Reigning Intercontinental GT Challenge champion Audi has announced its driver line-up for the 2018 season. The German manufacturer will again compete in all four rounds of the Intercontinental GT Challenge, trying to clinch a third manufacturers’ and drivers’ crown in a row.
While the exact driver crews, teams and number of R8 LMS GT3s are still to be confirmed, Audi Sport customer racing has named another strong factory driver roster from which its Intercontinental GT Challenge crews will be selected. In 2018 Audi Sport will again rely on Rahel Frey (CH), Robin Frijns (NL), Christopher Haase (D), Pierre Kaffer (D), Kelvin van der Linde (ZA), Christopher Mies (D), Frank Stippler (D) and reigning Intercontinental GT Challenge drivers’ champion Markus Winkelhock (D).
They will be joined by two new race drivers from Belgium. Dries Vanthoor, who is only 19 years old, has been racing for Belgian Audi Club Team WRT for two years. This year he won the Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup round at the Hungaroring and was one of the title contenders up until the final sprint race of the season. His 31-year-old Belgian countryman Frédéric Vervisch gathered several years of experience in single-seaters, was 2007 runner-up in the ATS Formula 3 Cup and since 2015 has been active with the Audi R8 LMS in various GT series.
Audi Sport customer racing has also confirmed that it will again tackle the Intercontinental GT Challenge. Next year, the only global GT racing series will encompass the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour, Total 24 Hours of Spa, the inaugural Suzuka 10 Hours and Mazda Raceway California 8 Hours. Having clinched drivers’ and manufacturers’ titles in 2016 and 2017, Audi has an unbeaten record in the Intercontinental GT Challenge.