The British GT blue riband event, the Silverstone 500, often attracts a larger grid than usual and this year is set to be no different.
Arguably the highlight of these announcements is from ERC Sport. They have revealed that 2011 class champion, Peter Belshaw, will be partnered by Maxi Buhk in a GT4 Mercedes AMG. The pairing will also race at Spa-Francorchamps on 20/21 July.
Buhk is widely regarded as one of the best GT3 drivers in the world. However, this will be his first ever race outing in the GT4 spec version despite helping to develop the car.
Talking of the event he said, “I’ve competed in multi-class events before but never when I’ve been in the slower category. I’m usually the one trying to find a way through the traffic, so I guess it’s good to see things from a different perspective.”
Meanwhile, JMH Automotive also revealed this week that they will field a Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO. The car will compete at Silverstone and Donington in June with a driver pairing of John Seale and Jamie Stanley.
This will be Seale’s first time out in the senior category in British GT whereas Stanley has competed once at Silverstone in 2013. However, Stanley does not lack British GT experience, having won the GT4 class in 2010. These appearances for JMH are part of a plan to join the grid full time in 2020.
Despite seeing the pace of the GT3 Lamborghini this year, Stanley is being sensible about how the team should approach these weekends. “It’s not about going in all guns blazing: positive weekends at Silverstone and Donington will help us hit the ground running in 2020.”
Finally, Balfe Motorsport have revealed that they will add a third McLaren at Silverstone and Donington. The 570s GT4 is set to be driven by Mia Flewitt and Stewart Proctor.
Neither driver lacks experience in the car having both competed in the Pure McLaren GT Series throughout 2018. The talent of this pairing is proven by Flewitt winning the championship despite being a relative novice. Currently, the driving pairing is set to be the only Am/Am line-up in GT4, but this does not mean they are just making up the numbers.
With a week still to go before the race weekend, the grid size has already broken records. The 2019 Silverstone 500 looks set to be a fascinating race with World-Class drivers in both categories. The only question that remains, is who will win?