Bentley announces it's 2015 race program, with a huge filed of events, this year is going to be great.

• Continental GT3 race programme expands around the world
• Works, Works-supported and customer teams for 2015
• Bentley Team M-Sport confirms 2015 driver line-up
• First race of the season will be the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour

Bentley Motorsport announces its full schedule of races around the world for 2015 after a successful debut season for the racing version of Bentley’s iconic Continental GT grand tourer, the Continental GT3. Building on the success of the 2014 season, which saw the Continental GT3 win three races on two continents and finish second overall in the Blancpain Endurance Series, for 2015 the programme expands to cover six race series over four continents.

Bentley’s Director of Motorsport, Brian Gush, comments:

“2015 promises to be a very exciting year for Bentley Motorsport, as we grow our programme through customer teams to see the Continental GT3 facing fresh challenges at new tracks across the globe. This year will see the most extensive campaign of racing in Bentley’s illustrious history, as we continue to use the Continental GT to build on our racing heritage. Racing is in our blood, and with the Continental GT3 we continue to build on a winning tradition. Bentley customers are now going racing with their marque, in a Bentley, in race series around the world.”

2015 sees the brand’s Works team, Bentley Team M-Sport, return to the Blancpain Endurance Series. In addition, Bentley is also taking on three of the world’s premiere sports car endurance events. The Bentley Motorsport season will begin with the two Continental GT3s of Bentley Team M-Sport tackling Mount Panorama in the Bathurst 12 Hour on Sunday 8^th February. 

Later in the year, Bentley will also enter arguably the world’s most gruelling endurance race – the ADAC Zurich 24h Race at the Nürburgring – an event for which preparations began earlier in 2014 when Bentley took part in two VLN series test races. The year will close with one final endurance race, the Gulf 12 Hours at the Yas Marina circuit in Abu Dhabi.

Alongside the Works team, Bentley announces additional partner teams to race the Continental GT3 in key regions, as Works-supported entries:

• Following a race-winning half-season in 2014, Bentley Team Dyson Racing will contest the full Pirelli World Challenge season in the U.S.A.
• In Europe, Bentley Team HTP will use five Continental GT3s to race in the Blancpain Sprint Series, Blancpain Endurance Series and ADAC GT Masters championship
• In Asia, Bentley Team Absolute will compete in the GT Asia series

The Works and Works-supported teams are complemented by customer teams, who will extend the racing activities of the Continental GT3 even further, including events such as the Dubai 24 Hours and the Australian GT series. Bentley’s customer racers have already had success with the Continental GT3, including a win in the NGK Racing Series in Dubai.

The 2015 Bentley Boys

Bentley Team M-Sport also announces its driver line-up for the 2015 season. After scoring victories at Silverstone and Paul Ricard, and finishing second in the Blancpain Endurance Series in 2014, car #7 retains the all-British trio of Guy Smith, Andy Meyrick and Steven Kane. The three Bentley Boys are looking forward to a second complete season with the team, and to working together again. Andy Meyrick comments:

“It was an honour to race for Bentley last year and I’m thrilled that Guy, Steven and I will be together again in the Continental GT3 this year. 2014 was the car’s debut season and so second place in the championship was a real achievement, but that clearly leaves us room to go one better and that’s our target for the Continental GT3 this year.”

Car #8 sees an all-new and truly European team of drivers for 2015. Joining Bentley Team M-Sport are Spanish racer Andy Soucek, German GT3-specialist Maximilian Buhk and Belgian Maxime Soulet. All three have raced in the Blancpain Endurance Series before, showing prodigious speed and racecraft and making them natural choices to join Bentley Motorsport for 2015. New Bentley Boy Andy Soucek comments:

“It feels fantastic to join Bentley, a company with such a long and prestigious connection with motorsport. Racing for this team will be very special to me and I’m excited to take on the challenge. I drove the Continental GT3 for the first time at Portimao recently, and was really impressed with its performance. I’m looking forward to getting the season underway.”

Bentley’s progress throughout the season can be followed at www.bentleymedia.com or via the@BentleyComms Twitter feed.

2015 Race Schedules in Full

Premiere Endurance Events:

Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour, 6^th-8^th February

ADAC Zurich 24h Race, Nürburgring, 16^th-17^th May

Gulf 12 Hours, Abu Dhabi, 13^th December

Blancpain Endurance Series (Bentley Team M-Sport, Bentley Team HTP):

Monza, Italy: 11th-12th April

Silverstone, UK: 23^rd-24^th May

Paul Ricard, France: 19^th-20^th June

Spa 24 Hours, Belgium: 23^th-26^th July

Nürburgring, Germany: 19^th-20^th September

Blancpain Sprint Series (Bentley Team HTP):

Nogaro Coupes de Pâques, France: 18th-19th March

Brands Hatch, UK: 9^th-10^th May

Zolder, Belgium: 5^th-7^th June

Moscow City, Russia: 3^rd-5^th July

Algarve, Portugal: 4^th-6^th September

Misano, Italy: 2^nd-4^th October

Baku World Challenge, Azerbaijan: 24^th-25^th October

ADAC GT Masters (Bentley Team HTP):

Oschersleben, Germany: 24th-26th April

Red Bull Ring, Austria: 5^th-7^th June

Spa, Belgium: 19^th-21^st June

Lausitzring, Germany: 3^rd-5^th July

Nürburgring, Germany: 14^th-16^th August

Sachsenring, Germany: 28^th-30^th August

Zandvoort, Netherlands: 18^th-20^th September

Hockenheim, Germany: 2^nd-4^th October

Pirelli World Challenge (Bentley Team Dyson Racing):

Circuit of the Americas, Texas: 6th-8th March

St. Petersburg, Florida: 27^th-29^th March

Long Beach, California: 17^th-19^th April

Barber Motorsports Park, Alabama: 24-26^th April

Canadian Tire Motorsport Park, Ontario: 15^th-17^th May

Road America, Wisconsin: 26^th-28^th June

Mid-Ohio, Ohio: 31^st July-2^nd August

Miller Motorsports Park, Utah: 21^st-23^rd August

Sonoma Raceway, California: 28^th-30^th August

Mazda Raceway Laguna Seca, California: 11^th-13^th September

GT Asia (Bentley Team Absolute)

Yeongam, Korea: 15th-17th May

Okayama, Japan: 26^th-28^th June

Fuji, Japan: 17^th-19^th July

Sepang, Malaysia: 14^th-16^th August

Shanghai, China: 25^th-27^th September

Buriram Chang, Thailand: 23^rd-25^th October

Macau: 13^th-15^th November

McLaren continues development of 650S GT3 with 12 hour desert endurance test.

• 650S GT3 to face its toughest test yet with 12 hour desert endurance test
• Global competitive debut of the latest GT model from Woking
• Dramatic 650S GT3 preview video – ‘The Chase’

The 650S GT3 will be unleashed in a competitive environment before the end of the 2014 season as the latest model from McLaren GT is confirmed to complete its development programme sign off with the ultimate test of endurance and performance at the Yas Marina Circuit in Abu Dhabi. The global competitive debut will take place at the 2014 Gulf 12 Hour race, 12-13 December, before the 650S GT3 joins customer teams from next season.

McLaren GT has used the 2014 season to develop the 650S GT3 before joining GT grids with customer teams around the world from the start of 2015. The race will be the final sign-off for the latest Woking-built model, and also be the most challenging to-date, with the race debut also being one of the most competitive events on the GT calendar. The grid attracts some of the biggest names in GT racing, and is the final headline event of the season with the 2014 event expected to feature around 30 cars in the GT3 category.

Andrew Kirkaldy, Managing Director McLaren GT, explained: ‘The development programme of the 650S GT3 has been extensive already, with the team testing over thousands of kilometres in various conditions. The Gulf 12 Hour will give us the opportunity to fully evaluate the 650S GT3 in a real life race environment, which presents a very different challenge. It will be the toughest test the 650S GT3 has faced so far – a real race situation with a highly competitive grid in high ambient temperatures.

‘Any endurance race is a true test of a car, but we are pushing the boundaries with the 650S GT3. We have worked hard to enhance all areas of driver engagement, and optimised cooling with no adverse affects of performance. This has broadened the performance envelope to make the 650S GT3 more of a drivers’ car, with its performance more easily accessible to all drivers on the growing GT grids we are now seeing around the world.’

Further details regarding the driver line-up for the 650S GT3 at the Gulf 12 Hour will be confirmed in the coming weeks.