As reported by Sportscar365, Renger van der Zande will compete in the 2026 Nürburgring 24 Hours behind the wheel of HWA’s EVO.R, a modern recreation inspired by the iconic Mercedes 190E EVO II DTM machine from the 1990s.
The Dutch driver, who currently competes in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship with Acura, will take part in the Nordschleife endurance classic as part of HWA’s ambitious programme to showcase the newly developed car.
The project blends heritage with modern engineering and will bring three EVO.R machines to the Nürburgring for the May 16–17 race.
HWA brings historic DTM inspiration to the Nordschleife for 2026 Nürburgring 24 with van der Zande, Ludwig, Asch and Winkelhock
HWA announced last month that it would field three EVO.R cars in the Nürburgring 24, marking the first competitive outing for the project on the legendary circuit.
The driver line-up already includes Luca Ludwig and Sebastian Asch, the sons of two drivers who competed in the original Mercedes 190E DTM programme. They will share driving duties alongside experienced GT racer Markus Winkelhock.
Now van der Zande joins the group, adding significant endurance racing experience to the initiative.
The upcoming race marks van der Zande’s return to the Nürburgring 24 after his last appearance in 2023, when he competed in a Scherer Sport Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II. Earlier in his career, the Dutchman also achieved a strong result at the event, finishing second overall in 2016 while driving a Mercedes-AMG GT3.
However, his 2026 outing will differ significantly from those previous appearances, as the HWA EVO.R represents a very different concept compared with modern GT3 machinery.
Van der Zande recently had the opportunity to test the car at the Nordschleife earlier this week. Despite challenging weather conditions, he reported an encouraging experience while sampling the machine for the first time. The driver explained that the project’s rapid development and historical connection make the opportunity particularly special.
“I did a couple of laps on the Nordscleife in the wet and it’s tricky but the car is behaving,” he said. “It’s pretty impressive that HWA built a car like that in 100 days – they decided last November and we’re going to race it in May. I’m super proud to be a part of it, it’s super cool to be in one of those cars.”
Legendary DTM heritage behind the project
The HWA EVO.R draws inspiration from the famous Mercedes 190E EVO II, one of the defining cars of the Deutsche Tourenwagen Meisterschaft (DTM) era during the early 1990s.
The original machine achieved major success in the championship. In particular, Klaus Ludwig secured the 1992 DTM title driving the car, while Roland Asch finished sixth in the same season.
By bringing a modern interpretation of the classic racer to the Nürburgring 24 grid, HWA aims to celebrate that heritage while introducing the car to a new generation of fans at the Nordschleife.
