Bulldog Racing running the MINI John Cooper Works Edition at Rundstrecken-Challenge Nürburgring 2023.

Nürburg. The MINI John Cooper Works Edition with manual gearbox of the Bulldog Racing Team impressed at this year’s 24-hour race at the Nürburgring with a 2nd place in the class for close-to-production turbocharged vehicles with a displacement of 1,600 to 2,000 cc.

In preparation for further racing, Bulldog Racing entered the MINI John Cooper Works Edition in the seventh and penultimate round of the Rundstrecken-Challenge Nürburgring 2023 (RCN). The race was held in sunny and warm weather on the 24.358-kilometre track variant (Nordschleife + GP short circuit). The total race distance was 13 laps.

This time behind the wheel: the driver duo Jens Dralle (GER) and Christoph Kragenings (GER). Jens Dralle competed for Bulldog Racing in the red MINI John Cooper Works in the SP3T class at the 24-hour race in 2022. Christoph Kragenings had his 24-hour race debut in the manual MINI John Cooper Works Edition earlier this year, immediately achieving the best result of a MINI in a 24-hour race in the 64-year history of the brand.

With 19 starters, the strong VT2 class was fiercely contested. With 4974.0 points, the duo Dralle/Kragenings achieved a solid 7th place within their class and 48th overall out of 149 cars that started the race.

The Rundstrecken-Challenge is not exclusively about the fastest lap times, but also about consistency. After four consecutive sprint laps the competitors must recreate the lap time set in the very first lap of the race as closely as possible. Due to this special task, the races of the Rundstrecken-Challenge are not conventional races. On 28 October, the RCN e.V. will hold the renowned 3-hour “Schwedenkreuz” race to close out the season, which will be held in the usual format of the endurance races at the Nürburgring.

For Bulldog Racing, the last race of the RCN season offers a good opportunity to have a final outing before the winter break and to prepare the MINI John Cooper Works race cars “Made in Nürburg” for the 2024 racing season.