Mercedes-Benz Classic enters the fray in the “Youngtimer Trophy” racing series

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As of the 2013 season, Mercedes-Benz Classic is also taking up an involvement in the “Youngtimer Trophy” racing series. The Classic division of the world’s oldest automobile company is planning to field a specially designed vehicle from a model series with a grand racing tradition, for example. It is planned to race this young classic at Youngtimer Trophy meetings as of this year. The involvement in the Dunlop FHR Endurance Cup is also set to continue with the Mercedes-Benz 220 SE.

“In supporting and participating in these competitions we are further broadening our commitment to historic motor sport events,” says Michael Bock, head of Mercedes-Benz Classic. “It all began in 2011 with the Dunlop FHR Endurance Cup and our 220 SE in racing guise. We are now following this up with a younger, equally fascinating vehicle in the Youngtimer Trophy. A real turn-up for the books is in store once again.”

The two automobile enthusiasts Egon Meurer and Hans Schnock established the Youngtimer Trophy in 1993 as a racing series for vehicles from homologation years 1966 to 1988. The races are contested by models which have been prepared in accordance with the specifications pertaining to the period concerned, enabling key moments of recent motorsport history to be captured in authentic and fascinating style.

The special allure of recent racing history is reflected by the number of competitors in the starting line-up: while the first season of the Youngtimer Trophy was contested by 35 vehicles, this number had grown to well over 200 teams by 1997 and the 300 mark of competitors was topped in 2005. Apart from providing a vital link to recent touring car racing history, the event has also played a crucial role in fostering today’s thriving young classic scene over the past two decades.

Vehicles built up to 1988 are eligible in the 2013 season. Nine meetings are scheduled, at venues including Hockenheim, the Nürburgring, Spa and Zolder. Ranking points are up for grabs in the disciplines circuit race, endurance race, and rally.

Youngtimer Trophy and FHR Endurance Cup

Mercedes-Benz Classic’s involvement in the Youngtimer Trophy is its second venture into historic motorsport: back in 2011, a Mercedes-Benz 220 SE (W 111) modified for circuit racing competed as a works touring car in the Dunlop FHR Endurance Cup. This car will be in the running once again in the 2013 season. The saloon is a firm favourite with the fans, who refer to it affectionately as the “racing fintail”. The 220 SE sporting authentic grey paintwork recalls Mercedes-Benz’s victories with this model in endurance races and rallies in the late 1950s and early 1960s. This series, organised by the Fahrergemeinschaft Historischer Rennsport (FHR) – a community of drivers dedicated to promoting historic racing – is contested by vehicles built between 1949 and 1972.

As such, FHR and Youngtimer Trophy complement each other perfectly. Their meetings take place on identical race days. The special flair of the Youngtimer Trophy, in which touring cars and GTs compete in a total of nine divisions and 54 classes, also recalls Mercedes-Benz’s racing activities in the corresponding years – up to the successes in the German Touring Car Masters (DTM). Mercedes-Benz’s keen support of these historic racing series highlights the company’s strong ties to its own motor sport history and helps to bring these eras back to life for drivers and fans alike.

Credits: Daimler AG

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