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Lichfield racer Adam Christodoulou ready to go even faster

Lichfield's Adam Christodoulou says he is ready to 'build on the best year of his career', after the racer became only the fourth British driver to win the Nurburgring 24 Hours, writes Bradley Parker.

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The 27-year-old is finalising his plans for the coming campaign, after a history-making 2016.

And while happy to reflect on his memorable season, he insisted he's ready to go even faster in 2017.

"I've had an amazing year with some unforgettable memories and I look forward to building on it next year," he said.

The GT driver made a strong start to the year when achieving an impressive recovery in the Dubai 24 Hours.

Christodolou went from 97th on the grid to second, a finish which saw him being appointed an official Mercedes-AMG driver for the season – an ambition he had been working towards since the start of his career back in 2010.

Christodolou said: "I was over the moon when the news was announced that I would be an official AMG driver, it was a dream come true.

"It was something I had been working towards for a long time having raced with Black Falcon since 2013, so when it was announced, that was a massive confidence-boost for me."

Being part of the Black Falcon team who were involved in developing the Mercedes-AMG GT3, the Lichfield racer hit the ground running in a warm-up race at the Nurburgring. Christodoulou achieved a last-lap overtake to come third.

When the 24 Hours main event came around, the team had to overcome adverse weather conditions, which saw Christodoulou start with a conservative approach

Strong storms were hitting the circuit hard causing cars to aquaplane and become stuck on the hill at Adenaur Forest.

Luckily though for the team of Christodoulou, Bernd Schneider, Maro Engel and Manuel Metzger they escaped without damage, restarting the race in the morning looking to advance into the lead.

The race then became very dramatic for the team.

After Christdoulou finished his stint in second, it was up to Engel to chase down first place.

In the Mercedes-AMG GT3, Engel kept the pressure on to the lead driver, until making the pass on the final tour, giving the car its first win in a 24-hour race.

The driver spoke of his delight saying: "Winning the Nurburgring 24 Hours was without a doubt the highlight of my career so far.

"I've been racing on the Nordschleife in various classes since 2011 and the 24 Hours is an event that everybody who competes in it dreams of winning."

The driver's joy was even greater after his disappointment last year in the same race when Christodolou lost his left rear wheel, describing it as 'watching the race slipping through his fingers'.

The dramatic ending made the win even better for the GT driver, who said: "The memory is made even more special because of the way the race ended, I was so nervous watching on the TV screens from the pits, unable to influence the outcome of the race in any way. Afterwards I lost my voice with all the screaming!"

The one blip in an otherwise amazing year for Christodoulou came in the GT Series Endurance Cup alongside team-mates Hubert Haupt and Andreas Simonsen.

After coming back from the back of the grid to fourth, the car was hit by another competitor.

Luckily Simosen was OK but Christodolou described the incident as 'all part of the learning curve'.

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