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Bentley returns to motorsport with racing GT
At the 2002 Paris Motor Show, the unveiling of the Continental GT concept took the world by storm and opened an exciting new chapter in Bentley’s history. Now, ten years on, Bentley is repeating the same feat with a Continental-based GT3 race car currently being developed by a dedicated motorsport team at the company’s factory in Crewe.
Signalling Bentley’s return to the racetrack for the first time since its historic sixth Le Mans victory in 2003, Continental GT3 remains faithful to the company’s founding motorsport philosophy of developing racing cars from their road-going counterparts.
Dr Wolfgang Schreiber, Bentley’s Chairman and Chief Executive, comments: “The clear message from our customers is that Bentley belongs on the racetrack, and the Continental GT3 is the realisation of a dream we’ve had ever since the launch of the Continental GT. The new GT Speed is the perfect car for us to develop into a racer, and our work so far has shown huge potential. The Continental GT3 is set to show the world what the Continental GT is capable of in its most extreme form, and establishes a solid foundation for Bentley’s long-term motorsport plans.”
The new Continental GT Speed is a refined, luxury grand tourer but which, if the driver demands, has a distinctly hard-edged sporting character. With exceptional levels of instantly accessible performance, the GT Speed, the fastest road-going Bentley ever, is a supercar that can be used every day, whatever the weather and road conditions. The Continental GT3 concept capitalises on the prodigious performance, outstanding high-speed stability and renowned durability of Bentley’s iconic coupe, while tailoring its specification for the track with the adoption of a rear-wheel drive chassis in accordance with the regulations, state-of-the-art motorsport hardware and a comprehensive aerodynamic package. The dramatic livery of the car enhances the muscular, sculpted form of the Continental GT Speed while remaining proudly patriotic with the inclusion of Union flags.
With the Continental GT3 concept receiving the full support of the FIA, Bentley is returning to the motorsport arena towards the end of 2013 with a GT race car capable of competing with the very best, in the true Bentley tradition.
Equipped for endurance as well as outright speed, the new Bentley competitor will be eligible to race in a range of race series and events, up to and including 24-hour marathons.
Heading the development of the Continental GT3 is Bentley’s Director of Chassis, Powertrain and Motorsport, Brian Gush. Having led the programme that famously saw a brace of Bentley Speed 8 prototype racers take a dominant and dramatic one/two at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2003, Brian is well placed to lead Bentley’s return to competitive racing.
Development of the Continental GT3 will continue over the coming months in the build-up to the start of a test programme in 2013. More information and details about Bentley’s return to motorsport will be released in the near future.
(Images: Bentley Motors)
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WOW. too long if u ask me!!!
Looks like a heavy and cumbersome base from which to build a GT3 car but there are few marques as cool as Bentley and the certainly needs to be involved in motor racing. This will be sensational at the Nurburgring and Spa 24 hour races.
I love it, its stunning . . . . BUT Good Luck racing against any Audi R8LMS’s!
()()()()
Awesome. Simply awesome.
Nice car!!!!
Looking Good
That car looks so awesome
Even more variety in GT3 coming, that’s good. I wonder how the Volkswagen holding will manage to keep the Bentley away from competing directly against the Audi R8. Probably they will race in different championships – maybe the field for the Audis will be more the sprint races, while the Bentley will be competing in the Blancpain series. Still I wonder why it’s a GT3 and not a GTE – the typical field for Bentley would be rather GTE than GT3, competing at Le Mans again.
lovely, cant wait to see it in the racing green
@kw; I too would very much like to see Bentley back at Le Mans, which means a GTE / GTAm entry. Hopefully this is a “toe in the water” stepping stone to bigger things.
I don’t think internal rivalry is a problem for VW, afterall Porsche and Audi already compete head to head in various series and will compete as factories in LMP1 in 2014.
There are four VAG brands in GT3 now. However, they’re not in the class for marketing reasons alone. GT3 customer programmes are often partially or even entirely run as profit centres for the makers.