We’ve already reported on the dramatic finish to yesterday’s Nürburgring 24 hour race which saw the #11 Manthey Porsche crashed into by the #169 Renault Clio. The incident happened with just seconds remaining on the 24 hour countdown.

However, as the winning car was still some 30 seconds away the race was not officially over. It’s being speculated that the Porsche driver was concerned he would run out of fuel and so pulled to the side of the track. It had been in a battle for third place, but as the car was unable to officially cross the line under its own steam it registers as a DNF.

Unfortunately the news is just as bad for the Clio. It was leading its class at the time and only needed to complete one more lap to make that position official. Instead both cars effectively raced for the 24 hours but left with nothing more than an expensive repair bill.

A brief video of the crash can be seen after the break. Sport auto has a very good sequence of photos too, showing the moments prior to and after the crash, including the winning Audi crossing the finish line in the background.

[via Bridge to Gantry | Pic: sport auto]