The Belgian Audi Club Team WRT has announced its line-up for the Blancpain GT Series. The Belgian squad, which during the last three seasons has collected no fewer than three double titles (Drivers’ and Teams’) in the Blancpain Endurance Series (2011-12) and in the FIA GT Series (2013) and has also won the 2011 Total 24 Hours of Spa, is determined to expand its trophy collection.
In the Blancpain Endurance Series, Belgian Audi Club Team WRT will enter three Audi R8 LMS ultra. Car #1 will be entrusted to Laurens Vanthoor and two newcomers to the team: 2012 GT1 World Champion Marc Basseng from Germany and Brazilian young gun César Ramos. Car #3 will be in the hands of Christopher Mies, Frank Stippler and Britain’s James Nash, who joins from the WTCC. The third car, which will sport #4, will be shared by Team WRT’s co-partner Yves Weerts, Frenchman Jean-Luc Blanchemain and Belgium’s Christian Kelders.
For the Total 24 Hours of Spa, the stellar GT event which is also the fourth round of the Blancpain Endurance Series, the team will enter four cars. Mies-Stippler-Nash and Weerts-Blanchemain-Kelders are already confirmed while the line-ups of cars #1 and #2 will be announced in due course.
In the Blancpain Sprint Series, the three Belgian Audi Club Team WRT cars will be driven by Laurens Vanthoor-César Ramos, René Rast-Enzo Ide and a duo of very talented young drivers: Frenchman Vincent Abril (19), who joins from the GT Tour, and Poland’s Mateusz Lisowski (23), who last year won the VW Castrol Cup.
Team WRT will also prepare and run a fourth Audi R8 LMS ultra, entered by G-Drive Racing, for Russian GT and sportscar specialist Roman Rusinov and WRT’s stalwart racer Stéphane Ortelli.
Vincent Vosse (team principal): “There have been quite a few changes in our driver line-ups and while mixing youth and experience remains our guiding principle, it is clear that we are introducing a good deal of fresh blood into the team. That is very exciting, as we strongly believe in youth and talent. This is true for drivers but also for team members, and I am also very proud of the fact that a number of girls have joined our team, including one mechanic and a new data engineer. I am also very happy to have had the possibility to hire an expert manager in Thierry Tassin, who will share the duties of sporting director with Pierre Dieudonné. While Pierre will take care of the Pro Trophy cars, Thierry will be responsible for the G-Drive Audi and the Belgian Audi Club machines entered in the Gentlemen Trophy and Silver Cup categories.”
2014 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT Driver Line-up
Blancpain Endurance Series
#1 Laurens Vanthoor (B) – Marc Basseng (D) – César Ramos (BR) (Pro)
#3 Christopher Mies (D) – Frank Stippler (D) – James Nash (GB) (Pro)
#4 Yves Weerts (B) – Jean-Luc Blanchemain (F) – Christian Kelders (B) (Gent.)
Total 24 Hours of Spa
#1 TBA
#2 TBA
#3 Christopher Mies (D) – Frank Stippler (D) – James Nash (GB) (Pro)
#4 Yves Weerts (B) – Jean-Luc Blanchemain (F) – Christian Kelders (B) (Gent.)
Blancpain Sprint Series
#1 Laurens Vanthoor (B) – César Ramos (BR)
#2 René Rast (D) – Enzo Ide (B)
#4 Vincent Abril (F) – Mateusz Lisowski (PL) (Silver Cup)
In the Blancpain Endurance Series, Belgian Audi Club Team WRT will enter three Audi R8 LMS ultra. Car #1 will be entrusted to Laurens Vanthoor and two newcomers to the team: 2012 GT1 World Champion Marc Basseng from Germany and Brazilian young gun César Ramos. Car #3 will be in the hands of Christopher Mies, Frank Stippler and Britain’s James Nash, who joins from the WTCC. The third car, which will sport #4, will be shared by Team WRT’s co-partner Yves Weerts, Frenchman Jean-Luc Blanchemain and Belgium’s Christian Kelders.
For the Total 24 Hours of Spa, the stellar GT event which is also the fourth round of the Blancpain Endurance Series, the team will enter four cars. Mies-Stippler-Nash and Weerts-Blanchemain-Kelders are already confirmed while the line-ups of cars #1 and #2 will be announced in due course.
In the Blancpain Sprint Series, the three Belgian Audi Club Team WRT cars will be driven by Laurens Vanthoor-César Ramos, René Rast-Enzo Ide and a duo of very talented young drivers: Frenchman Vincent Abril (19), who joins from the GT Tour, and Poland’s Mateusz Lisowski (23), who last year won the VW Castrol Cup.
Team WRT will also prepare and run a fourth Audi R8 LMS ultra, entered by G-Drive Racing, for Russian GT and sportscar specialist Roman Rusinov and WRT’s stalwart racer Stéphane Ortelli.
Vincent Vosse (team principal): “There have been quite a few changes in our driver line-ups and while mixing youth and experience remains our guiding principle, it is clear that we are introducing a good deal of fresh blood into the team. That is very exciting, as we strongly believe in youth and talent. This is true for drivers but also for team members, and I am also very proud of the fact that a number of girls have joined our team, including one mechanic and a new data engineer. I am also very happy to have had the possibility to hire an expert manager in Thierry Tassin, who will share the duties of sporting director with Pierre Dieudonné. While Pierre will take care of the Pro Trophy cars, Thierry will be responsible for the G-Drive Audi and the Belgian Audi Club machines entered in the Gentlemen Trophy and Silver Cup categories.”
2014 Belgian Audi Club Team WRT Driver Line-up
Blancpain Endurance Series
#1 Laurens Vanthoor (B) – Marc Basseng (D) – César Ramos (BR) (Pro)
#3 Christopher Mies (D) – Frank Stippler (D) – James Nash (GB) (Pro)
#4 Yves Weerts (B) – Jean-Luc Blanchemain (F) – Christian Kelders (B) (Gent.)
Total 24 Hours of Spa
#1 TBA
#2 TBA
#3 Christopher Mies (D) – Frank Stippler (D) – James Nash (GB) (Pro)
#4 Yves Weerts (B) – Jean-Luc Blanchemain (F) – Christian Kelders (B) (Gent.)
Blancpain Sprint Series
#1 Laurens Vanthoor (B) – César Ramos (BR)
#2 René Rast (D) – Enzo Ide (B)
#4 Vincent Abril (F) – Mateusz Lisowski (PL) (Silver Cup)