Maserati Targeting SRO3 Future, Customer Expansion in 2027

Maserati is using its GT America powered by AWS debut at Indianapolis Motor Speedway to establish the MC20 GT2 as a competitive option in SRO3, with hopes of returning next year with additional customer entries according to Risi Competizione race engineer Rick Mayer and Maserati Corse’s Claudio Berro.

The car, fielded by the Houston-based team, is making its first professional race appearance in the U.S. as Maserati works with SRO Motorsports Group to determine the appropriate Balance of Performance for the GT2-based machine to compete in the category.

“We are strictly working and do our best,” Berro told Sportscar365. “We are very happy about the performance of the car and we will see on the race what it will be up.”

Mayer said the primary objective is to demonstrate the car’s potential in a category that can accommodate older GT3-spec machinery and FIA Bronze-rated drivers, while establishing a performance window that allows it to compete fairly.

Although the car currently competes in the GT2 European Series for the last three years, it has not run in a class alongside GT3 machinery before.

“I think it’s Maserati’s intent to have that car be SRO3-compliant because it’s a different class than just GT3,” said Mayer.

“They’re just trying to get the SRO3 cars into a similar performance window and let guys run these older cars, the Bronze drivers run them. Their intent is to bring it over here to show that it can be competitive in this class, and then hopefully they sell some cars.”

The Indianapolis outing also gives Maserati an opportunity to gauge interest in the North American market and evaluate potential programs ahead of next year.

“We decided what was going on this race. And then for the future, we will plan with our partner and how to move it,” Berro said. “So now we are working on to do this.”

Mayer said the team only received the car on Sept. 29, the day the crew left for last weekend’s IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship season-ending Motul Petit Le Mans.

Despite the limited preparation, and Peter Dempsey never having previously driven the car until this week, Mayer said the setup matched the information supplied by Maserati, allowing the team to focus on understanding the package rather than making significant changes.

“What’s been kind of surprising is that when they said it was set up to come over here, what they said it was set up like was actually how it was set up,” said Mayer.

“It certainly doesn’t have the aero of a GT3 car. It’s pretty obvious when you look at the splitter and the diffuser that it’s not going to be in that same category. But it wasn’t built for that.”

Mayer believes Indianapolis offers a useful venue for evaluating the car against its SRO3 rivals because the circuit places different demands on aerodynamic performance than some other road courses.

“It’s not like Mosport, Road Atlanta, or Road America, where you need all that downforce to go through the fast sections fast,” he said. “So I think, in that regard, it can be a lot closer to a GT3 car.”

Maserati has supplied technical personnel to support the entry, while Risi has consulted Pirelli and SRO to ensure the car meets the relevant regulations.

It also marks a return for the Giuseppe Risi-owned team to racing Maseratis, most notably when they ran a MC12 in the GT1 class of the American Le Mans Series in 2006.

“I think Maserati needed somebody to run the car in the States,” said Mayer.

“Giuseppe Risi has always had a relationship with Maserati, and that’s Giuseppe’s expertise, so there’s always been a lot of crossover between Maserati and Ferrari in the past.”

Berro said Risi is one of several potential teams that could run the GT2 car next year.

“It’s early to say this, but we are here with Risi Competizione,” he said. “This is one partner of us, and also we have other teams interested to buy our cars and race with us.

“We will check after the race what is the results and probably we will keep some agreement with someone to do in the future. But everything is now in the face of the development for the next year.”

The Maserati is the second different GT2-spec car to debut in GT America this year following the Ginetta G56 GT2, which ran at three events this year with its factory Team LNT squad.