Stephane Ratel has announced plans for a GT3 Cup of Nations that is set to take place at Sochi Autodrom in October 2018, with the idea to see a Pro-Am battle between different nationalities.
Ratel, the founder of Stephane Ratel Organisation (SRO) who oversees GT3 racing across the world including the Blancpain GT Series, has been in talks with an unnamed promoter to put on the event at the venue of the Russian Grand Prix, and although the FIA host the GT World Cup in Macau, he insists his event will not tread on the toes of the FIA version.
The plan is to have one silver and one bronze driver to represent each nation, and the weekend is set to be made up of three sprint races, although further details are yet to be divulged.
“I think last year we had drivers of 32 different nationalities just in the Blancpain GT Series and if you look at the [FIA] list of driver ratings, you have 50 different nationalities,” said Ratel, who is also involved in the FIA GT World Cup event at Macau.
“You can have a Thai car, a Saudi car, and competitive — there is a long, long list of nationalities.
“We looked around the world for someone who was interested in this concept and we found a promoter very interested in Russia — the date could be October 21 at the Sochi Autodrom.
“I think this concept can be very exciting and I truly hope that it is going to be accepted by the FIA.”
