. In the end, it wasn't quite enough for another podium. Our performance in the final phase was not as good as it should have been compared to the competition. That's part of motorsport, you have to accept that. Congratulations to the winners, who also did a good job. The race was very tough, but all the drivers and team members did a great job despite the high level of stress. A huge thank you and a big compliment for that! That was the toughest thing we've ever done as a team."

Hans-Peter Naundorfer

Team Principal ROWE RACING

"Those were two weekends of pure thrills! After the victory at the Nürburgring, we were very optimistic and fully motivated. The time penalty against the #98 and the retirement of the #998 shortly before the end of the race are very bitter, because the entire team fought to the end and simply did a great job during these two intense weeks. That brings us even closer together. We would like to congratulate the teams that finished ahead of us. At the same time, we are also enormously proud of the entire ROWE RACING team and everyone who contributed to this strong performance. This mammoth program was only possible as a functioning community with a common goal. I am incredibly proud of that! We have impressively confirmed our role as one of the best endurance racing teams in the world and shown that we at ROWE not only talk about a passion for motorsport, but also live this passion with great joy and a lot of emotion - on and off the track."

Dr. Alexandra Kohlmann

ROWE Managing Director

"Inspired by the victory at the Nürburgring, we traveled to Spa with a very good feeling that we could also attack at the front here. You could see for a long time that we have very good pace. A top position was more than possible. It's a great pity that we were knocked out of third place by a time penalty, I really would have wished the drivers and the whole team well. I'm also sorry for #998, which would also have achieved a top result, that it wasn't able to finish on the track. Many thanks to everyone who cheered us on over the two 24-hour weekends and kept their fingers crossed for us. I think we have shown that we are capable of anything with passion, team spirit and the support of the fans. We want to continue to live up to this ambitious role in the future."

Stefan Wermter

ROWE Managing Director

WHAT THE DRIVERS SAY

Augusto Farfus (#98 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, ROWE RACING): "It was a bitter end for us. We gave everything we had. I think a podium was within reach, but no more. Apart from this small mistake with the track limits, we implemented our race plan very well. The team made perfect pit stops, the strategy and everything else was perfect too. It was so close - and then so far away. Personally, I have enough reasons to smile because BMW M Motorsport has given me the opportunity to take part in the three biggest 24-hour races in the world with a competitive car. That's what I'm taking with me - including the victory at the Nürburgring a week ago."

Dan Harper (#998 BMW M4 GT3 EVO, ROWE RACING): "It was a rollercoaster ride. As always, the guys prepared the car superbly. Unfortunately, a full-course yellow came at the worst possible time for us at the end, after we had led for a while and were consistently battling in the top three. From that moment on, luck was no longer on our side. But I think ROWE RACING can still be proud: with two cars fighting for the podium until the end, after a fantastic win at the Nürburgring last week. They always deliver, and it's just sad for them and BMW M Motorsport that it wasn't enough for the podium this time."

ROWE RACING - ONE TEAM. ONE GOAL.

ROWE is involved in motorsport not just out of passion for the sport or for a good image, but because no test is more realistic than out on the race track. We therefore use findings from our “driving laboratory” to research new lubricants and to optimize existing formulations. With ROWE RACING, we achieve something that cannot be recreated in any laboratory in the world: the practical test under extreme conditions.

The team's main focus has always been on endurance racing, but especially on the extreme challenge of the 24-hour races. “The more difficult the situation and the greater the stress, the more ROWE RACING can shine,” says Hans-Peter Naundorf, Team Principal of ROWE RACING.

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