Yorkshire-based sportscar manufacturer Ginetta is set to become a surprise addition to SRO’s GT2 platform.
Mike Simpson, Ginetta’s CEO of motorsport, has revealed to DSC that the company is currently developing a car for the ruleset that is scheduled to debut in this year’s SRO GT2 Series Powered By Pirelli. It is an evolution of the GTX model, which debuted last year, winning the 2024 24 Hours of Dubai and the Middle East Cup.
“We announced that the GTX (below) was coming, with a trial invitational race at Spa last year. Now we are a long way down the development plan for our GT2 car from that,” Simpson said.
“The car, which shares the core G56 chassis that is common across the Spec GTP8, GT4 Evo and GTX, boasts significant changes from its counterparts; it has a lot of power, a completely new front end with high levels of downforce and reduced drag.”
Ginetta hopes that its forthcoming car will appeal to both trackday enthusiasts around the world, and boost SRO’s GT2 European Series, which has supported grids for GT2 cars from Audi, KTM, Maserati, Mercedes-AMG and Porsche, plus invitational entries from Brabham, Ferrari and Lamborghini, since its inception in 2021.
The series has struggled to build and sustain a strong entry from season to season. Simpson and Ginetta chairman Lawrence Tomlinson believe their forthcoming challenger can change that, though, in a similar vein to the company’s previous support for the very early days of GT4 and LMP3.
“GT2 for us is a fun place to be,” Simpson added. “They’re fun cars to drive, and in the European Series, you’re up against nice people, and you’ll have a great weekend. It’s a customer market, it’s not a place where a team will buy a car, it’s a place where amateurs buy it. There are a lot of people we can go to that would want to buy our GT2 and have a lot of fun.
“We see it as a huge opportunity for Ginetta to develop a mega bit of kit for amateur drivers. Look at the USA, race clubs like Thermal. This will be a great track car, and you can also race in an SRO series. It’s versatile.”
The forthcoming GT2 offering from Ginetta sees the pre-production prototype well into the build phase, with an initial batch of 10 cars set to be produced over the next year, with five of those to be manufactured before the end of 2025.
Ahead of DSC’s planned exclusive look at the new GT2 in the flesh over the summer, Ginetta technical director Clive Seddon was able to give some insight into the direction of the project at this stage.
“Mechanically, we know a lot of it. After the GTX programme, the main focus was a weight-saving exercise to meet the desired power-to-weight ratio of the championship,” he said.
“It will have a carbon body, a newly designed front bumper/splitter combination adding strength and downforce, with a new cooling package that will significantly reduce drag results. Behind the front wheels, a big emphasis has been on the utilisation of turbulent air flow, which is now distributed to maximise efficiency in the new side sill and floor.
“The powerplant will also be different. Utilising the in-house built 6.2 V8, it is coupled for the first time with forced induction, giving a significant power and efficiency increase. Dyno testing has produced nearly 800 bhp, proving the capability of the engine package. It will now be detuned to maximise fuel usage and hit around the target 630 bhp.”
Simpson, summarising the new car, added: “I think we will offer a fantastic GT2 car, that is built to do the job and fit the SRO commercial requirements perfectly. It will be in the cost window, but people pay for what’s right. This doesn’t come from an expensive road car platform, which helps.
“GT2 holds a special place in LT’s heart with the 2006 GT2 Le Mans 24 Hours class victory. We will very much enjoy this car, as will the GT2 European Series.”
Stay tuned for more on this project very soon on DSC…
Image courtesy of Ginetta
