Grello crash: Aston Martin driver gives new insights

(Motorsport-Total.com) - No one can prepare for this: Being in the wrong place at the wrong time can make anyone involuntarily famous. After the 2025 Nürburgring 24 Hours, Rolf Scheibner's name suddenly became familiar to a wider audience. The Aston Martin driver is now clarifying the last remaining question in Kevin Estre's accusations: Did he really ignore too many blue flags?

The 56-year-old was initially unsure whether he should even speak out. Unlike the professional drivers, he has never completed media training and doesn't want to offend anyone. "I would like to emphasize that I fully support the team statement . I also have great respect for Kevin's speed and Team Manthey in general," he clarified in an interview with Motorsport-Total.com .

Nevertheless, he doesn't want to leave Kevin Estre's post-race accusation uncommented. Estre had accused the Dörr driver of ignoring three blue flags – a key issue in the race-deciding collision with the Manthey-EMA Porsche #911 (Estre/Güven/Preining) "Grello," which resulted in the legendary Porsche's 100-second penalty .

Scheibner shows understanding for Estre's emotional statements immediately after the race, but wants to put them into context.

First blue flag was not visible

"The first blue flag I could really see was before the 'Spiegelkurve'. There was one waved at Kallenhard, but it came so late that I couldn't see it," says Scheibner. The aforementioned "Spiegelkurve" is the fast chicane before the triple right-hander, where overtaking is virtually impossible.

"We analyzed my onboard footage: The flag was visible for exactly 0.4 seconds. From my left-hand driving position, that's a blink of an eye. I was already at the turn-in point, aiming for the apex—I simply couldn't see it," he continues.

Raffaele Marciello's onboard footage also supports this: The flag at post 107 was only waved when the Aston Martin Vantage GT4 was already level with it. The following post, 108, located on the inside of the Kallenhard corner exit, did not display a flag at all.

Estre probably recognized the flag much better than Scheibner - this is apparently the origin of the accusation that the Porsche works driver raised in the press conference after the race.

"I didn't even need the next blue flag [at post 109] because I was already aware of the cars behind me," Scheibner continued. Behind him: the "Grello," the Rowe BMW #98 (Farfus/Krohn/Marciello/van der Linde) of Raffaele Marciello, and the lapped Abt Lamborghini #27 (Pepper/Bortolotti/Juncadella) with Jordan Pepper at the wheel.

Always on the ideal line

He decided to let the vehicle convoy pass behind the "Miss-Hit-Miss": "Since it was a train of vehicles, my plan was to let them pass behind the triple right, where it would be relatively safe for everyone."

Because he approached the triple right-hander in the middle— the classic racing line at this point —a space appeared on the right that seemed like an invitation. But as the name "Miss-Hit-Miss" suggests, only the second apex was hit. So it was by no means a signal that he was making way.

"Unfortunately, staying on the outside in this corner isn't an option—especially not in the 24-hour race. There's a lot of dirt there, and the track slopes slightly down on the left side. The only way I could create predictability was to stay on the racing line, as explained in the drivers' briefing," Scheibner explains.

Since Estre had already decided to overtake, the only way to avoid the accident was for the "Grello" to drive completely onto the grass, which would have posed a high risk for everyone involved. The decision also had to be made instinctively in hundredths of a second. This is how the contact occurred.

Clarifying conversation with Estre

On Tuesday after the race, both drivers spoke by phone: "We spoke, and he said there was a misunderstanding. He thought I was staying on the outside and not continuing on the racing line. It was a good and decent conversation."

There's also a technical aspect: the speed difference between the GT3 and GT4 at this point is smaller than many assume. Scheibner speaks of 15 to 20 km/h—this also influenced his decision to complete the entire corner before attempting to make way.

He certainly knows what he's talking about. Rolf Scheibner has been racing on the Nürburgring Nordschleife since 2004. During this time, he has achieved multiple class victories and driven everything from the BMW 318iS to the legendary "Zetti," Peter Posavac's BMW Z4 GT3, in which he competed in the 2019 24-hour race.

He is also a regular driver in Genesis' Ring Taxi, completing approximately 80 laps of the Nordschleife per month. Previously, he was a driver training instructor in the automotive industry's industrial pool, which uses the Nürburgring Nordschleife for test drives.

A final note on our own behalf: Our original report, which stated that this was Scheibner's 15th start in the 24-hour race, was incomplete. In fact, it was already his 20th appearance. Our information was based on an incomplete entry in the DriverDB . His first start dates back to 2004, not 2008, as listed there.