27 IGTC-Nominated Entries for Suzuka 10H

Photo: SRO

Twenty-seven of the 36 total entries taking part in next weekend’s Suzuka 10 Hours will be eligible for Intercontinental GT Challenge powered by Pirelli points.

The finalized entry list, released on Friday, features the nominated entries for the penultimate round of the IGTC season, which boasts a total of 13 manufacturers, eight of which are full-season entrants.

The overall entry is down from the initial 40 cars following the withdrawals of both Team Goh McLaren 720S GT3s and the two Tairoku Racing Nissan GT-R NISMO GT3 cars.

Mercedes-AMG holds a narrow eight-point lead in the manufacturers’ championship over Porsche, which claimed its second win in the last three races with GPX Racing in last month’s Total 24 Hours of Spa.

Porsche will be represented by Absolute Racing and Bathurst 12 Hour winners Earl Bamber Motorsport in Japan, along with privateer entries from LM Corsa and AMAC Motorsport.

Seven Mercedes-AMG GT3s, meanwhile, are entered for the race with five eligible for IGTC points, including manufacturer-nominated entries from Strakka Racing, Craft-Bamboo, Goodsmile and defending race winners GruppeM Racing.

SunEnergy1 Racing, which makes its series return, will only be eligible for IGTC Bronze Cup points with Kenny Habul.

Audi, which has moved into a distant third in the manufacturers’ standings, will have three entries in Team WRT, Absolute and Team Hitotsuyama, while two season-long BMW M6 GT3s from Walkenhorst Motorsport and Schnitzer will be on the grid as well.

California 8 Hours winners HubAuto Corsa, meanwhile, will be joined by apr by ARN Racing and Car Guy Racing in the Ferrari camp, while there will be four entries from both Honda and Nissan, including the factory Honda Team Motul car that finished sixth overall at Spa.

Bentley completes the IGTC manufacturer roster with its two factory M-Sport-run Continental GT3s, although additional GT3 manufacturers, including Lamborghini, Aston Martin, McLaren and a Callaway Corvette, will also be on the grid for the race.

Track action kicks off on Friday Aug. 23 with paid and free practice, with qualifying and the Top 20 Pole Shootout set for Saturday and the 10-hour enduro getting underway Sunday at 10 a.m. local time.

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