Belgian Audi WRT will make its full-time entry into the Blancplain GT Series Asia this season, competing under the name of OD Racing Team WRT. The team will run OD Racing’s Audi R8 LMS GT3 car for the upcoming 2018 campaign.
They have named Australian driver Mitch Gilbert as their first driver as a returnee to OD Racing, and are yet to name their second driver. Asia has been a target for Audi WRT for some time, with this season being the perfect opportunity.
The championship will span the continents best tracks: starting at the Sepang International Circuit on the 14-15 April, followed by the Chang circuit in Thailand, Suzuka and Fuji in Japan, finishing with a Chinese leg in Shanghai and Ningbo Speedpark on the 13-14 October.
The WRT team will run this entry as a full-time Blancplain GT Series Asia competitor and are looking forward to the challenge ahead. The team’s only previous experience in the championship came at the season opener last year in Sepang , where the Audi WRT GT3 car was driven by Will Stevens and Jeffrey Lee.
Last year the entry was run by Absolute Racing, with drivers Gilbert and Aditya Patel finishing second in the standings.
Belgian WRT boss Vincent Vosse told Sportscar365 about how the opportunity to compete in the Blancplain GT Series Asia came about,
“Asia has been on our bucket list for a few years now but it is only since 2017 that we have found a good way to do it.”
“It has been an immediate success with several wins in the Audi R8 LMS Cup.
“An opportunity arose during the winter to collaborate with OD and Mitch, and it became quite clear to us that it was the right move and we also felt at ease with them.
“To enter Blancpain GT Series Asia is a logical step for WRT, after so many successes in the European Blancpain series.
“It is like all the planets were aligned and we are definitely all looking forward to hit the tracks together!”
And with the very car that won the Bathurst 12-hour race earlier this month making its full-time debut into the Blancplain GT Series Asia, this could very well end up being a successful combination come the end of the year.
