Ford GT and Mustang Dive into FIA GT3 Competition
by CP Staff
The Swiss racing team, Matech, has once more become the talk of the town in flying the colours of the team "powered by Ford" on British soil.
The team has a virtual transporter train at the Silverstone track in Britain this weekend, and it is filled with three Ford GT supercars and three Ford Racing-built FR500GT3 Mustangs - known as FR500GT's or "Man Racers" in North America.
In the lead Ford GT, well known drivers Jurgen Von Gartzen and Luca Pirri (above) are at the helm. German Thomas Mutsch is teamed up with the Swiss driver Martin Bartek in the second car, while British pair Edward Morris and Bradley Ellis will share duties in the remaining GT.
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Canadian Scott Maxwell and Belgian Eric De Doncker, winner of the GT4 European Cup last year in an FR500C Mustang, will lead the Mustang effort at Silverstone. Matech has confirmed Frenchman Romain Bera and the Belgian Stefan Van Campenhoudt for the second car, while Frenchman Thierry Blaise British driver Nigel Greensall round out the team effort.
GT3-class racing in Europe brings together a diverse mix of crowd-pleasing cars, such as the Ferrari 430 GT3, Aston Martin DBRS9, Dodge Viper Competition Coupe, Jaguar XKR and others.
The series is becoming so popular, it has encouraged the renowned racing team, Alpina, to put together a factory team for the 2009 season, based on the BMW ALPINA B6 S road car.
Returning to competition after a 20 year absence, ALPINA will field its team in the FIA GT3 European Championship, as well as racing in selected important endurance races.
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