GTC Race Series Moves from DTM to New ADAC Package

The GTC Race series that supported DTM rounds this year has formed a partnership with the ADAC to headline a new event package run by the German automobile association.

The GTC Race championship, which is headlined by GT3 cars and also includes GT4 and Cup-level machinery, will be the leading series at ADAC Racing Weekend events in 2021.

Race meetings will consist of two 30-minute single-driver sprints and an hour-long ‘Goodyear 60’ contest involving a mandatory pit stop.

Markus Winkelhock was the 2020 GTC Race Pro champion driving an Audi R8 LMS GT3 equipped with the ‘Space Drive’ steer-by-wire system developed by Schaeffler Paravan.

Other notable drivers who took part in rounds this year included Bernd Schneider, Maximilian Goetz and Jordan Pepper.

“In cooperation with the ADAC, we would like to expand our GTC Race series on the new platform of the ADAC Racing Weekends,” said Roland Arnold, majority shareholder in the Driving Mobility umbrella organization that runs GTC Race.

“We believe that friendly customer orientation and a sporty community spirit [are] extremely important.

“We introduce young talents to GT racing and develop them for higher tasks under the guidance of well-known professionals. Fast gentlemen are just as much at home with us as established professionals.”

A total of five ADAC Racing Weekend events are set to be held next year, starting at Oschersleben on April 23-25.

Each round will be organized by a different regional motorsport club.

GTC Race will be supported by ADAC TCR Germany, which is moving across from the busy GT Masters package that also includes ADAC GT4 Germany and Formula 4.

The provisional ADAC Racing Weekend calendar avoids clashes with the ADAC GT Masters schedule, opening the possibility for teams to compete in both.

“We are committed to popular sport at the ADAC Racing Weekend, on the one hand to give traditional events a future, but on the other hand to give new series in the semi-professional sector a good basis,” said ADAC sporting president Hermann Tomczyk.

“The racing weekends are mostly organized on a voluntary basis by experienced ADAC local clubs.

“We want to do this, with our support, to ensure that this type of event continues to exist and at the same time gives popular motorsport its own permanent and sustainable platform.

“We are pleased that with the GTC Race, a strong traditional series is involved as the main series at the ADAC Racing Weekend.”

The GTC Race series was founded in 1990 as the Hockenheim-Cup but became known as the Divinol Cup after two seasons.

In 2008 its name changed again to the DMV Touring Car Challenge, but an influx of GT entries over the next few years prompted the ‘GTC’ tag to be introduced in 2015.

The DMV withdrew its involvement ahead of the 2020 season, resulting in the management structure being placed under an new umbrella body called Driving Mobility.

2021 GTC Race Schedule
Apr. 23-25 – Oschersleben
May. 28-30 – Lausitzring
Jul. 30-Aug. 1 – Nürburgring
Aug. 27-29 – Assen
Sep. 17-19 – Hockenheim