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Photo: Eric Le Galliot/MPS Agency United Autosports trio Ben Hanley, Gregoire Saucy and Griffin Peebles head the 47-car field into this weekend’s European Le Mans Series finale at Portimao as one of only two crews that can win the outright title. The drivers of the No. 22 Oreca 07 Gibson enjoy a 13-point lead at the head of the standings after an ultra-consistent campaign in which they have finished every race inside the top-four and have only once been off the podium. Only the No. 29 Forestier Racing by Panis entry of reigning champions Esteban Masson and Oliver Gray, alongside Louis Rousset, can stop the United Autosports racers from taking the title. The Forestier crew have scored two wins so far this year but a costly retirement at Paul Ricard — when a sensor issue struck — has dented their chances of another crown. However, it is much closer in each of the other three classes, including in the LMP2 Pro-Am division, where the top-four crews are separated by just six poin...

Source: Sports Car 365

Image: WRT Anthony McIntosh’s No. 69 Team WRT BMW M4 GT3 Evo will pay tribute to the iconic BASF ‘Cassette Tape’ BMW design from the early 1980s in next weekend’s FIA World Endurance Championship round in Barcelona. Revealed by the Belgian team on Monday, the LMGT3 entry will feature the famous red-and-white design which ran on the BMW M1 Procar and Group 4/5 racers. The livery’s distinctive circles were designed to mimic the spiral mechanics of a cassette tape. As usual, McIntosh will be joined by Parker Thompson and Dan Harper. The trip currently sit eighth in the championship coming off a sixth place class finish in last month’s 6 Hours of Fuji. McIntosh has run special liveries, linked to previous BMWs or BMW-powered cars, in all WEC races this season. Source: Sports Car 365

Photo: Julien Delfosse/DPPI Several of the leading FIA-rated Bronze and Silver LMGT3 drivers in the FIA World Endurance Championship have had their classification changed for next season, including points leader Jonny Edgar and reigning champion Riccardo Pera. Edgar had originally been due to be promoted from a Silver to a Gold for this season, but was able to successfully appeal the decision and remained part of the TF Sport Chevrolet Corvette Z06 GT3.R squad as a result. But in a batch of driver ratings changes confirmed by the FIA that will take effect from Jan. 1, Edgar has now been promoted to a Gold. Manthey Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo driver Pera — who won last year’s LMGT3 title — has also been promoted from Silver to Gold. Fellow Silver driver Ben Tuck, who is part of the Proton Competition Ford Mustang GT3 EVO stable, has had a similar reclassification, as has Garage 59 McLaren 720S GT3 Evo pilot Tom Fleming. MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi is among the other Silver driv...

Photo: GT World Challenge Asia Absolute Racing duo Alessandro Ghiretti and Huang Ruohan scored victory in Sunday’s GT World Challenge Asia powered by AWS race on the streets of Beijing to set up a final-round showdown with Lu Wei at Shanghai at the end of the month. At the wheel of their No. 911 Porsche 911 GT3 R Evo, Ghiretti and Huang converted pole into their first win since the opening round of the year at Sepang to reignite their title challenge, as Origine Motorsport pair Lu and Loek Hartog finished second. It means Lu, who failed to score in the first race after hitting the wall, will head to the finale in Shanghai with five points in hand over Ghiretti and Huang. Victory in the opening race on Saturday went to Harmony Racing Ferrari 296 GT3 of Liu Kaishun and GTWC Asia debutant Takuro Shinohara. Liu scored pole and was untroubled at the head of the field for the opening stint, and after the driver changes PONOS Racing SUPER GT driver Shinohara’s path to a debut ...

Source: Sports Car 365

Photo: SRO/JEP Ben Green and Thierry Vermeulen gave Emil Frey Racing a second GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Sprint Cup victory in as many events as they dominated the second race at Barcelona. Green had started from pole aboard the No. 69 Ferrari 296 GT3 Evo after qualifying was cancelled amid an extreme weather alert and the grid was instead based upon Free Practice 2 times . But there was no evidence of the storms that had gripped the region overnight with the race held in completely dry, dusk conditions and it proved far less chaotic than Saturday’s wet opener. Vermeulen eventually finished well clear of the No. 50 AF Corse Ferrari of Arthur Leclerc and Thomas Neubauer to give the Italian manufacturer its first 1-2 in the Sprint Cup. Maro Engel in the No. 3 Winward Mercedes-AMG GT3 Evo had blasted into the lead at the start — for which he was investigated but escaped sanction — but he was then very cautious into the first corner and Green stormed back ahead. E...