IGTC Frontrunners Marciello, Vautier Join GruppeM for Suzuka

Photo: SRO

Intercontinental GT Challenge frontrunners Raffaele Marciello and Tristan Vautier have been confirmed at GruppeM for next weekend’s Suzuka 10 Hours.

The duo will join Mercedes-AMG factory driver Maro Engel in the No. 888 factory-supported Mercedes-AMG GT3, and are set to be the highest-placed IGTC drivers present for the Japanese race.

Marciello has competed with the Hong Kong-based team in three Blancpain GT Series Asia weekends so far this season and co-drives with Vautier in the Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup.

Vautier and Marciello head to Japan as the de facto IGTC points leaders despite being in second place, as Robin Frijns, who has 37 points to their 33, is not taking part due to his DTM commitments.

The Mercedes pairing are second in the title race after a runner-up finish at the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour and finishing as the third-highest IGTC-entered car in the Total 24 Hours of Spa.

The GruppeM car was the only entry with a TBA lineup in the most recent entry list for the Japanese race.

15 Cars Entered for IGTC Points

A total of 15 cars have been entered to score IGTC championship points in the third round of the four-race season.

Audi, Mercedes-AMG and Porsche all have four cars while Bentley has its two M-Sport-run entries and McLaren a single Garage 59 car.

Furthermore, three drivers: Nick Leventis, Tim Pappas and Kenny Habul, are competing for the Bronze Drivers’ title with Leventis’ and Habul’s cars themselves not eligible for IGTC manufacturer points.

Audi leads the championship after its wins at Bathurst and Spa with a total of 68 points, while Mercedes-AMG is second on 61 points.

Jake Kilshaw

Jake Kilshaw is a UK-based journalist. He is a graduate of Politics and International Relations.