International GT Open - Winter Test - Paul Ricard - France

22nd - 23rd February 2019

Event report Raymond Bonnello, photos Fréderic Lemaire

It was still early in the season but the teams and drivers were getting anxious to take the track.

This was possible for some of the candidates for the International GT Open and the GT Open Cup Europe, the new parallel series promoted by GT Sport.(The series will welcome the GTs from the manufacturer's cups and GT4) at the end of February, for the first traditional winter tests on the circuit Paul Ricard.

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With quite a few teams were still waiting for, or had just being delivered, their new cars or evolutions, and the real kick-off of the season still being two months away, the Ricard tests did not have the full grid and a taste of real rehearsal will have to wait until the Barcelona session, on 8-9 March.

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Still, quite a number of teams were in Southern France carrying their preparations.

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This was the case of Teo Martín Motorsport (with the new McLaren 720S), of Optimum Motorsport (with the new Aston Martin Vantage), of SPS Automotive Performance, Antonelli Motorsport and Lechner Racing (all with Mercedes), of Stile F Squadra Corse (Ferrari 488), and Olimp Racing (Audi R8 LMS), while Spirit Race Team Uwe Alzen Motorsport will be exceptionally testing with a Mercedes, as its Audi for the season is still travelling back from the Middle East.

In GT Open Cup Europe, fifteen cars, representing five brands (Mercedes, Lamborghini, Porsche, McLaren and Audi) and nine different teams were present, although it has to be noted that cars #11, 46, 64 and 66 were not in GT Cup Open technical configuration.

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The time sheet of the day, in International GT Open, was headed by the Lechner Racing Mercedes of Thomas Jäger-Mario Plachutta, with a time of 2.02.706 posted in the very last minutes of the last session, which improved by only 91 thousandths the other Mercedes, fielded by SPS Automotive, of Tom Onslow-Cole and Valentin Pierburg, which preceded their new team mates Miguel Ramos-Fabrizio Crestani.

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In GT Open Cup Europe, with a time of 2.08.131, the Lamborghini Huracan Super Trofeo of the Vincenzo Sospiri Racing driven by Carlotta Fedeli, Federico Paolino and Edoardo Liberati, was posted the best time of the four one-hour sessions.

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The Winter Test at Paul Ricard finished with another sunny and warm spring day that allowed teams and drivers of the International GT Open and the GT Cup Open Europe to maximize their preparations in perfect conditions.

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Saturday saw again the Mercedes AMG in great shape, on a track that suits them very well, with Fabrizio Crestani-Miguel Ramos, in the SPS Automotive Performance, posting the best time of the day and of the entire event in 2.01.995, barely braking the barrier of 2m02s in the dying minutes of session 7.

Fastest car in GT Cup configuration, this Saturday, was the Mercedes AMG of Sports&You ran by Guilherme Salas-Marcio Basso, with a time of 2.10.096, ahead of the McLaren 570S by Teo Martín Motorsport, driven by Fran Rueda-Martin Kodrić (2.10.714).

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The next Winter Test event is scheduled at Barcelona on 8-9 March, for what will be the real rehearsal ahed of the season.

(Based on International Open GT Press release)