RNW Staff

Porsche claimed a thrilling victory in Intercontinental GT Challenge Powered by Pirelli’s season opener at the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour earlier today courtesy of Earl Bamber Motorsport’s Matt Campbell, Dirk Werner and Dennis Olsen.

BMW M Motorsport and the BMW M6 GT3 have finished in fifth place at the Bathurst 12 Hour on Mount Panorama Circuit in an emotional event for BMW Team Schnitzer. It was the team’s first race appearance since it’s long-time team principal Charly Lamm passed away.

R-Motorsport signed of the blue riband enduro career of the Aston Martin V12 Vantage GT3 with a team performance that almost delivered a famous win in one of the most challenging GT races worldwide with a driving squad of three Bathurst rookies and the oldest GT3 design on the grid.

Audi Sport customer racing experienced a setback in the launch of its title defense in the Intercontinental GT Challenge. After both Audi R8 LMS of the Audi Sport Team Valvoline had at times led the 12-hour race in Bathurst in the early phase, the squad with drivers Christopher Haase/Christopher Mies/Markus Winkelhock ultimately had to settle for 14th place. The Australian customer teams Matt Stone Racing and Hallmarc, however, were delighted to climb the podium in their class.

A small rock through the radiator was all it took to end a Bathurst-winning dream for Kenny Habul and his SunEnergy1 team at the Liqui-Moly 12-hour at Mt Panorama today.

SunEnergy1 Mercedes-AMG of Kenny Habul will start from 20th position in tomorrow’s Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12-hour after one of the tightest qualifying sessions in the event’s history.

Mercedes-AMG will start tomorrow’s Intercontinental GT Challenge Powered by Pirelli season opener from pole position thanks to a combination of Raffaele Marciello’s rapid lap and R-Motorsport’s exclusion from the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour Top-10 Shootout.

In what is destined to be the final race for the Aston Martin Vantage V12 GT3, the prestigious Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hours at the Mount Panorama Circuit in Bathurst (Australia), R Motorsport are due to start from third place. Although Jake Dennis set the fastest lap in the decisive Top Ten shootout, he and co-drivers Marvin Kirchhöfer and Matthieu Vaxiviere were demoted to P3 in a grid penalty for the offence of speeding in the pit lane. The trio of Team Principal Florian Kamelger, Peter Leemhuis and Matt Parry in the number 760 Aston Martin Vantage V12 GT3 go into the endurance classic in 17th place overall and fourth in the Pro/AM class.

Porsche will tackle the 12-hour race in Bathurst (Australia) from the fourth grid row. Porsche Young Professional Matt Campbell set the seventh quickest time in the Top 10 shootout on the Mount Panorama Circuit. The young Australian tapped virtually the full potential of the Porsche 911 GT3 R, which he shares with factory driver Dirk Werner (Germany) and Porsche Young Professional Dennis Olsen (Norway). Up against stiff opposition from seven other GT3 manufacturers, Campbell took just 2:03.186 minutes to lap the 6.213-kilometre racetrack in the No. 912 Porsche. 

Guillermo Aso, Joaquín Capsi, Toni Castillo and Álvaro Fontes will contest the 2019 edition of the Nürburgring 24 hours driving a SORG Rennsport-entered BMW 240i Cup. It’s the first all-Spanish team at the legendary endurance event at the Nürburgring Nordschleife.

Extreme E – a pioneering electric off-road racing series taking place in five of the most unique and remote locations on the planet – was today launched by motorsport legend Gil de Ferran and entrepreneur Alejandro Agag.

Villorba Corse doubles its endurance plans in the world of prototype competitions and unveils a new racing program for the 2019 season. After landing in the World Endurance Championship (WEC) alongside the Cetilar Racing project on the LMP2 Dallara, the Italian team led by Raimondo Amadio launches a new long-term project called ACE1 Villorba Corse. This program is the result of a new partnership with the ACE1 team founded by Yuki Harata and it will start from the LMP3 class of the 2019 European Le Mans Series.

Season Four of the Intercontinental GT Challenge Powered by Pirelli begins this weekend at the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour (February 1-3) where a record full-season entry is eager to prevent Audi from making the perfect start to its Manufacturers’ title defence.

Earl Bamber Motorsport and Team Carrera Cup Asia, with support from Porsche Motorsport Asia Pacific, are both aiming for class and overall victories on the Mountain this weekend for the 2019 Bathurst 12 Hour (31 January – 3 February).

As the 2019 GT season approaches, plans that will see the McLaren 720S GT3 make its debut on Japanese soil as part of a multi-championship effort have now been confirmed. The latest GT3 challenger from McLaren Automotive will run under the banner of McLaren Customer Racing Japan, with two single-car entries confirmed for the Super GT300 and Super Taikyu championships. The team has also confirmed that both cars will contest round 4 of the 2019 Intercontinental GT Challenge the Suzuka 10 Hours.  

The promotion of young drivers enjoys a long tradition at BMW Motorsport, dating back more than 40 years. During this time, the junior programme has uncovered many talented youngsters who have gone on to make a name for themselves on the motor racing scene. A slight change to the concept means that the BMW Motorsport Junior programme is even more efficient in 2019. In the future, the programme will focus on fewer drivers to make the support they are offered even more effective and tailored to their individual needs. Beitske Visser (NED) is entering her third year on the programme and will primarily gain experience in Formula racing. A shoot-out in a simulator will determine a new member of the BMW Motorsport Junior programme from the many candidates for the position. Mikkel Jensen (DEN) has been promoted to BMW works driver and will undertake a high-class GT programme.

United Autosports can confirm that Mike Guasch and Christian England will return to the team for the 2019 European Le Mans Series.

Seventeen year-old sports car racer Parker Chase completed his first 24 hour endurance race on Sunday, the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Challenge Rolex 24 At Daytona, the youngest driver to compete in this year’s running of the event. The 2018 Pirelli World Challenge SprintX champion put forth an impressive debut performance with Starworks Motorsport, racing an Audi R8 LMS GT3 in an event plagued by torrential rain, high winds, and multiple caution periods. By the conclusion of the event, only 57% of the race had been conducted under green flag conditions.

Ferrari and Honda will both officially contest the 2019 Intercontinental GT Challenge Powered by Pirelli campaign, which begins at the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour this weekend. Their confirmations bring this year’s total number of full-season manufacturers to a record-breaking eight.

The Audi Sport R8 LMS Cup has announced the creation of the Challenger Trophy for the 2019 season. Drivers who are relatively new to international GT3 competition will be eligible to score points towards the new title. The category is the latest addition to the Cup’s powerful development platform which incorporates professional driver mentoring, data sharing, and the new Audi R8 LMS GT3, specifically designed for privateers.