BLANCPAIN GT SERIES ; Silverstone : 61 GT3 sur les terres d’Aston Martin, Bentley et McLaren !

par Laurent Mercier (Endurance-Info.com)

 Le plateau de la Blancpain Endurance Series se maintient pour le deuxième meeting de la saison où 61 GT3 sont attendues. Pour la première fois hors 24 Heures de Spa, le plateau est supérieur à 60 GT3. Après une nette domination des GT3 italiennes à Monza où Ferrari et Lamborghini ont fait la nique à la concurrence, les marques britanniques auront à coeur de prendre leur revanche sur leurs terres, à commencer par Bentley. Victorieuse en 2014 dans le Northamptonshire, la Continental GT3 a soif d’un nouveau succès. Il en sera de même pour les McLaren 650S GT3, transparentes à Monza le mois dernier.

Du côté des nouveaux arrivants, on note la présence du BMW Sports Trophy Team Schubert qui une semaine après les 24 Heures du Nürburgring, viendra défier la concurrence avec une BMW Z4 GT3 confiée à Dominik Baumann et Max Sandritter. Dans le camp Audi, les “anciennes” R8 LMS ultra seront mises à contribution. Phoenix Racing remanie totalement l’équipage de la #6 pour faire rouler Marchy Lee, Shaun Tong et Markus Winkelhock. Très en verve en Italie, la Ferrari 458 Italia GT3/Rinaldi Racing voit le renfort de Marco Seefried aux côtés de Norbert Siedler et Rinat Salikhov. A noter que les deux Ferrari du Rinaldi Racing étaient les seules équipées des évolutions 2015. Car Collection  Motorsport fait son arrivée en Pro-Cup avec l’équipage Toril/Heyer/Seyffarth. Chez Saintéloc Racing, Marc Basseng sera aux côtés d’Edward Sandström et Greg Guilvert.

En Pro-Am Cup, le Belgian Audi Club Team WRT modifie son équipage pour faire rouler David Hallyday, Philippe Gaillard et James Nash. Absent à Monza, Jann Mardenborough devrait retrouver le baquet de la Nissan GT-R GT3 NISMO Team RJN #22 en compagnie de Gaëtan Paletou et Ricardo Sanchez.

Pas de grand changement en Am Cup si ce n’est le remplacement de Christian Kelders par Thomas Nicolle chez Classic & Modern Racing pour cause de rallye historique. Claude-Yves Gosselin et Marc Rostan seront quant à eux présents chez Saintéloc Racing  avec Eric Trouillet. L’équipe de Sébastien Chétail aura donc deux Audi en Am-Cup.

Le timing du week-end :

Samedi 23 mai : 9h

Samedi 23 mai : Essais Libres 1 à 10h55

Samedi 23 mai : Essais Libres 2 à 16h30

Dimanche 24 mai : Qualifications à 9h

Dimanche 24 mai : Course à 14h45

Timing_Silverstone

PRO-CUP (25)
0	BMW Sports Trophy Team Brasil	BMW Z4 GT3	Bueno-Jimenez-Fraga
1	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Vanthoor-Vernay-Frinjs
3	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Richelmi-Stippler-Ortelli
6	Phoenix Racing	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Lee-Tong-Winkelhock
7	Bentley M-Sport	Bentley Continental GT3	Smith-Kane-Meyrick
8	Bentley M-Sport	Bentley Continental GT3	Soucek-Soulet-Buhk
19	Grasser Racing Team	Lamborghini Huracan GT3	Babini-Palmer-Mul
21	Black Falcon	Mercedes SLS AMG GT3	Al Faisal-Haupt-Buurman
23	Nissan GT Academy Team RJN	Nissan GT-R GT3 NISMO	Buncombe-Reip-Chiyo
33	Car Collection Motorsort	Mercedes SLS AMG GT3	Seyffarth-Toril-Heyer
35	Saintéloc Racing	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Guilvert-Sandström-Basseng
44	Oman Racing Team	Aston Martin Vantage GT3	Al Harthy-Adam-Llyod
55	Attempto Racing	McLaren 650S GT3	Thuner-Armindo-Ramos
58	Von Ryan Racing	McLaren 650S GT3	Bell-Estre-van Gisbergen
59	Von Ryan Racing	McLaren 650S GT3	Parente-Hobbs-Senna
63	Grasser Racing Team	Lamborghini Huracan GT3	Zaugg-Bortolotti-Venturini
73	MRS GT Racing	Nissan GT-R GT3 NISMO	Walkinshaw-Plowman-Dolby
74	I.S.R.	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Fjordbach-Onidi-Roda
75	I.S.R.	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Salaquarda-Bonanomi-Vervisch
77	BMW Sports Trophy Team Brasil	BMW Z4 GT3	Brito-Abreu-Sperafico
84	Bentley Team HTP	Bentley Continental GT3	Primat-Abril-Parisy
98	ROWE Racing	Mercedes SLS AMG GT3	Juncadella-Dontje-Sylvest
99	ROWE Racing	Mercedes SLS AMG GT3	Dusseldorp-Graf-Bastian
120	BMW Sports Trophy Schubert	BMW Z4 GT3	Baumann-Sandritter-TBA
333	Rinaldi Racing	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Siedler-Seefried-Salhikov

PRO-AM CUP (23)
2	Belgian Audi Club Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Gaillard-Hallyday-Nash
4	Team WRT	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Bottemanne-Koebolt-Schothorst
10	Team AKKA-ASP	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Ricci-Vautier
11	Kessel Racing	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Broniszewski-Bonacini-Lyons
12	TDS Racing	BMW Z4 GT3	Hassid-Dermont-Perera
14	Emil Frey Racing	Emil Frey Jaguar	Barth-Frey-Gardel
17	Insight Racing	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Andersen-Jensen
18	Black Falcon	Mercedes SLS AMG GT3	Engel-Morley-Johnston
20	AKK-ASP	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Beaubelique-Giauque-MoullinT
22	Nissan GT Academy Team RJN	Nissan GT-R GT3 NISMO	Sanchez-Paletou-Mardenborough
32	Leonard Motorsport AMR	Aston Martin Vantage GT3	Leonard-Wilson-Meadows
41	Sport Garage	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Guibbert-Vannelet-Santamato
51	AF Corse	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Cameron-Griffin
52	AF Corse	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	De Leener-Sbirrazzuoli
53	AF Corse	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Perazzini-Cioci-Potolicchio
54	Attempto Racing	McLaren 650S GT3	Gitlin-Buri
66	Black Pearl Racing by Rinaldi	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Kaffer-Parrow
70	GT Russian Team	Mercedes SLS AMG GT3	Karachev-Schneider
71	GT Russian Team	Mercedes SLS AMG GT3	Asmer-Vasiliev
78	Team Russia by Barwell	BMW Z4 GT3	Cocker-Sardarov-Machitski
79	Ecurie Ecosse	BMW Z4 GT3	Modell-MacCaig-Bryant
100	DragonSpeed	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Julian-Hedman-Kemenater
888	Triple Eight Racing	BMW Z4 GT3	Mowle-Osborne-Ratcliffe

AM CUP (13)
15	Boutsen Ginion Racing	BMW Z4 GT3	Ojjeh-Grotz
16	AKKA-ASP	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Pons-Barthez
24	Team Parker Racing	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Loggie-Westwood
25	Glorax Racing	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Mastronardi-Birzhin-Mancini
28	Delahaye Racing	Porsche 911 GT3-R	Bordet-Viron
30	Classic & Modern Racing	BMW Z4 GT3	Hirschi-Nicolle-Blanchemain
34	Car Collection Motorsport	Mercedes SLS AMG GT3	Ehret-Mattschull
36	Saintéloc Racing	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Buffin-Cabannes-Lagniez
37	Saintéloc Racing	Audi R8 LMS ultra	Trouillet-Gosselin-Rostan
49	AF Corse	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Mallegol-Blank-Bachelier
50	AF Corse	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Moiseev-Kondakov-Ragazzi
109	Attempto Racing	Porsche 911 GT3-R	Schmickler-Häring-Konstantinou
111	Kessel Racing	Ferrari 458 Italia GT3	Talbot-Earle-Zanuttini

Forest Punk is a photo book of automotive dinosaurs

Left to rot among our planet’s woodlands, deserts and neglected concrete jungles, the classic cars featured in Forest Punk – a book by photographer Dieter Klein – resemble skeletons from another world…

Car graveyards

German photographer Dieter Klein was first inspired to photograph the rusting carcasses of classic cars during a trip to France in 2009, where he chanced upon a sorry-looking Citroën pick-up truck in the bushes near a farm. Since then, Cologne-based Klein has become fascinated with the manner in which nature envelops and repurposes each vehicle, discovering many more car graveyards around the world: in France, Belgium, Sweden and the United States. To find out more about the book and to purchase a copy, visit www.forest-punk.de or DieterKlein.de

 

Photos: Dieter Klein

View the full range of classic cars for sale in the Classic Driver Market.

Project Burma – the would-be ‘budget Bentley’ of the 1960s

In the late 1950s – with the dawn of the monocoque revolution imminent – Bentley investigated the merits of a smaller, cheaper saloon; one that had a straight-six engine, a unibody chassis, and a rather unfamiliar face…

Rolls-Royce taking the decision to move towards unibody construction was almost a formality. As the 1960s approached, its next cars would be required to anticipate the changing trends of an increasingly car-conscious (and traffic-laden) society. This necessitated smaller exterior dimensions without a sacrifice in interior space and comfort – and monocoque construction was able to provide exactly this, albeit with high tooling and development costs.

Shambhala magic

One of Rolls-Royce’s many experimental monocoque projects was codenamed Tibet, while itsBentley cousin was referred to as Burma. Through what can only be explained as Shambhala magic, the Bentley’s cabin remained identical to the Rolls’, despite the car being dimensionally smaller on the outside. From the beginning, the Burma was designed around a new 4-litre, 6-cylinder engine (the Tibet retained the customary V8), and featured a full-width grille with integrated headlights.

Ultimately, the explorations of Burma and Tibet would never be completed, as both projects were shelved – but their best features were combined to create the Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow andBentley T-Series. Luckily, that ungainly front end wasn’t considered to be one of them.

Photos: John Blatchley/John Gaskell/Rolls-Royce, courtesy of Veloce Publishing

The information and pictures above come from the book ‘Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow/Bentley T-Series, Camargue & Corniche’ published by Veloce, which can be downloaded as an e-book now in various formats.

Lord Pembroke – the 200mph Earl from Wilton

Granted by Henry VIII to the 1st Earl of Pembroke in 1544, the Wilton estate near Salisbury, England, has remained in the same family ever since. As luck would have it, the 18th and current Earl of Pembroke is quite the classic and supercar enthusiast…

Stately home

On arriving at Wilton House to meet Lord Pembroke, our instructions to reach the house are to drive through a large children’s adventure playground. While this might seem at odds with the beauty and grandeur of Wiltshire’s and indeed one of England’s finest and most original stately homes, on meeting Lord Pembroke, it makes perfect sense – the property is first and foremost a fully operational family home that's also open to the public.

We park alongside a daily-driven 'Blu Tour de France' Ferrari 550 Maranello and, as we do so, Lord Pembroke appears and greets us warmly. Tall, dark and handsome goes only part way in describing Lord Pembroke: friendly, astute and approachable is probably more telling.

Photo opportunity

As we wander through the grounds while learning of Lord Pembroke’s fascinating family history, we pause on the delightful Palladian Bridge that spans the river at the lawn’s perimeter. The shutter of our photographer’s camera goes into overdrive. Blessed with glorious sunshine during our visit, the imposing house and grounds make for utterly idyllic surroundings…

Exhibition-style garage

But enough daydreaming, we're keen to discover where the 18th Earl of Pembroke's love of motoring came from. A jaw-dropping tour of the House's staterooms and artworks (including the largest van Dyck in existence – a family portrait from 1635) leads us into a relatively understated outbuilding that, once you enter, immediately expands into an enviably large exhibition-style garage. At the very front of the room, one of the most original Mercedes-Benz 300SLs you’re ever likely to find sports its original ‘battleship grey’ paintwork and red leather interior. Alongside sits a Ferrari 288 GTO, which he describes as "a full-on sensory experience".

The collection also includes an immaculate Jaguar E-type fettled by JD Classics: “Nowadays, I don’t buy cars for value, more for beauty. The E-type is definitely one of my favourites, it’s so beautiful and exquisite to drive.”

On the walls, enlarged photographs show Lord Pembroke’s great-grandfather, Arthur Wignall Tate, at the controls of an Edwardian-era 13.5-litre Grand Prix Mercedes-Benz. Apparently the car was a gift from Tate’s father on his 21st birthday.

Fascinated with cars

"My great-grandfather was absolutely car mad. I've actually managed to track down the whereabouts of the Mercedes in the photos. I'd be lying if I said I hadn't tried to secure it. I undoubtedly inherited the fascination from him."

He continues, “When I first started the collection, I went in search of cars that effectively doubled in power output with every new purchase. Perhaps inevitably, the search led me to a 1000bhp Bugatti Veyron. It still amazes me what an incredible piece of engineering the Veyron is, even 10 years after it was launched. During a trip to Germany, a friend and I legally reached more than 200mph on the German autobahn, very early on a Sunday morning. I admit my tastes are probably quite different from many other collectors.”

The main event

The discussion moves towards the main event on the Wilton House calendar. Hosted annually on the lawns of this majestic 16th Century stately home, Lord Pembroke's Wilton Classic and Supercar show aims to offer something a little different other motoring events, as the founder himself best explains. “The Wilton Classic and Supercar requires around ten months' planning every year, so it means a great deal to me. I launched it in 2008 with the intention of producing a show that was less about money and more about passion for motoring – it’s a family garden party with as few roped-off areas as possible.”

He continues, “The show is split into two formats, focusing on classics on the Saturday followed by supercars on the Sunday – which allows me to indulge in my passion for both. There are parades on both days and prizes for the most interesting cars. The aim is to inspire a younger audience with cars of yesterday and vice-versa on the Sunday.”

Delving further into the collection, a Maserati 3500GT languishes part-way through a full restoration. Elsewhere, Lord Pembroke's more modern Japanese and Italian classics, such as his Alfa Romeo 8C Coupé, Nissan Skyline R34, Datsun 240Z and Honda S2000 track car hint at his Playstation-generation and motor-racing hobby. Racing in the VW Funcup series, Lord Pembroke won the 2011 Spa 25hr race against more than 100 teams. He also plans to compete in historic races piloting a Group 2 BMW CSL.

Endurance racers

As our fascinating visit draws to a close, the two early ground-effect Porsche endurance-racing cars, on loan from a Porsche collector, spark up a final round of conversation. “The 956 on the left is the actual camera car that was filmed completing a 6min 11sec lap of the Nürburgring, with Stefan Bellof at the wheel. This, I think, makes it the fastest car ever filmed around the track and one of the fastest racing cars of all time.”

If that alone is not worth visiting the Wilton Classic and Supercar show for in early June, then perhaps you're too old (or perhaps too young) – in which case, come and explore the stunning country house, or just enjoy a brilliant adventure playground.

Photos: Amy Shore for Classic Driver

Visit the Wilton Classic and Supercar Show website for more information, or to buy tickets to the event.