RNW Staff

Work is well underway to ensure that next year’s Total 24 Hours of Spa and SRO Spa Speedweek provide spectators with an unforgettable return to the legendary Ardennes venue, including activities both on and off the circuit.

Three manufacturers and nine driver crews will battle for Intercontinental GT Challenge Powered by Pirelli title honours at the season-closing Kyalami 9 Hour next weekend (December 10-12).

After several podiums in 2019, Bullitt racing is back to GT4 South European Series, this time for a full season with two Mercedes-AMG GT4 and the surprise Mclaren 570S.

Founded ten years ago, the Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing Programme also remains on course for success in its anniversary season. In spite of various races being cancelled due to the Covid-19 situation, the international AMG Customer Racing Teams were again able to rack up numerous victories and titles, seamlessly continuing their successful streak from the record years 2018 and 2019. In 320 races with participation of Customer Racing cars from Affalterbach this year, there were 69 overall wins and 169 class wins. In the course of the season, a total of 97 customer teams ran the Mercedes-AMG GT3 and the Mercedes-AMG GT4 all over the world – more than ever before in the ten-year history of the programme. With their achievements at the race track, the teams and drivers collected more than 25 championship titles for the Mercedes-Benz performance and sports car brand.

United Autosports are delighted to confirm that Jim McGuire, Duncan Tappy and Andrew Bentley will return to the team for the 2021 European Le Mans Series. 

Meyer Shank Racing (MSR) has finalized its 2021 IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship lineup and is pleased to announce that Juan Pablo Montoya has signed with the team to compete in the IMSA Michelin Endurance Cup rounds in the No. 60 MSR Acura ARX-05 Prototype.

The new-for-2020 GR Supra GT4 made an immediate impact in its first year of racing. In its debut season, Toyota Gazoo Racing Europe’s latest customer race car competed in 84 races, earning 25 class podiums, 11 class wins and its first title: Wilfried Cazalbon and Caesar Gazeau secured the Am Cup title at the FFSA GT – GT4 France season finale at Paul Ricard on 22 November.

Such has been the frenetic pace of this year’s condensed motor racing year due to the worldwide COVID virus, Phil Hanson is only now able to reflect on what has been an unbelievably successful and history-making 2020. In terms of this year’s truncated season Phil, from Sunningdale, Berkshire, achieved his three, pre-season goals in stunning style. Having only turned 21-years-old two months earlier, Phil won the Le Mans 24 Hours for the first time – the pinnacle of sportscar racing for a driver. Phil’s victory in the United Autosports entered Oreca earned him the 2019-20 FIA World Endurance Championship LMP2 title – becoming the youngest-ever WEC champion in his first full WEC season – with still a race remaining.

The Takanokono Hotel FUJI GT 300km RACE, Round 8 of the 2020 AUTOBACS SUPER GT series, was held at the Fuji Speedway (one lap 4,563m×65 laps) in Shizuoka Prefecture on November 29 (Sun). In the GT500 class, the No. 100 RAYBRIG NSX-GT (Naoki Yamamoto/Tadasuke Makino) won the race, and in doing so won the series Drivers and Team titles as well. In the GT300 class, the SAITAMATOYOPET GB GR Supra GT (Hiroki Yoshida/Kohta Kawaai) won the race from pole position, while the class title went to the No. 56 Realize Nissan Automobile Technical College GT-R (Kiyoto Fujinami/Joao Paulo de Oliveira).

The qualifying for the Takanokono Hotel FUJI GT 300km RACE, 8th and final round of the 2020 AUTOBACS SUPER GT series, was held at the Fuji Speedway in Shizuoka Prefecture on November 28 (Sat). In the GT500 class, the pole position was taken by Yamashita in the No. 37 KeePer TOM’S GR Supra (Ryo Hirakawa/Kenta Yamashita). In the GT300 class, Kawaii in the SAITAMATOYOPET GB GR Supra GT’s (Hiroki Yoshida/Kohta Kawaai) that took his first pole position. These two cars will start tomorrow’s race from the front position in their respective class grids at 13:00.

United Autosports are happy to confirm that Daniel Schneider and Andy Meyrick will rejoin the team for their second season in the Michelin Le Mans Cup in 2021.

Audi will face the world GT3 sports car elite for the last time this year at the Kyalami race track between Johannesburg and Pretoria from December 10 to 12, 2020. After three major endurance races in Australia, the USA and Europe, the Kyalami 9 Hour race will complete the 2020 season in the Intercontinental GT Challenge (IGTC). Three Audi Sport race cars and a privately used R8 LMS represent the brand in South Africa.

After being on top in every session and winning the Qualification Race of the 2020 Macau GT Cup, a controversial post-race penalty meant that Darryl O’Young was relegated to 11th on the grid for the final race on Sunday. He produced a thrilling comeback drive, attacking and overtaking at the fast and narrow Guia street circuit and made his way up to 3rd, but due to a lap count-back from a red flag, was classified in 4th position.

A great qualifying performance by Darryl O’Young in the morning meant that the Hong Kong race driver would start the Qualification Race from first place. After leading the field away in the 8-lap Qualification Race, the race was called short due to poor visibility due to the fading daylight, and O’Young took victory ahead of Alex Liu in 9th place with just 2 laps of green flag running. 

Racing to the championship at the same track where the team first tested the car some 48 months before, Meyer Shank Racing closed out a spectacular four year run with the Acura NSX GT3 by securing its second consecutive IMSA WeatherTech Championship at Sebring International Raceway last weekend. The team will now move its focus to the IMSA Prototype class at it makes the switch to the Acura ARX-05 DPi starting in 2021.

Darryl O’Young set the fastest times in both practice sessions at the 2020 Macau Grand Prix as the weekend’s action got underway on Friday. Alex Liu’s first outing at the Macau circuit in GT3 machinery saw the Macanese driver finish 8th in both sessions, putting Craft-Bamboo Racing in the top-10 at the end of Friday Practice.

A fourth continent will be added to the global GT World Challenge Powered by AWS platform in 2021 when Australia joins the international manufacturers’ championship. 

PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports won the 68th Annual Mobil 1 Twelve Hours of Sebring Presented By Advance Auto Parts, after a dominant performance last weekend at Sebring International Speedway. With this win, the team successfully clinched the Endurance Cup Championship for driver Simon Trummer. The LMP2 Driver Championship and LMP2 Team Championships were also awarded to PR1/Mathiasen Motorsports earlier this season, making this year the most successful in the history of the team.

In this atypical and in many ways complicated year, international events have suffered a lot due to travel uncertainties. However, GT4 South now have the conditions to organize a short season and deliver the GT4 South European title in 6 races which will take place in two events. The GT4 will start in December, on the 12/13 December, at the fantastic Jerez de La Frontera circuit in southern Spain.

Together with BMW and BMW Team RLL, John Edwards (USA) and Jesse Krohn (FIN) crowned their 2020 season in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship (IMSA) with a title win. They claimed the GTLM titles in the Michelin Endurance Cup, a competition representing the four endurance races held in the IMSA. In an interview, Edwards and Krohn speak about the special challenges of endurance races, the perfect team effort as key to success and their personal season highlights including winning the 24 Hours of Daytona (USA).