Rollcentre Acquires Mercedes-AMG GT3 for British GT

Photo: British GT

Team ABBA with Rollcentre Racing will make the switch to a new Mercedes-AMG GT3 for the 2017 British GT Championship, with Richard Neary and Martin Short returning as drivers.

The Am-Am drivers ran a BMW Z4 GT3 throughout 2016 but will use the new Mercedes in their second season together. The car, which debuted in 2016, has already won the Blancpain GT Series and Nürburgring 24 Hours.

“I served my apprenticeship in 2016 and next year we’re aiming for better results,” said Neary. “The BMW was already four years old when we bought it and the difference between it and the newer generation cars was immediately apparent.

“But with the Merc we’ll definitely be in with a shout. It’s not especially powerful but the brakes and aero are a big step forward. Every aspect feels like an improvement.”

This makes Rollcentre Racing the first team to campaign a Mercedes full-time in British GT since Ram Racing’s SLS AMG GT3 program in 2015 with Alistair MacKinnon and Lewis Plato.

The current-gen car has already made an outing in British GT, however, when Black Falcon entered a pair of Mercedes-AMG GT3s in the Spa-Francorchamps round last season.

“It’s one of the latest cars and proved its credentials in Europe last season,” he said. “We were able to have a good look at it when Black Falcon joined British GT at Spa.

“It was immediately clear how good the build quality and AMG customer service was, and then following it on track gave us an idea of how well it handles. That was very apparent when Richard and I tested one at Hockenheim eight weeks ago.

“It’s the best GT car I’ve ever driven and should be well suited to British circuits.”

Jake Kilshaw

Jake Kilshaw is a UK-based journalist. He is a graduate of Politics and International Relations.