Team Speedcar’s multi-coloured Audis will return to the GT4 European Series Powered by RAFA Racing Club this season after the team confirmed it will run up to three cars across the year, with frontrunners Robert Consani and Benjamin Lariche returning for another shot at the championship.
The French squad’s brightly coloured Audi R8 LMS GT4s have been stars of the championship across recent seasons, with Consani and Lariche finishing second in the Silver points last year after celebrating one win and seven podium finishes. That duo will be back for a fourth consecutive season, having made their GT4 Europe debut as a pairing back in 2021.
Consani has been a regular frontrunner in both French and European GT4 over recent years, after switching from a successful rallying career in 2016. He was second in GT4 Europe in 2017 in a Ginetta, and third in French GT4 in 2020.
Lariche started his career in single-seaters, climbing as high as competing in the FIA Formula 2 Championship before moving into GT racing for 2012. Since then he has raced in FIA GT1, the Porsche Carrera Cup France and Blancpain GT Series before starting his long-term partnership with Consani in both French and European GT4.
Team Speedcar will also field an Am class entry for Julien Ripert and Philippe Thalamy, who both have backgrounds in rallying, plus Adrien Paviot and Nicolas Markiewicz will share a third R8 in the Am class during select events this season.
Paviot returns to GT4 racing after a season away competing in the Nürburgring Langstrecken Serie with a BMW. He and Markiewicz contested a single FFSA French GT round in 2022 with a Team Speedcar-run Ginetta G55. Before that Paviot has been a champion in the Formula France Coupe de France FFSA, and gained experience competing in the NASCAR Euro Series.
Markiewicz completes the all-French line-up, and has shared with Paviot in numerous events before, including the FFSA French GT Championship and at the Nürburgring. Both will be making their GT4 European Series debuts this season.
“We have two and a half cars completed for the season,” Team Speedcar head Pascal Destembert told Endurance-Info. “Benjamin Lariche and Robert Consani continue in the Audi with the firm intention of fighting for the Silver title. Julien Ripert and Philippe Thalamy, who are both arriving from the rally, are entered in Am. The third Audi will be for Adrien Paviot and Nicolas Markiewicz at several meetings.”
The Paviot/Markiewicz Audi is currently set for all rounds except Misano and Spa, which leaves the third car available for those events.