The Competition102 GT4 European Series, promoted by the SRO Motorsports Group, is pleased to announce that the Italian tyre firm Pirelli, the world leader in Ultra High Performance products and sole supplier to Formula 1, will equip all teams in Europe’s premier GT4 category with Pirelli P Zero tyres.
Teams and drivers competing with a variety of vehicles, some from world’s most prestigious manufacturers, enjoy a minimum of 4.5 hours of track time per weekend during leading motorsport events at four Formula 1 tracks and two historic courses in Europe. For the first time the PRO and AM drivers will be challenged to compete in a two and three-hour endurance race, as well as debuting with their GT4 cars at a street track.
For GT4, Pirelli will use its renowned P Zero tyres in 18-inch size: DH slick tyres for dry conditions and WH patterned tyres for rain. These are commercially available products that use Pirelli’s state-of-the-art technology in a wide variety of fitments. The versatility of the tyres means that they complement the performance of an ample range of cars, which are suitable for a number of different national championships as well, including British GT Championship.
Max Braams, Competition102 GT4 European Series Coordinator at SRO Motorsports Group, said: “We are very excited to welcome Pirelli in 2016 as the official tyre supplier for the GT4 European Series. Using the same rubber as the Blancpain GT Series and British GT Championship will give our series a boost. In addition to that, as being a full member of the SRO Motorsports Group, we received an overwhelming interest from current and new teams to take part in our championship. Details will be revealed in due course.”
Pirelli’s motorsport director Paul Hembery commented: “This is a very significant agreement for us, as the cars we see on these championships so closely resemble the prestige cars that we supply on the road. Our objective is to produce a consistent and effective tyre, which offers good peak performance but at the same time enough durability and longevity for an entire endurance race. Although all the cars competing are very different, we aim to provide a tyre that works equally well for all of them, in order to highlight the skills of the drivers and the different strategies employed by the teams: just as we do in Formula One.”
Pirelli’s GT season got off to a perfect start with victory at the recent Bathurst 12 Hours in Australia, with the Italian tyres setting lap records both in qualifying and the race.
2016 Competition102 GT4 European Series calendar:
24 April 2016 – Monza (Italy) – Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup
15 May 2016 – Pau (France) – Grand Prix de Pau – FIA Formula 3 European Championship
12 June 2016 – Silverstone (United Kingdom) – British GT Championship *
10 July 2016 – Spa-Francorchamps (Belgium) – British GT Championship **
25 September 2016 – Hungaroring (Hungary) – DTM
9 October 2016 – Circuit Park Zandvoort (the Netherlands) – Final Races
* 3h endurance race
** 2h endurance race