Bas Koeten Racing has entered a Bentley’s Continental GT3 at the Hankook 12H MUGELLO on 25-26-26 March – the big GT3 car’s 24H Series debut.
The Bentley is the 14th GT3 entry, and the 45th in total registered so far for Mugello and will run as ‘BoDa by Bas Koeten Racing’ in Mugello. This will also be the first time Bas Koeten Racing will run in the 24H SERIES’ GT3 class.
The team has obtained two Bentleys with plans not yet announced beyond Mugello.
“Since the very beginning Bas Koeten Racing has been involved in the 24h SERIES,” Jelle Koeten explains. “It could well be that we hold the record for the number of cars entered under our flag in the series over the past 15 years. With the Bentley Continental GT3 we now have a first and we are very proud of it!”
Bas Koeten Racing, which took 991-class victory at this year’s season-opening Hankook 24H DUBAI, has also confirmed Bob Herber and Marcel van Berlo on its driver lineup. Herber, also part of Bas Koeten’s winning line-up in Dubai, has competed regularly in the 24H SERIES since 2015 and has taken class wins in both ‘991’ and ‘SP3-GT4’ with Bas Koeten and JR Motorsport. The Dutchman is also the new owner of the Bentley.
“For many years, I’ve [competed in] the Supercar Challenge and the 24H SERIES,” Bob Herber continues. “At the beginning of this year, I came into contact with M-Sport, the manufacturer of the Bentley cars. I secured not one, but two GT3 Gen2s, including the car that won the 2020 Bathurst 12 Hours.
“The car has the same power as the Lamborghini Supertrofeo in which I’ve raced in the Supercar Challenge in recent years, but has much better aerodynamics and a more advanced braking system. People think that the Bentley is a heavy car, but the opposite is true. At the [Hankook] 12H MUGELLO, we will test how the car performs in an endurance race.”
van Berlo meanwhile most recently took class victory with Bas Koeten at the 2021 Hankook 12H HOCKENHEIMRING, one year on from securing overall victory with the team at the inaugural 2020 edition of the event. The Dutchman has also competed in the 24H SERIES since 2018 with Speedlover, Munckhof Racing, and with sons Kay and Glenn as part of Van Berlo Racing.
