Calvin de Groot nets NXT Gen Cup clean sweep at Nürburgring
The third and final NXT Gen Cup race at the iconic Nürburgring delivered yet another last-lap thriller. Points leader Calvin de Groot secured his third consecutive win by just 0.046 seconds ahead of Enzo Hallman, completing a clean sweep of the German race weekend alongside the DTM.
The third and final race was delayed due to fog, but resumed once the classic Eifel region weather cleared.
As the race got underway, it was a carbon copy of Race 1. Enzo Hallman chased down Calvin de Groot for yet another last-lap thriller. In a dramatic finish, the Swedish racer made a late push-to-pass attempt for the win, but with only a 0.046-second margin, Calvin de Groot clinched his third victory of the weekend.
The 20-year-old has finished in the top two in every race this season and holds a comfortable lead in the standings.
“I’m really happy with the weekend. After Friday, I wasn’t satisfied with my performance, but from the first race, I gained confidence. The last race was tricky. The other guys were so quick and could follow my lines. I tried to break their slipstream but made a mistake and lost a lot of ground. It was another tight finish with Enzo, but we made it, and I’m so happy right now,” said Calvin de Groot.
Victor Nielsen started the race from pole position but dropped through the field after spinning and hitting an advertising board. The Dane managed to salvage points with a fifth-place finish, maintaining his hold on second in the championship trailing de Groot by 46 points.
“Good points this weekend, but I think I could have gotten more out of it, especially with the pole positions. I still secured a podium and a pole position at the Nürburgring, but I didn’t maximize my performance,” said Victor Nielsen.
Enzo Hallman came close to victory twice at the Nürburgring, narrowly missing out to Calvin de Groot by less than five-hundredths of a second on both occasions. With a solid points haul this weekend, the Swede moves up to third in the standings.
“Overall, we had good speed. I made a mistake in Race 2, but aside from that, I secured two podiums and gained some ground in the championship. It was really close with Calvin once again, and it’s a bit frustrating not to get the win. But it will come,” said Enzo Hallman.
Linus Stjernelund continued on his podium streak with a third consecutive third-place finish in Race 3. The 15-year-old Swede made a bold attempt to pass Calvin de Groot for the lead, but locked up his brakes and went wide.
“A great weekend for me. I knew it would be a challenge to get on the podium, let alone three times. In the last race, I felt I was quicker than Calvin, but a mistake cost me the win. Overall, it was a fantastic weekend,” said Linus Stjernelund.
Patricija Keita-Stalidzane continued to shine as the top female driver, securing a seventh-place finish and maintaining her hold on sixth in the championship.
The NXT Gen Cup will continue its electrifying second season as the series heads to the Sachsenring in three weeks’ time, to continue its journey alongside DTM on September 6-8.
Points and results
Standings
Results
2024 NXT Gen Cup entry list
# – Name – Nationality
2 – Greaham Hofmans - Netherlands
3 – Linus Stjernelund – Sweden
4 – Patricija Keita-Stalidzane – Latvia
7 – Enzo Hallman – Sweden
8 – Chantal Röhner – Germany
9 – Lukas Stiefelhagen – Netherlands
10 – Ben Bendler – Germany
11 – Storm Julius Gjerdrum – Norway
12 – Filip Bartoš – Czechia
21 – Siri Hökfelt – Sweden
23 – Laurenz Rühl – Germany
24 – Calvin de Groot – Netherlands
35 – Benjamin Mazatis – Germany
47 – Sophie Hofmann – Germany
50 – Victor Nielsen – Denmark
91 – Misha Charoudin – Netherlands
About NXT Gen Cup
The NXT Gen Cup is the world’s first 100% electric junior touring car cup where young female and male drivers race the LRT NXT1, a fully electric race car based on the MINI Cooper SE road car - engineered and built by Lestrup Racing Team. The series races together with DTM and is organised through an “arrive and drive” concept, enabling the junior drivers to focus on driving and creating the foundation for a professional racing career.
About DTM
DTM is Europe’s premier and best-known racing series and is celebrating its 40th birthday in 2024. As one of the most competitive racing series, DTM features seven prestigious brands in its anniversary season. The DTM has a German core, but a strong international fan base. Races are broadcasted live in 150 territories. The series is also a leader in sustainable motorsport. For the second season, all cars are powered by a sustainable fuel made of 50% renewable components. Not only the cars racing in DTM are in the centre of sustainable projects. For the events itself the ADAC as promoter of the DTM offers innovations like an initiative to reduce plastic waste and a digital carpool solution, which has been recognised and awarded by the FIA.