T3 Motorsport Aiming to “Enter Fully” into U.S Market

T3 Motorsport wants to “enter fully” into the North American sports car racing market beyond its debut in this weekend’s Rolex 24 at Daytona, according to Maximilian Paul.

Paul, who drives for the team and assists on the management side alongside his father Tobias and team manager Jens Feucht, explained that the Dresden-based DTM squad is hoping to pursue business ventures on both sides of the Atlantic in the future.

The team has forged a partnership with Southern Motorsport, an organization that includes former T3 Motorsport GT4 driver John Paul Southern Jr., and established a stateside base in Greenville, SC.

According to Paul, T3 Motorsport intends to expand its U.S racing activities while remaining active in the DTM and ADAC GT Masters with Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evos.

Further IMSA race outings beyond Daytona are currently under consideration.

Paul, Franck Perera, Mateo Llarena and Misha Goikhberg are contesting the Rolex 24.

“We are together with John Paul Southern and his son, John Paul Southern Jr,” Paul told Sportscar365.

“We created T3 North America and now we have a shop rented in South Carolina where we are staying right now.

“We pulled off this program in a very short time and now we want to enter fully into the U.S with the team and do IMSA as well as other championships like Michelin Pilot Challenge.

“All of these things are options for us. But right now we want to Daytona, and look forward to Sebring if we can do something there.

“America is a big playroom. The team always wanted to go to the US.

“IMSA is a very good championship and we like to compete at the highest level. This is very different compared to DTM and ADAC because it is endurance racing, and we are interested in doing this. We just want to increase.”

T3 Motorsport formulated its Daytona entry in December and quickly flew one of its ex-DTM Lamborghinis to Greenville. The car arrived on Jan. 10 in time for the Roar Before the Rolex 24 and will be permanently based in the U.S after the Daytona race.

Paul noted that two Lamborghinis are located back in Germany but a further car will need to be added to the lineup to facilitate the continuing DTM and GT Masters programs.

The team has so far only shipped one car to the U.S, but there also appears to be interest in Michelin Pilot Challenge. T3 Motorsport currently has a stable of Audi R8 LMS GT4s back in Germany that would be suitable for IMSA’s primary support series.

“We brought everything which we used on the DTM last year, all our best guys,” said Paul.

“It is a new challenge for all of them, because it is the first time we do a 24-hour race all together. Entering IMSA is tough because the rules are different, and the paddock is different.

“Everything is different in how it works. Now everyone has to get used to it, but the Roar was a good experience to get everything in a good line.

“We are not sure what we are going to use [in Pilot Challenge]. We have Audi GT4s in Europe, so we would like to use the Audi.

“We know we can run the car ourselves without any issues. It depends what drivers want to drive. We will see. We will decide, and at the moment we are starting to talk to drivers.”

Lamborghini will be represented by Carbahn with Peregrine Racing and NTE Sport during the full WeatherTech Championship season, but the number could increase if T3 commits to more events.

Paul Miller Racing and Grasser Racing Team operated Lamborghinis last year but the former has switched brands to BMW and the latter is focusing on the DTM only.

Asked if T3 is aiming to establish itself as the top Lamborghini team in North America, Paul said: “We are new here and there are a lot of other Lambo teams who have a footstep in here.

“First of all. we want to come here and prove that we are a good team.

“It is always the target to be the best Lamborghini and get them to have the most interest in us. But let’s go step by step and see what happens.

“First we need to deliver good results and do a consistently good job.”