What’s it like to race the Nürburgring at night?

The Nürburgring: oft described as the longest, most technically challenging and dangerous racetrack in the world. A fearsome 12.9-mile cauldron of nothing but thick forest and vegetation as far as the eyes can see, and one 154-corner strip of tarmac to help you traverse it. Less oft described as: really bloody terrifying.

It’s tough, to say the least. Tougher still when the sun calls it quits for the day and it’s “you, the car and a bit of light”, according to Nicholas Otto. He formed part of the Max Kruse Racing team which topped their class at the 2024 Nürburgring 24 Hours in a Volkswagen Golf.

We caught up with him over the race weekend to gain some understanding of just what makes racing the ‘Ring under the lights (or lack thereof) so difficult.

“It’s 60 degrees in the car, three straight hours of driving through the dark, and you’ve got to keep your pace up as hard as you can. By the end of your stint, you’re soaked in sweat, you’re dehydrated, you’re hungry and your eyes go blurry because you’ve been so laser focused for so long.

“It’s hard enough during the day, but at night, it’s even worse because you’re concentrating much, much harder. Mentally it’s something else. You’ve always got to keep your mind at 110 per cent if you want to make it out of the night shift in one piece.”

Driving aside, it’s also easy to forget that preparation for your next stint needs to be factored in as well.

“Another problem is, between stints, you may only have three or four hours to get yourself ready before your next turn. It’s not easy to do that, especially during the night if you’re doing a double stint.

“I might be in the car between 1am and 4am, and then back in for 8am. In that small gap between both, you need to eat, sleep, psyche yourself mentally and physically. There’s a lot to do and very little time to do it. And since this is at night, your body clock feels completely betrayed.”

Despite the obvious perils that drivers face, Otto believes the magic of the ‘Ring makes the ordeal worth it.

“We’re going to reach over 300,000 fans around the track this year - this is not usual. People are camping everywhere you look, there are traffic jams everywhere you go, parties as far as the eyes can see. Until the early hours of the morning it’s just people cheering and dancing, and fireworks going off. It’s truly magical, and it only intensifies when the sun goes down.”