The Nürburgring just enacted its biggest regulation change in decades. For the first time, the iconic German race track has banned motorcycles from participating in its public "Touristenfahrten" tourist drive sessions, starting with the 2025 season.
In a statement published to Facebook on Thursday, the Nürburgring cited safety concerns as the reason for the ban. "The different driving dynamics of two- and four-wheelers pose a risk of misunderstandings—especially for motorcyclists," the statement reads. "In order to make the driving experience safer for everyone, cars and motorcycles will be strictly separated in the future."
From now on, the iconic Nordschleife tourist sessions—where anyone with a registered vehicle can show up and enter the track—will be restricted to cars only. Motorcyclists will still be able to drive the 12.9-mile circuit, but they'll be restricted to "guided rides during professionally organized trainings."
While it's disappointing to see motorcyclists lose easy access to the most iconic race track in the world, we get where officials are coming from. The Nürburgring is an incredibly dangerous place, with lots of blind corners and no run-off. 'Ring-centric blog Bridge to Gantry theorizes officials wanted to limit the amount of time they spend on tending to motorcycle crashes, which are usually severe enough to close the entire track, meaning they'd lose out on revenue.
The Nürburgring won't be totally closed off to motorcyclists in 2025, though. The track will still let two-wheeled vehicles onto the shorter, more modern Grand Prix circuit. There are 38 tourist drive dates set for this year, with "exclusive stints for motorcycles."
