Bentley customer outfit Team Parker Racing claimed a Pro/Am class podium in the opening round of this year’s Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup at Monza earlier today, while both of Bentley Team M-Sport’s new-generation Continental GT3s also took the chequered flag on their race debut.
Team Parker’s first-generation Continental GT3 demonstrated its race-proven pedigree throughout the three-hour event. Starting fourth in class, Derek Pierce produced an eye-catching first stint to lead his class before handing over to Rob Smith on the hour mark. The car emerged from its pitstop in fourth but was still in podium contention when Seb Morris climbed aboard with 60 minutes remaining. He would only need half of that to catch and pass two of the three cars ahead en route to second in class.
Meanwhile, both of Bentley Team M-Sport’s new-generation Continental GT3s demonstrated their potential by qualifying within 0.3 and 0.5 seconds of pole position during an incredibly competitive qualifying session that saw the top-33 cars covered by just one second. Their pace was also evident in the early stages of the race before an on-track incident (#7) and first-race teething problems (#8) prevented both from challenging for points.
Nevertheless, the #7 entry of Guy Smith (GB), Jules Gounon (FR) and Steven Kane (GB), plus the #8 car shared by Vincent Abril (MC), Andy Soucek (ES) and Maxime Soulet (BE), both took the chequered flag on their competitive race debuts.
Bentley’s Director of Motorsport, Brian Gush, comments:
“Overall we are happy with the new Continental GT3’s performance here at Monza where we were able to evaluate its potential in race conditions for the first time. It’s a vital part of the development programme that we cannot replicate elsewhere and, aside from the usual expected teething issues, the car has performed well. I am especially pleased with its pace over one lap against a field as competitive as the one assembled for the Blancpain GT Series. We now have some time to look at what we’ve learned, iron out the issues, and return stronger at Silverstone.
“I’m also thrilled to see the first-generation Continental GT3 continuing to perform strongly in customer hands. Derek [Pierce], Rob [Smith] and Seb [Morris] drove superbly today against a very competitive Pro/Am field. The original car was still competitive in 2017 when it won the overall Teams’ title and it’s great to see that success continuing this year.”
Round two of this season’s Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup takes place at Silverstone on May 18-20, while Team Parker’s Sprint Cup campaign continues at Brands Hatch on May 5/6.
