Weekly Racing Roundup (2.27.23)

***Reigning Intelligent Money British GT champion Ian Loggie has switched teams ahead of his title defense this year. The Scot will move from RAM Racing to 2 Seas Motorsport, where he will share a Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo with CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa and Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour winner Jules Gounon. The pairing won at Oulton Park last season.

***Commenting on the decision to change teams, Loggie said: “After many great years with RAM Racing I felt the time was right for a change, and 2 Seas is a great team. I have history there, having raced in the Gulf 12 Hours with them, so I know how capable they are of turning out a fantastically competitive Mercedes-AMG.”

***A total of 43 cars are on the full-season entry list for this year’s Michelin Le Mans Cup season, including 30 participants in LMP3. The prototype field includes the likes of CD Sport, DKR Engineering, Graff, United Autosports and reigning champion Racing Spirit of Leman. Former LMP2 team Murphy Prototypes is returning to action with a Duqueine D08 Nissan, and H24 Racing is due to field its hydrogen-powered prototype as an ‘Innovative Car’ entry.

***The Le Mans Cup GT3 field consists of a dozen cars from seven different manufacturers. Defending champion GMB Motorsport is back with a pair of Honda NSX GT3 Evo22s, while Racing Spirit of Leman is joining the production-based ranks with an Aston Martin Vantage GT3. Audi squad Steller Motorsport, Porsche team HCR with CaffeineSix and Lamborghini customer Leipert Motorsport are among the other new full-season teams.

***Audi Sport factory driver Christopher Haase will lead B-Quik Absolute Racing’s driver lineup for next month’s revived Sepang 12 Hours. Two-time Sepang winner Haase will share the No. 28 Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II with Peter Kox — one of his victorious co-drivers in 2010 — and Kiks who finished on the podium in 2015.

***Haase said: “The Sepang 12 Hours is a great race and due to the tropical weather very challenging for teams and drivers and of course car setup to keep the tires alive. So far, I had the chance to win this race twice already so I’m looking forward to hitting the track soon.”

***Absolute has also committed to Lamborghini Super Trofeo Asia, which is returning after a three-year hiatus caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The team, which has single-make experience with Audis and Porsches, hasn’t stated how many new Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo EVO2s it will run. “After years of consideration, the time has come for us to join the championship,” said team principal Ingo Matter.

***Super Trofeo Asia consists of six rounds in different countries, including the Italy-based World Final in November. The other circuits are Sepang (May 5-7), The Bend (June 9-11), Fuji (July 14-16), South Korea’s Everland Speedway (Aug. 18-20) and Shanghai (Sep. 8-10).

***TechSport Racing will run Missouri-based Spike Kohlbecker in the new Toyota Gazoo Racing Cup, which will appear on the SRO America package. Kolhbecker is making his GT debut after spending the last two years in the Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship.

***American teenager Erik Evans will make his full-season British GT debut this year with Ford Mustang GT4 operator Academy Motorsport. Evans, who raced in the 2021 Cooper Tires USF2000 Championship, made a one-off appearance with Academy last season. He will team up with Matt Cowley, while Matt Nicoll-Jones and Will Moore form the other duo.

***Eastalent Racing is set to join International GT Open with a single Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II. The Austrian squad plans to enter one car, although the driver lineup is yet to be finalized. Eastalent raced in ADAC GT Masters last year with Norbert Siedler and Simon Reicher.

On this weekend: GT America powered by AWS (St. Petersburg)