12h race of Bathurst: Manthey EMA is second placed in the Porsche 991.2

With a distance of only 0.9267 secounds, the old Porsche 911 GT3 R (991.2) by Manthey EMA

With the old Porsche 911 GT3 R (#912), Matt Campbell, Mathieu Jaminet, and Thomas Preining of Team Manthey EMA became second-placed with less than a second distance. Both BMW M4 GT3 (#32 and #46) are – also like the Porsche – equipped with KW Solid Piston dampers and became fourth and sixth.

It was the first race on the Mount Panorama Circuit in Australia for the BMW M4 GT3
Sheldon Van der Linde, Dries Vanthoor, and Charles Weerts in the Team WRT with their BMW M4 GT3 (#32) became fourth in the Liqui-Moly 12h Bathurst race

The 12h race of Bathurst was intence: The long-distance classic at the Mount Panorama circuit has hardly any run-off zones and therefore requires full focus.

Valentino Rossi was one of the pilots at the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 hour race
Valentino Rossi shared the WRT BMW M4 GT3 cockpit (#46) with Augusto Farfus and Maxime Martin

The 6.2-kilometer race has a height difference of 174 meters. Race cars need to overcome gradients of up to 16 percent. Some parts of the racetrack are even public roads exclusively closed for motorsport events.

On the official Youtube channel of the race, you can re-watch the most important highlights

At the Australian Mount Panorama, maximum concentration and professionalism are required when the pilots are trying to drive maneuvers such as attacking competitors or overtaking.

Suspension manufacturer KW automotive equips all Porsche 911 GT3 R with its motorsport dampers
A successful farewell race: With a second place, the old Porsche 911 GT3 R (991.2) goes into official motorsport retirement

When having a look at the Top 3 positions, it occurs that the 12 hours of Bathurst were a very close race. The Porsche 911 GT3 R (991.2) by our motorsport customer team Manthey EMA (#912) with the pilot Matt Campbell and the winner Jules Gounon in the Mercedes-AMG GT (#75) had a gap of only 0.9267 seconds after a total of 323 laps. Third became Marco Engel in the Mercedes-AMG GT3 (#999).

Six motorsport customers of KW automotive were driving in the 12 hours of Bathurst race
The 6.2-kilometer circuit is directly at Mount Panorama and has a height difference of 174 meters

The BMW M4 GT3 (#32) by the BMW M team WRT became fourth. The cockpit was shared by Sheldon Van Der Linde, Dries Vanthoor, and Charles Weerts. In the meantime, the BMW team even was in the Top 3 position.

The racecars needed to overcome gradients of up to 16 percent at the Mount Panorama Circuit
The WRT BMW M4 GT3 (#46) needed a repair and therefore became the sixth-placed at the long-distance race in Bathurst

The M4 GT3 (#46) driven by Augusto Farfus, Maxime Martin, and Valentino Rossi needed a repair of its brake lights and was in position six in the end.

Successful change from the motorcycle to the race car: Valentino Rossi is a pilot for the BMW Team WRT in the M4 GT3
Former ninefold motorcycle champion drove the BMW M4 in for WRT in position six

After the race, the former motorcycle professional and ninefold champion Valentino Rossi said: “My first Bathurst experience has been very good because it’s a great place. For us Europeans, it is a legendary place because we always play it on the simulator. To have the chance to race here and experience the real track is great. It is a fantastic circuit. You have to maintain attention but it is very enjoyable when you drive. “

In the 9h race of South Africa, Valentino Rossi will be piloting the BMW aswell

“I think that also my speed and performance were good. I feel good in the car; it is very good to drive, but during the race, especially in the hot conditions, we need a bit more pace. We could have been in the top five but overall it was a good race, and being the first experience, it was very positive.”

In the route section called "Skyline", the Porsche 911 GT3 R (991.2) by Grove Racing had an accident
The Porsche 911 GT3 R (991.2) by Grove Racing did not finish the race

Sadly, the Porsche 911 GT3 R (991.2) (#4) by Grove Racing did not finish the race. After 56 laps, the Porsche had an accident in the route section “Skyline”. Fortunately, the driver Stephan Grove wasn’t harmed. The Mercedes-AMG GT4 (#19) by Team Nineteen Corporation was eliminated ahead of schedule after 210 laps.

Photos by Gruppe C Photography, BMW Motorsport, and Grove Racing

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