K-PAX Commits to California 8H

Photo: K-PAX Racing

K-PAX Racing has committed to October’s California 8 Hours at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca, having entered a single, previous-generation Bentley Continental GT3 for the season-ending round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge.

Alvaro Parente and Rodrigo Baptista, the team’s two regular drivers in Pirelli World Challenge competition, will team up alongside Bryan Sellers, who was part of K-PAX’s PWC lineup last year.

It will mark the California-based team’s third IGTC appearance and first in supporting Bentley in the manufacturers’ championship, following previous outings in McLaren 650S GT3s.

“Laguna Seca is such a storied track with a lot of history, and we have had a lot of success there in the past,” said program manager Darren Law.

“This track is local to our team, and we have good data here. Having previously competed in both IGTC events at the Sepang 12 Hours and also last season in this eight-hour event, we understand the challenges and look forward to competing with other teams from around the world.”

The team will field one of its current Bentleys in the race alongside the M-Sport-run 2018-spec Bentley Continental GT3s, which it will take delivery of following the event.

Law said the goal will be to give the car a “good send-off” by repeating the team’s podium finish in the race last year, with Sellers, Parente and McLaren GT factory driver Ben Barnicoat.

“It will be great to have Bryan Sellers back with the team,” Law added. “He and Álvaro were a part of the driver lineup last year that helped get us to the podium.

“He is a great driver and so experienced in endurance racing. He knows everyone on the team already, so it is a perfect fit for our program.

“Although he has not driven the Bentley Continental GT3 in competition yet, I don’t have any worries about him getting used to the car. We will run a test program for him prior to the race so that he is up to speed and comfortable with how these cars behave.”

Sellers added:  “I’m glad that they put enough faith in me to come back, and I’m really looking forward to getting back with the team and working with them.

“It was a great event last year and I certainly think this year will be an improvement – even over what it was already.

“I expect more cars, better competition, and that means we’ll definitely have to be on our game to produce a good result. I really believe everyone at K-PAX Racing is up for the challenge.”

Parente, meanwhile, is coming off a runner-up finish in last weekend’s penultimate IGTC round of the season at Suzuka, in a Strakka Racing-run Mercedes-AMG GT3.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John