Amid the ongoing growth with the Pirelli World Challenge series, one marque in particular is expected to see a spike in its presence on the GT grid next season as one AMG Mercedes SLS could turn into five.
Black Swan Racing owner/driver Tim Pappas has been the lone SLS representative in PWC with his distinctive No. 54 entry in the GT-A class for pro-am competitors, and Marshall Pruett has learned he could be joined by as many as four more of the GT3-spec gullwing coupes in 2015.
“I will have two Mercedes next year, with a potential for a third,” said DragonSpeed Racing general manager/driver Elton Julian. “We’re a customer racing program, and we want to give our customers the best chance to win, to keep growing, and to help the World Challenge series grow.”
Pappas says he looks forward to having more of the thundering German V8s in PWC next year, but also mentioned the increased car count could have a specific drawback.
“If all the extra cars come in, that would be good news, but the bad news part of it is the more people that run it, you get more into the [Balance of Performance] stuff with the series,” he said.
It’s also believed Conquest Racing is in talks to field an SLS next season as the veteran IndyCar and sports car team looks to branch out into PWC. In addition to racing an SLS in Europe, ALMS champion Klaus Graf has helped AMG with a few connections in America and says the existing GT3 chassis and its replacement in 2016 is a great option for PWC.
“The SLS is an incredible machine; it’s a great package with power, balance and the right amount of aero for GT3,” he said. “And AMG are working already on the new GT3 car that will be for sale when we get to the 2016 season, and it will be even better, so I hope we have more cars coming over to America because they would be perfect in the TUDOR series and World Challenge.”
