RNW Staff

Ollie Wilkinson can tick off another item on his bucket list come 5th-6th September, as the McLaren Professional Driver takes on the Nürburgring in Germany for the first time, in the second round of the GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup.

Ferrari F488 GTE EVO racer Finlay Hutchison again delivered impressive speed and racecraft during the third round of the European Le Mans Series at Paul Ricard in France on Saturday, 29th August, on his way to seventh in the LMGTE class with the JMW Motorsport team.

Porsche Carrera Cup GB – the fastest single marque GT racing championship in the UK – headed north to Scotland for Rounds Seven and Eight of the 2020 season. Friday’s Practice sessions were conducted in dry weather conditions on the short and challenging 1.26-mile Fife circuit. Porsche GB 2020 / 2021 Junior Harry King (Team Parker Racing) continued his impressive run to head both morning and afternoon sessions, championship rival Josh Webster (Team Parker Racing) finished third in both. Pro category drivers Sam MacLeod (JTR) and Scott McKenna (Redline Racing) showed strong form, each finishing a session as the highest placed Rookie. Esmee Hawkey (Team Parker) was Friday’s fastest Pro-Am category driver, John Ferguson (Team Redline Racing) topped Am.

Maurice Smith and Matt Bell made it back-to-back victories in the Michelin Le Mans Cup for COOL Racing in the #69 Ligier JS P320. The sister #37 car of Nicolas Maulini and Édouard Cauhaupé took a penalty for not respecting the minimum driving time which put it fifth.

A double podium for the Ferrari 488 GTE crews at the European Le Mans Series on the Paul Ricard circuit at Le Castellet, which began amid downpours and finished with the floodlights illuminating the track. Four intense hours which saw Spirit of Race take the top honours with the crew of Duncan Cameron, Matthew Griffin and Aaron Scott, while the all-female Iron Lynx squad made up of Manuela Gostner, Michelle Gatting and Rahel Frey claimed third spot.

Another podium was snatched from RLR MSport’s grasp when the European Le Mans Series (ELMS) raced deep into the night in the Le Castellet 240 at Circuit Paul Ricard (28-29 August).

United Autosports finished third in the Michelin Le Mans Cup race at Paul Ricard yesterday (29 August) after Daniel Schneider and Andy Meyrick brought their #24 Ligier JS P320 home in very wet conditions. John Schauerman and Wayne Boyd finished 9th after a difficult race.

United Autosports have won the Le Castellet 240 ELMS race after Phil Hanson and Filipe Albuquerque brought their #22 Oreca 07 home in first place after a tough race in mixed weather conditions at Paul Ricard (Saturday 29 August). The pair started on pole after Filipe scored the team’s fifth consecutive ELMS pole position.

The Squadra Corse Ferrari took its third SRO GT World Challenge America victory of the season Saturday, regaining the lead in the Pro Am championship in a 90-minute race at Road America.

Living up to the hype, the ROWE 6 Stunden ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen gifted spectators with a thrill-packed show as Racing One celebrated a spectacular win in the SP9 AM class, with Octane 126 scooping third place in the Pro category.

Round five of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) concluded on Saturday with positions nine and ten for the two best-placed Porsche contenders. The season highlight of the NLS also served as the final test run before the 24-hour race on the storied racetrack, which has been postponed to September 26-27. Over the last few metres of today’s six-hour race on the combination of the short Grand Prix circuit and the revered Nordschleife, Dennis Olson (Denmark) in his No. 18 KCMG car managed to catch the No. 31 Frikadelli Porsche. Both benefited from a four-minute time penalty that had thrown Manthey Racing’s 911 GT3 R from fourth to 13th at the flag.

Saturday’s six-hour race of the Nürburgring Endurance Series (NLS) was the final test race prior to the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring (24th-27th September). Mercedes-AMG Team GetSpeed crossed the finish line in fourth place with its #2 Mercedes-AMG GT3. The #17 Mercedes-AMG Team HRT entry also scored a top ten result with its sixth-place finish. BLACK FALCON Team TEXTAR scored what already was the fifth consecutive class win with the Mercedes-AMG GT4 and therefore remains unbeaten at the legendary circuit in the Eifel this year.

The Nürburgring 24 Hours (GER) will take place on 26th/27th September, several months later than originally planned. Although the 50th anniversary of the endurance classic on the Nordschleife will be held in difficult circumstances, BMW M Motorsport still fields a strong contingent as it looks for overall victory number 20 for BMW. Some of the best BMW works drivers in GT racing will be at the wheel of the five BMW M6 GT3s which will be run by BMW Team Schnitzer, ROWE Racing and Walkenhorst Motorsport. This weekend’s ROWE 6 Stunden ADAC Ruhr-Pokal-Rennen serves as a dress rehearsal for the teams and drivers.

The Eiffel Mountains will come alive to the sound of GT3 engines next weekend (5/6 September) when GT World Challenge Europe Powered by AWS tackles a six-hour contest at the Nürburgring.

While the 2020 calendar year seems to stretch on for an eternity, the current GT4 America season has flown by for Flying Lizard Motorsports. The GT4 series has reached its halfway point in the season, beginning the second half of the championship this weekend at Road America in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. Holding the first event with fans since March. Flying Lizard Motorsports will race its three full season entries: the No. 210 Aston Martin in Sprint, and the No. 21 Aston Martin and No. 30 McLaren in SprintX.

Lamborghini Squadra Corse has unveiled the new intake of drivers into its Young Driver and GT3 Junior Programs for the 2020 season. A total of 34 drivers has been announced, making it the most comprehensive development programme in GT racing.

The European Le Mans Series returns to Paul Ricard for a second visit, replacing Barcelona as the day-to-night race and Nielsen Racing is aiming to validate the recent progress made with new Duqueine D08 with a strong showing from both crews.

Prestige Performance with Wayne Taylor Racing driver Stuart Middleton celebrated his first podium results of the 2020 Lamborghini Super Trofeo North America season over the weekend, 22nd/23rd August, with a pair of richly deserved second places at Virginia International Raceway.

Henrique Chaves achieved two podiums at Paul Ricard, where was held this weekend the second International GT Open’s event, and leads the Drivers’ Standings.

United Autosports make their way back to Paul Ricard this weekend (28-29 August) for round three of the European Le Mans Series and the Michelin Le Mans Cup.