WRT Audi to British GT

Reigning Blancpain Endurance Series champion team WRT Racing will make its British GT Championship debut at Brands Hatch later this month with an Audi R8 LMS ultra shared by series regulars Warren Hughes and Rembert Berg.

Former MG factory driver Hughes and Dutchman Berg approached WRT boss Vincent Vosse, whose team won the drivers’ and teams’ titles in Blancpain last year, about taking over their programme following the MSport team’s confirmation that it would concentrate on development of the new Bentley Continental GT3 over the second half of the season.

The initial deal with the Belgian team covers the next two races at Brands on August 11 and Zandvoort in September.

Vosse, who began his racing career in Formula Ford in Britain in 1992, said: “We have agreed a deal for Brands and Zandvoort and, if everything looks good and the drivers are in with a chance of the top three in the championship, we will do the last one at Donington [in October] as well.

“I’m very happy to be going to race in Britain because I have raced there myself and because the championship has come back up and is now the best national GT series along with ADAC GT Masters in Germany.”

Hughes, who lies eighth in the British GT points with Rembert after six races over four weekends, said he was delighted with the chance to race with WRT.

“The initial programme with M-Sport was always going to be the first four events and they’ve clearly got a lot of work with the Bentley programme,” he said.

“It is fantastic to be racing with WRT, because they have a great record with the R8. This is the strongest way for us to complete the season.”

Hughes and Rembert will drive one of WRT’s fleet of Audis, which race in both Blancpain and the FIA GT Series, and will get their first taste of the car at Zandvoort this week.

Vosse, whose team contested the French GT Championship in its maiden season in 2010, didn’t rule out a full programme in Britain in the future.

His comment that he would “race in championships that give the team a chance to fight” can be interpreted as a criticism of the Balance of Performance in Blancpain and FIA GT.

Source: http://www.iracing.com/inracingnews/real-world-racing/3rdparty/wrt-audi-to-british-gt

Emmanuel de Graffenried Lucas di Grassi Cecil Green Keith Greene