The announcement that Dutch agency CREVENTIC, promoters and organisers of the 24H SERIES powered by Hankook will be organising the 24-hour race at Silverstone from next year was received with great enthusiasm throughout the motorsport world. Teams, drivers and manufacturers have responded very positively and entries for the Hankook 24H Silverstone – European touring car edition (April 1-3, 2016) keep coming in. “Many teams seem to appreciate the ‘touring cars only’ concept we have adopted for the race at Silverstone,” says Daphne Gengler on behalf of CREVENTIC. “They love the chance to be able to compete for outright honours in the race, a first in history of the 24H SERIES powered by Hankook.”
Dutch team Bas Koeten Racing, a regular competitor in both the 24H SERIES powered by Hankook and the burgeoning TCR International series, is a perfect example. “Earlier this year, with the old format at Silverstone still in place, we finished second overall with our SEAT Leon Cup Racer behind an Aston Martin in the 24-hour race at Silverstone,” team principal Bas Koeten says. “Now, we have already received many requests from GT drivers who want to drive our TCR Cup Racer and other touring cars from our stable. For us, as a team, this is a great opportunity and the number of interested drivers is considerably higher than for 24-hour races with GT cars in the field as well.”
CREVENTIC’s Daphne Gengler confirms this: “Teams from various countries, even outside of Europe, have expressed their interest. Unfortunately, some don’t fully understand yet that this race is only open to non-GT cars. Many teams with TCR cars have signed up. The number of these cars is rapidly increasing and we assume that the overall winner will come from this category, as the TCR cars will be the fastest in the field.” The provisional entry list already shows more than 50 teams with new entries coming in on a daily basis. “Chances are that we will have to work with a waiting list when we are getting over 70,” Gengler says.
Next to a number of Renault Clios, traditionally a popular car in the touring car classes, a significant entry is also expected for the BMW M235i Racing Cup class. BMW Motorsport has already announced its support for this initiative. Jaime Puig, head of SEAT Sport, is equally positive: “This is great news for all customers of SEAT Sport. I’m sure a lot of them will welcome this initiative and participate with their SEAT Leon Cup Racer offering entertainment to all spectators.”
Stuart Pringle, Sporting Director, Silverstone Circuit, says: “CREVENTIC run fantastic 24 hour races and their concept of a 24 hour European Touring Car cup is extremely exciting. The chance to put European competitors in front of passionate and knowledgeable touring car fans in Great Britain in a unique, long distance format is something we want to get right behind and fully support. We can’t wait!.” A comprehensive package of support races will be in place and live coverage on Motors TV as well as live streaming are planned. Daphne Gengler adds: “Our goal is to make this event the biggest endurance race for touring cars, but the main goal is that all team members will be going home after the race with a huge smile on their face, because they had such a great time!” Further information about entry, entry fee, classes, time schedule and prices of tyres can be found at www.24hseries.com.