British GT Championship Preview

PistonHeads loooks ahead to the British GT Championship

22GT Racing Aston Martin DBRS9

In 2008 PistonHeads will be following the Avon Tyres British GT Championship, bringing you all the results, info and excitement from the 2008 season.

Unlike many forms of motorsport where the cars are as far removed as possible from those you might see on the road British GT has a grid that will be recognisable to any car nut.

Although race prepared, the Lambos, Ferraris and Astons you see racing are closely based on road cars and in this respect it harks back to a purer age of sportscar racing.

Team Modena Lamborghini Gallardo GT3

So what exactly is British GT racing? It started in 1993 and was won by John Greasley in a Porsche 935 K3 Turbo.

Since then the series has been won by a Lotus Esprit S300, Porsche 911 GT2, a Lister Storm and last year a Dodge Viper Competition Coupe GT3, to name but a few.

In 2008 the UK calendar includes six events featuring 2 x 1 hour races, with a further two events hosting 1 x 2 hour races. Each race car has two drivers.

The racing is split into three catagories –

· GT3 – Cars in the GT3 category are closest to their road car equivalents. The cars have their interiors stripped out to save weight and safety enhancements are fitted. Limited and strictly policed alterations can be made to the suspension, engine and bodywork.

· GT4 – New for the 2008 season GT4 is aimed at large production cars with lower power/weight ratios than that of the GT3 classification and is a highly cost effective championship level of GT racing.

· Invitation class- This class will be for cars, selected by the organisers, which for reason of homologation, production numbers or other reasons do not comply with the regulations for GT4 or GT3.

New for 2008 is the introduction of GT4 category, which has replaced GTC as the supporting category in the British GT Championship, and is aimed at large production cars with lower power/weight ratios than that of the GT3 classification.

IMS Motorsport Ginetta G50

GT4 is a cost effective category that has already attracted a number of top level entries in its inaugural year in the British GT Championship.

The cars all have to be classed as a Grand Touring (GT), meaning they are fully legal for road use, have no more than one door on each side, no more than four seats, and have been modified for track use.

Cars eligible for the GT3 class include, the Aston Martin DBRS9, Ferrari F430, Dodge Viper Competition Coupe, Ascari KZ1R, Porsche 997 GT3, Jaguar XKR, Lamborghini Gallardo, Morgan Aero 8, Ford Mustang FR500 GT3, Lotus Exige, Mosler MT900R and Ford GT.

Cars eligible for the GT4 class include the Aston Martin N24, Ginetta G50, BMW Z4M, Nissan 350Z, Porsche Cayman, Maserati Trofeo, Lotus Exige, Ford Mustang F500c.

Beachdean Motorsport Aston Martin Vantage

The 2007 season saw the closest finish of any national motor racing championship in Europe, with nine drivers fighting it out for the title of Avon Tyres British GT Champion over the final two races of the 14-round season.

Team RPM’s Alex Mortimer and Bradley Ellis were triumphant after securing a double win at Rockingham but the ultimate winner was the British GT championship, which had been transformed by the move to GT3 at the start of the year.

2008 promises to be even better with at least 27 cars from taking part in the 14 races on 8 of the UK’s top circuits.

The calendar for 2008 is as follows:

22/03/2008	Oulton Park (Race 1)
24/03/2008	Oulton Park (Race 2)
12/04/2008	Knockhill (Race 1)
13/04/2008	Knockhill (Race 2)
25/05/2008	Rockingham (Race 1)
26/05/2008	Rockingham (Race 2)
07/06/2008	Snetterton (Race 1)
08/06/2008	Snetterton (Race 2)
28/06/2008	Thruxton (Race 1)
29/06/2008	Thruxton (Race 2)
12/07/2008	Brands Hatch (Race 1)
13/07/2008	Brands Hatch (Race 2)
17/08/2008	Silverstone (Race 1)
12/10/2008	Donington (Race 1)

The week before each race PistonHeads will bring you track guides, the lowdown on all the cars competing and other essential information on the Avon Tyres British GT Championship.

After each race we will have a full race report on the winners and losers of each round. We will also be attending a number of races throughout the season and we hope to see you there…

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red_zed

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