It sounds like a headline straight out of the early 2000s: Timo Bernhard and Jörg Bergmeister joining forces to race for Porsche. Fast forward to August 2026, and Porsche has somehow pulled off bringing two of its most accomplished drivers back together in the same cockpit.
And this is no ordinary entry: the two Germans are taking the wheel of the very last Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS (982 generation) ever built, tackling the competitive SP10 (GT4) class.
Neither driver needed much convincing. “Both of us are brand ambassadors and we share a long history together,” Bernhard told Motorsport.com Germany. “The museum team knew the chemistry was right and that we would both jump at an opportunity like this.”
The entry is a joint effort between Team Porsche Heritage and Museum and Bernhard’s own Team 75 Motorsport. Porsche claims the collaboration between its museum operation and an active race team is unprecedented among manufacturers.
Armin Burger, Coordinator of Historic Motorsport at Porsche, revealed the idea had been brewing for three years. “It all started back at Le Mans in 2023. I was sitting down with Joerg, chatting about the end of the 982 production run,” he told Motorsport.com Germany.
“Jörg casually mentioned how refined and fast these cars have become, to the point where the Clubsport’s lap times are practically nipping at the heels of modern supercars.” Bergmeister, after all, remains actively involved in test-driving Porsche’s upcoming road cars.
Once the concept was approved, securing Bergmeister and Team 75 boss Bernhard proved straightforward. “Whenever people ask why we chose these two, I tell them: simple, they were the cheapest option since they are already on the payroll as brand ambassadors,” Burger joked.
Even so, the pair ended up with a bigger task than initially pitched, as Bernhard admitted with a grin: “I was under the impression we were doing a standard four-hour race. Then Armin dropped the news that it was actually the six-hour event!” The six-hour race is the flagship event of the NLS season, which usually consists of 4-hour races.
Documentary focus meets Nordschleife ambition
The project centres on a documentary following the final 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS from production to its competitive debut.
The production crew has tracked the chassis every step of the way—starting in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen, moving to Osnabrück for the installation of the roll cage and sustainable flax-fibre body panels, taking on functional checks with Manthey at the Nürburgring, and finishing with the official rollout in Weissach.
The NLS event will provide the documentary’s climax, with the film scheduled for release shortly afterwards.
However, once elite racers strap into a cockpit, instincts take over. Nobody is treating this as a casual parade. “Our prep time was pretty limited,” Bergmeister explained to Motorsport.com Germany. “We will be tweaking the set-up after testing, and hopefully, we land in a good window.”
Timo Bernhard ist Teamchef und Fahrer in Personalunion
Foto: smg/Stritzke
The appointment of former Porsche LMP1 chief engineer Stephen Mitas underlines the seriousness of the effort. Mitas also played a leading technical role in Bernhard’s record-breaking Nürburgring lap with the 919 Evo.
Compared with the hybrid prototype, the GT4 Cayman is considerably simpler, although that creates different challenges. “You don’t get telemetry or massive data streams on this car. I actually have to listen to driver feedback now, which makes everything way more complicated,” Mitas laughed.
Bernhard laughed back: “Meanwhile, he asks me for feedback after just six minutes out on track. I had to remind him that I’m not driving the Evo anymore and a lap around here takes a little longer in this car!”
The task ahead will be anything but easy. The benchmark in the SP10 class this season has been the PROsport Racing Mercedes-AMG GT4, driven by Anton Abee, Yannick Himmels, and Jorg Viebahn.
Black Falcon’s BMW M4 GT4 is another major contender, having already won this season with Malcolm Harrison, David Ogburn, Ross Turner and Alexandru Vasilescu.
“We can’t just rock up here and expect to beat guys who race on the Nordschleife all year long,” Bernhard acknowledged. “The level of competition is super high, so we’re keeping expectations grounded. But once we find our rhythm, we should be right in the mix.”
A legendary pairing born from a penalty
Bergmeister and Bernhard claimed GT honours at the 2002 Daytona 24 Hours before scoring a remarkable overall victory one year later. In 2002, they took GT class victory before making headlines in 2003 by driving their Porsche 996 GT3 RS to a shock overall win against faster prototypes.
Ironically, that legendary partnership originated as a punishment. After Bergmeister, Bernhard, and Marc Lieb engaged in a fierce on-track feud during the 2001 Porsche Carrera Cup finale, former Porsche Motorsport chief Herbert Ampferer responded by placing Bernhard and Bergmeister in the same car at Daytona—and booking them onto the same flight.
The punishment had an unexpected result, forging a partnership now ready to write one more chapter.
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