Bentley returns to the green hell

Two Continental GT3s will contest the world’s toughest GT race
Bentley Motorsport confirms 2016 Nürburgring 24 Hours drivers
British works team outfit will work with European partner team Bentley Team ABT Sportsline

25 May 2016, Crewe – Bentley Motorsport will return to the Nürburgring Nordschleife this weekend in a bid to conquer ‘the green hell’ with its Continental GT3, as the proving ground for road and race cars alike once again plays host to the world’s toughest endurance race, Nürburgring 24 Hours.

The two-car campaign will be run by Bentley’s Crewe-based works outfit – including senior personnel John Wickham, David Argent and Christian Loriaux – in conjunction with its new European partner team, Bentley Team ABT Sportsline.

Alongside seasoned Bentley Boys Guy Smith (GB) and Steven Kane (GB), the Nürburgring 24 Hours driver line-ups comprise talent from Bentley Team Abt Sportsline’s GT Masters squad and local talent.

Double-honours will go to Christopher Brück (DE) who will race in both of the entries. He and Kane will be joined by Marco Holzer (DE) and Christer Jöns (DE) in car #37 and Smith will race alongside him with Christian Menzel (DE) and Fabian Hamprecht (DE) in car #38.

Bentley’s Director of Motorsport, Brian Gush, comments: “The Nürburgring Nordschleife is renowned for being the toughest race track in the world and that’s why we test all of our road cars there too, covering thousands of kilometres development phase.”

“Add changing weather conditions, darkness, high speeds and approximately 160 cars, and you can see how this track plays host to the most challenging race in the world – that’s what drives Bentley’s desire for success at Nürburgring 24 Hours.”

The Abt family teams have raced at the Nürburgring multiple times since 1999 and this experience and understanding of the Nordschleife showed when, at its debut race with the Continental GT3, it qualified on the front row for the opening round of the Nürburgring’s ten-race series, VLN.

“The VLN races have gone well for us but there is a huge difference between a four-hour and 24-hour race,” concluded Gush. “We know we have a good car, strong line-up and experienced team – but at this race, you also need a healthy quantity of luck. We’ll be fighting from the very first minute.”

Nürburgring 24 Hours takes place on 26-29 May and tickets are available at www.nuerburgring.de

Driver line-ups for Nürburgring 24 Hours:

#37: Christer Jöns, Steven Kane, Marco Holzer and Christopher Brück.
#38: Christopher Brück, Christian Menzel, Guy Smith and Fabian Hamprecht.

-Ends-

Mike Sayer
Product and Motorsport Communications Manager
mike.sayer@bentley.co.uk
+44(0)7507 846782

Rebecca Jones
Motorsport Communications Officer
rebecca@viprmedia.com
+44(0)7866 701161

Bentley Motors Ltd
Pyms Lane
Crewe
CW1 3PL

www.bentleymedia.com
communications@bentley.co.uk
@BentleyComms

Driver Quotes

Steven Kane, car #37: “It’s great to be returning to the Nürburgring Nordschleife – it’s become a highlight of my season. It really is like nothing else out there – it’s by far the most challenging track I’ve ever driven but it’s also the most exciting and exhilarating.”

Guy Smith, car #38: “It’s not easy to go over to the Nürburgring, as a British manufacturer in only its second year on the Nordschleife, and take on the German brands that call it their home. However, our car is extremely reliable and handles 24-hour races well, so if we stay out of trouble we should get a really good result.”

Notes to editors

Bentley Motorsport is based at the Bentley Motors headquarters in Crewe. From there, the operation runs Bentley Team M-Sport, and oversees three Works-supported teams around the world.
The Continental GT3 is built by the Bentley motorsport team in conjunction with M-Sport. The Bentley GT3 team is led by Bentley Director of Motorsport, Brian Gush supported by M-Sport’s Chief Engineer, Christian Loriaux.
Bentley Motors’ headquarters in Crewe is home to all of its operations including design, R&D, engineering and production of the company’s four model lines, Continental, Bentayga, Flying Spur and Mulsanne. The combination of fine craftsmanship, using skills that have been handed down through generations, alongside engineering expertise and cutting-edge technology is unique to UK luxury car brands