47 cars to start in season's penultimate event
#2 (Piana/Schrey) and #12 (Besler/Edgar) BMW's in close battle for Silver Cup honours
#42 Audi (Guilvert/Hamon) leads the way in Pro-Am
#10 Porsche (Piguet/Varutti) looking to claim Am Cup title with one event to spare
The GT4 European Series Powered by RAFA Racing Club is set to resume action after the summer interval at Germany's Hockenheim circuit on September 1-3. The penultimate round of the 2023 season welcomes another impressive grid with no fewer than 47 cars ready to take to the track, some of which are already eying this year's championship crown.
Silver: BMW showdown between Hofor Racing by Bonk Motorsport and Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport
25 points, the equivalent of one race win: that is the number separating the two leading crews in the Silver Cup. Gabriele Piana and Michael Schrey lead in the #2 Hofor Racing by Bonk Motorsport BMW M4 GT4, followed by Berkay Besler and Tom Edgar in the #12 Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport M4, the latter duo still on a high after their maiden win in the last race at Misano.
But neither of the front running BMW teams will get any presents from the number three in the standings. Benjamin Lariche and Robert Consani have been pushing hard all season in their #3 Team Speedcar Audi R8 LMS GT4 and would have been right up there with both BMW's if not for a few mishaps causing scoreless DNF's earlier this year. Still withing striking distance, the French duo in the Audi will certainly be looking to keep the championship wide open before heading into the final round.
Just five points shy of the top three, Etienne Cheli and Antoine Potty may be hoping for some unpredictable late-summer weather in Germany. Having bagged a season-leading two overall wins in wet conditions so far, the #8 Xwift Racing Events Toyota GR Supra GT4 EVO will prove a worthy contender in Hockenheim.
Over the course of the season, a number of other teams have been showing serious potential on various occasions, and each would love to convert it into a big result. That goes for the #4 BCMC Motorsport powered by EastSide Motorsport Mercedes-AMG, shared in Germany by Marc De Fulgencio and newcomer to the series Philipp Gogollok. The Aston Martin entries of Mirage Racing (#5 Day/Del Sarte) and Racing Spirit of Léman (#74 Weyrich/Villagomez) could also come out strong.
Pro-Am: Saintéloc Junior Team Audi leads comfortably after Misano double
Smooth sailing, it seems, for Grégory Guilvert and Christophe Hamon in the #42 Saintéloc Junior Team Audi R8 LMS GT4. Their magnificent back-to-back wins in Misano have put them well ahead of the nearest competition, the #36 Code Racing Development Alpine A110 GT4 EVO that Antoine Leclerc will share with Jean-Bernard Bouvet for the Hockenheim round.
Aston Martin (#18 TSR Team Spirit Racing of Lungstrass/Stegmann) and Mercedes-AMG (#20 EastSide Motorsport of Bulatov/Mayer) entries will try to build on their strong last performance in Misano, and Hendrik Still/Max Kronberg are more than motivated to reconnect with earlier strong form, after failing to score big numbers in the last event with their #30 W&S Motorsport Porsche 718 Cayman.
Am Cup: Can Varutti/Piguet take the title in the #10 AVR-Avvatar Porsche?
Hockenheim could be the venue where Julien Piguet and Alban Varutti crown themselves the 2023 Am Cup winners in the #10 AVR-Avvatar Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS... Heading into the event with an 82-point advantage over Hurgon/Ferté in the #55 Autosport GP LS Group Performance Alpine A110 GT4 EVO, there is a clear chance for the Porsche crew to wrap it up in Germany.
Meanwhile, Am Cup sees the return of the #442 W&S Motorsport Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS CS, which welcomes back its original driver Charles Dawson alongside Gustavo Xavier. Dawson climbs back into the driver's seat having fully recovered from his unfortunate accident in the very first round at Monza, and will want to make a worthy comeback in Hockenheim by giving the class leaders a proper run for their money. Taylor Hagler, who filled in for Dawson in the #442 car, stays on the team and will now share the #32 W&S Motorsport Porsche with fellow American driver Dakota Dickerson in Pro-Am.
