Nürburgring Endurance Series: November 2022 events

The Nürburgring Endurance Series usually ends its season in October but due to Covid in 2020 and ’21 dates had to be juggled around – and normal service has not quite resumed yet. Heavy snow in April meant that a round had to be rescheduled – to November 5. So what should have been the NES finale is now the last race but one.

The series consists of eight races from March onwards, most lasting for four hours. All are held at that most challenging of tracks – the Nürburgring Nordschleife. First, a Nordschleife refresher: the ‘Green Hell’ features almost 1000ft of difference in elevation. The track’s lowest point sits at 1050ft above sea level and the highest is 2020ft. Its length is a real test of a driver’s mettle. There are 73 turns – 40 right and 33 left – over the track’s 13-mile distance.

Sections that demand respect, and thus favourable places for spectating, include the Flugplatz, a short straight that climbs sharply then drops downhill into two right-hand kinks. Then there’s the Fuchsröhre, which comes out of a long right-hand corner, rises and then plunges downhill where the drivers must nip left and right. This sequence is followed by a jump which often sends a car airborne. As the lap nears its end, the Schwalbenschwanz poses a last conundrum: a swift right-hand sweep that leads to an incline and into a slow, blind left-hander.

The field consists of as many as 165 cars, from road-legal racers to pro factory teams, all starting on the grid together to compete in a multitude of classes. It’s a real mix of machinery too, with a slew of Porsches and BMWs, and the odd Ferrari, Aston and Glickenhaus thrown in for good measure – many in typically German dayglo livery.

With an admission ticket, spectators have access to all open grandstands, the paddock and the starting grid. The driver list is as long as a phone book and you will never see a more busy podium at the end of the race.

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MOTO GP – AUSTRALIAN GRAND PRIX
Phillip Island Circuit, October 14-16
After having been cancelled in 2020 and 2021, round 18 of the season returns to Phillip Island, which will now stay on the MotoGP roster until 2026. The 2.76-mile circuit features 12 turns and is one of the fastest tracks on the calendar.

W SERIES – MEXICAN GRAND PRIX
Autódromo Hermanos Rodriguez, October 28-30
Mexico City hosts the season finale as the double-header shifts south from Austin. This is the first time W Series has raced at the 2.7-mile circuit, which is at a dizzying 7500ft above sea level – with difficult overtaking.

WORLD SUPERBIKE – MOTUL ARGENTINEAN ROUND
Circuito San Juan Villicum, October 22-23
This circuit is a relative whippersnapper, having only opened in 2018. It comprises 15 turns over 2.7 miles. Scott Redding set the lap record at 1min 37.345sec last year, but having switched teams in 2022, can he match his performance?

WORLD RALLYCROSS – WORLD RX OF CATALUNYA
Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, October 29-30
World Rallycross returns to Catalunya for the seventh year running, with the addition of two gravel sections. The top standings in the RX1e drivers’ championship are a Scandinavian shoo-in, with Swedes Johan Kristoffersson and the Hansen brothers – Timmy and Kevin – looking strong.

NASCAR truck series – LUCAS OIL 150
Phoenix Raceway, November 4
Over 150 laps, drivers will cover 150 miles in the playoffs for Championship 4. Phoenix is one of the only tracks which features a mile-long lap. In 2020, Zane Smith set the lap record: 26.774sec. And while Chandler Smith won the title last year, he finished only third here.