2017 Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup preview
The 2017 Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup kicks-off in the first weekend of April with a race at Misano World Circuit – Marco Simoncelli.
Seven manufacturers, five rounds
The season of 2016 was quite exciting, so we expect the same of the new campaign. For the season-opening race in Italy, 34 cars of 7 manufacturers will be on the grid and title defenders will be among the starters. Just like in the previous years, only five Sprint Cup rounds will be held, with two races per weekend. The round in Belgium is the new on the calendar, replacing the event at Catalunya Circuit.
2017 Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup calendar
Race 1 | April 1/2 | Misano World Circuit, Italy |
Race 2 | May 6/7 | Brands Hatch, UK |
Race 3 | June 2/4 | Circuit Zolder, Belgium |
Race 4 | August 25/27 | Hungaroring, Hungary |
Race 5 | September 15/17 | Nurburgring, Germany |
Enzo Ide and Team WRT will defend their crowns
Belgian driver Enzo Ide will defend its Sprint Cup crown driving the Belgian Audi Club Team WRT’s Audi R8 LMS. His co-driver again will be Christopher Mies from Germany and they are again considered as one of title contenders. Interestingly, Garage 59 team, who did very well last year and triumphed in the Endurance Cup, will miss this season.
Dominik Baumann and Maximilian Buhk won the overall Blancpain GT Series title in 2016 but they are separated for the forthcoming season. They both stayed with HTP Motorsport and Mercedes but Buhk in the new season will drive alongside Frenchman Franck Perera, while Baumann will be accompanied with Jimmy Eriksson from Sweden. Rowe Racing with two BMW’s and experienced drivers also will be one to watch.
Teams’ Championship title defender Belgian Audi Club Team WRT together with Team WRT will field no less than five cars in 2017. Strakka Racing and Akka ASP cars also will be well represented with four cars on the grid, while six teams will have only one car in the battle for the Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup title.
2017 Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup entry list
Car # | Team | Driver 1 | Driver 2 | Car |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Belgian Audi Club Team WRT | Enzo Ide | Christopher Mies | Audi R8 LMS |
2 | Belgian Audi Club Team WRT | Will Stevens | Markus Winkelhock | Audi R8 LMS |
3 | Team WRT | Jake Dennis | Pieter Schothorst | Audi R8 LMS |
5 | Belgian Audi Club Team WRT | Marcel Fässler | Dries Vanthoor | Audi R8 LMS |
7 | Bentley Team M-Sport | Steven Kane | Vincent Abril | Bentley Continental GT3 |
8 | Bentley Team M-Sport | Andy Soucek | Maxime Soulet | Bentley Continental GT3 |
11 | Kessel Racing | Michael Broniszewski | Giacomo Piccini | Ferrari 488 GT3 |
17 | Team WRT | Stuart Leonard | Robin Frijns | Audi R8 LMS |
19 | GRT Grasser Racing Team | Ezequiel Perez Companc | Norbert Siedler | Lamborghini Huracan GT3 |
24 | Reiter Young Stars | Marko Helistekangas | Caitlin Wood | Lamborghini Reiter Gallardo R-EX |
26 | Sainteloc Racing | Romain Monti | Christopher Haase | Audi R8 LMS |
27 | Orange 1 Team Lazarus | Fabrizio Crestani | Gustavo Yacaman | Lamborghini Huracan GT3 |
34 | Kornely Motorsport | Yoshi Mori | Kenneth Heyer | Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
39 | Kessel Racing TP12 | Piti Bhirombhakdi | Carlo Van Dam | Ferrari 488 GT3 |
42 | Strakka Motorsport | Nick Leventis | Lewis Williamson | McLaren 650S GT3 |
44 | Strakka Racing | Jonny Kane | Loris Hezemans | McLaren 650S GT3 |
55 | Spirit Of Racen | Phil Quaife | Lorenzo Case | Ferrari 488 GT3 |
58 | Strakka Racing | Alvaro Parente | Ben Barnicoat | McLaren 650S GT3n |
59 | Strakka Racing | Rob Bell | Andrew Watson | McLaren 650S GT3n |
63 | GRT Grasser Racing Team | Mirko Bortolotti | Christian Engelhart | Lamborghini Huracan GT3 |
66 | Attempto Racing | Max van Splunteren | Adrian Zaugg | Lamborghini Huracan GT3 |
67 | Attempto Racing | Marco Mapelli | Giovanni Venturini | Lamborghini Huracan GT3 |
74 | ISR | Frank Stippler | Kevin Ceccon | Audi R8 LMS |
75 | ISR | Filip Salaquarda | Clemens Schmid | Audi R8 LMS |
84 | Mercedes-AMG Team HTP Motorsport | Maxi Buhk | Franck Perera | Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
85 | Mercedes-AMG Team HTP Motorsport | Jules Szymkowiak | nFabian Schiller | Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
86 | Team HTP Motorsport | Dominik Baumann | Jimmy Eriksson | Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
87 | Akka ASP | Jean-Luc Beaubelique | Jules Gounon | Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
88 | Akka ASP | Felix Serralles | Daniel Juncadellan | Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
89 | Akka ASP | Christophe Bourret | Jean-Philippe Belloc | Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
90 | Akka ASP | Michael Meadows | Raffaele Marciello | Mercedes-AMG GT3 |
98 | Rowe Racing | Philipp Eng | Tom Blomqvist | BMW M6 GT3 |
99 | Rowe Racing | Markus Palttala | Jesse Krohn | BMW M6 GT3 |
333 | Rinaldi Racing | Alexander Matschull | Daniel Keilwitz | Ferrari 488 GT3 |
Photo: blancpain-gt-series.com