Following the recent announcement that Garage 59 will contest the full Blancpain GT Series with two cars, Garage 59 are now in the position to confirm the final driver line-up in the Blancpain Sprint Series. Martin Plowman (Staffordshire, 28) and Craig Dolby (Melton Mowbray, 28) join Garage 59 to complete their two-car assault on the Blancpain Sprint Series in 2016. Piloting the #59 McLaren 650S GT3, they will be teaming up with McLaren GT factory drivers Rob Bell and Alvaro Parente in the sister 650S GT3 #58 car for a full season campaign in the ten-round, five-event calendar.
Plowman has enjoyed a successful career in some of the world’s toughest championships including Indycar, American Le Mans Series and the World Endurance Championship. In 2013, he won the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the LMP2 class and was 2013 FIA WEC World Champion in the LMP2 class for drivers and teams. The 28 year old racer has a wealth of experience on and off track and has competed on all of the circuits the Sprint series visits which stands him in good stead for the season ahead. Teammate Dolby had a fruitful journey through single seaters including clinching the Formula Renault 1.6 Belgium championship title in 2006 and completed two seasons in the Tottenham Hotspur Superleague Formula car before switching to GT racing in 2012. Competing in the Blancpain Sprint Series in 2015, Dolby secured eight top-ten finishes.
Team manager Bas Leinders commented: “We tested Martin and Craig at the beginning of the year and it was clear from the outset their pace was very good. They are both very professional racers which is important when selecting drivers for the Blancpain GT series; the level of racing is so competitive. We are very confident that we have the right team, the right car and now the right drivers with all four confirmed to have a good season this year.”
Martin Plowman commented: “To race with Garage 59 this year is a big opportunity for me. I’d like to thank Andrew and Bas for putting their faith in me. I’m also looking forward to working with my team mate Craig Dolby again. We go back a long way and have a very good understanding of each other, which will help us to hit the ground running. McLaren is such an iconic brand and they know how to build winning race cars, so I can’t wait to get started!”
Craig Dolby commented: “I’m really looking forward to the season ahead with Martin. The experience we both have puts us in a good position going into the championship and hopefully we can bring some silverware home for the team and the 650S GT3.
The opening round of Blancpain Sprint Series takes place at Misano, Italy on Saturday 9th and Sunday 10th April in the format of two x 1 hour sprint races.