The Nürburgring has heeded to the widespread calls to name a Nordschleife corner after late German racing driver and TV personality Sabine Schmitz, who sadly passed away from cancer at age 51 in March this year. The legendary German circuit announced this week that the first corner of the Nordschleife – a left-hand curve – would now be named the “Sabine-Schmitz-Kurve”. The official inauguration is set to take place on September 11 at the 6-hour Nürburgring Endurance Series.
Widely known as the “Queen of the Nordschleife”, Schmitz grew up near the legendary 20,8 km-long circuit in Nürburg, Germany, and she spent a large chunk of her life pushing vehicles to the limit there. She also became the first woman to win the famous 24h Race there as one of her many notable motorsport achievements.
However, many will remember Sabine Schmitz for her appearance in the sixth season of BBC Top Gear, where she successfully embarrassed Jeremy Clarkson by almost beating the time he’d posted in a Jaguar S-Type – in a standard Ford Transit van. It goes without saying that she was deeply familiar with the hilly German circuit and its 73 corners. The owners of the Nürburgring say that she has lapped the Nordschleife over 33 000 times.
CAR Magazine was also honoured to have had Sabine Schmitz as a special guest in our 2011 Performance Shootout.
“A cheerful laugh, an open ear for every fan and the Nordschleife in the heart – that’s how Sabine Schmitz is remembered,” Nürburgring management said. “She became known all over the world for her extraordinary friendly manner and her performances on the demanding race track. In many TV shows she brought the Nordschleife into the living rooms of the spectators. Sabine Schmitz was the ambassador of the Nürburgring. Her name was mentioned around the globe in the same breath as our race track”.