Kumho Tire takes second on its first GT4 outing at the Nürburgring endurance race in Germany

[Financial News] Kumho Tire finished second on its first outing in the GT4 class at the Nürburgring endurance race in Germany. It took a podium finish in the grueling four-hour race, covering about 609 km, just 6.449 seconds behind the winning car, demonstrating the performance and durability of its racing tires.
Kumho Tire announced on the 21st that its sponsored team, the Kumho SL Motorsports Team, finished second in the SP10 class in the 10th round of the 2026 Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS), held at the Nürburgring in Germany on the 10th (local time).
The NLS is one of Europe’s premier endurance racing series, held on a 24.358 km circuit that includes the Nürburgring Nordschleife. The series is considered a competition in which not only high-speed performance but also tire durability and the ability to maintain performance over long periods of driving are important.
The Kumho SL Motorsports Team competed in a BMW M4 GT4 EVO alongside its local partner team, AV Racing by Black Falcon. Drivers Lee Chang-wook and Lee Jung-woo completed 25 laps, covering 608.95 km, in 4 hours, 1 minute and 34.420 seconds, finishing second among the 10 cars entered.
They battled among the leaders from the start and held the class lead for about two and a half hours. Their fastest lap was 8 minutes 38.337 seconds, 1.652 seconds faster than the winning car’s best time of 8 minutes 39.989 seconds.
For the race, Kumho Tire supplied the ‘ECSTA S700,’ designed to improve grip and handling at high speeds, and the ‘ECSTA W701,’ engineered to enhance stability and braking in wet conditions. Competing against global tire brands, it put its products’ performance to the test in a range of driving conditions.
Driver Lee Chang-wook said, “It was a challenging test, as this was our first time competing in the NLS SP10 class with a GT4 car, but we maintained a pace among the leaders from early in the race and confirmed our competitiveness.” He added, “The stable performance of Kumho racing tires and the team’s and drivers’ excellent execution led to a good result.”
Kim Young-jin, head of R&D at Kumho Tire and an executive vice president, said, “We achieved a meaningful result—a podium finish—in our first outing in the NLS SP10 class.” He added, “We will actively apply the technology and data accumulated in motorsports to our R&D efforts and strengthen our technological competitiveness in the global market.”
Meanwhile, the Kumho SL Motorsports Team also finished third in the VT2 RWD class at NLS Round 2 this past March, competing in a BMW 330i.
[email protected] Kim Dong-ho Reporter