Further Valencia 1000 details revealed
Preparations for the GT Open 1000 Valencia are steaming ahead. Following the announcement made ahead of the summer break, the inaugural edition of this new annual single event (out of the GT Open championship) which will take place at the Circuito Ricardo Tormo in Valencia on 1st-2nd December, is attracting a lot of interest and is shaping up nicely.
GT Sport has recently confirmed some of the key features of the event:
Eligible Cars:
Two car classes have been created for the event, ‘FIA GT3’ and the ‘GT Sport Challenge’, open to the following eligible cars:
FIA GT3: Cars of model years 2015-16-17;
GT Sport Challenge: GT3 cars of model year up to 2014 included, as well as Supertrofeo Lamborghini, Ferrari 488 Challenge and Porsche Supercup cars.
Each of the two classes will have its own BoP.
Driver Categories:
Three categories are established (Pro, Pro-Am and Am) for the GT3 class and two (Pro-Am and Am) for the GT Sport Challenge. Line-ups will be of 3 drivers and the possible combinations, according to FIA driver status, will be announced shortly.
Refuelling system: The FIA system will be of application.
Tyres: A maximum of 10 sets will be available for the event. Michelin will be the official supplier.
Fuel: Panta race fuel will be the one used for the event.
Entry fee: It has been fixed at 5.600 € (+ VAT, when applicable) per car, and includes box space.
Format:
The event will take place over two days, Friday and Saturday. Day 1 (on Friday) will include 3h30 of free practice and an additional hour for Bronze drivers, plus 20 minutes of qualifying per driver. Day 2 (on Saturday) will include a warm-up of 20 minutes and the 1000 kms race, which will start at 10:30 and will have a maximum duration of 7 hours.
Part of the official programme, an Award Ceremony will take place on the evening of Saturday 1st December, in one of the emblematic venues that Valencia is rich of. It will be a warm and friendly wrap-up, in Mediterranean style, to the entire season, as the evening will serve also as prize-giving ceremony for the International GT Open and Euroformula Open 2017 championships.
More technical and sporting details will be communicated shortly.
You can read DSC’s big feature on what the paddock thinks of the GT Open 1000, HERE.
Lukas Motorsport & second SPS Mercedes joins the entry
The Monza round of the GT Open will see a second Mercedes AMG from SPS Automtive, the return of Porsche and the history-making first-ever participation of a Polish team in the series.
Förch Racing by Lukas Motorsport is the squad entering the Italian round with its 2017-spec Porsche 911R.
The team, founded in 2010, based in Bielsko-Biala and led by Wieslaw Lukas, has been active in Porsche series, from Mobil 1 Supercup to Carrera Cup and Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge Central Europe, and in the 24H Series.
The car will be driven by the most expert GT drivers in Poland, Robert Lukas, who has been a regular contender of Porsche Cups and the 24 Hours Series for over a decade, and Croatia’s Zeljko Drmić, who started his career in GT three years ago.
On top of that, a second SPS Automotive Performance car in the Pro-Am category. This other Mercedes AMG GT3 from the German squad will be entrusted to a Swiss pair, composed of Roberto Pampanini and Mauro Calamia.
Multiple tweaks to Monza entry
GT Sport has released the provisional entry list for the Monza round, one of the most traditional and awaited in the season, with 26 cars already confirmed.
Solaris Motorsport, who will not attend this round, as will not do the FF Corse Ferrari and the Jordan Racing Bentley, all of them though, are set to reappear at Barcelona.
There are however, multiple teams and drivers rejoining the series for this weekend, including the Lechner Racing Mercedes of Plachutta-Jäger, the Wessex Vehicles Lambo Gallardo Rex (with newly crowned British GT Champion Seb Morris joining Craig Dolby this time (above)), and the Konrad Motorsport Lambo Huracán of Still-Scheuscner, all off for a third outing this season. Also back is the Garage 59 McLaren of Michael Benham and Duncan Tappy, after the duo missing the Silverstone round.
Among driver changes already known, it is to be noted that Allan Hellmeister will be back alongside Marcelo Hahn on the Drivex Mercedes, while Piergiuseppe Perazzini will be paired this time on the spirit of Race Ferrari by Matt Griffin. A long-time popular contender in the series, the Irishman is back for the first time this year. On its side, BMW Team Teo Martín confirmed that the gues star alongside Beirão this time will be Augusto Farfus, already seen in the role at the Hungaroring.
