+ 38-car field set to star in the season opener alongside GT World
+ Headline races on Sunday promise intense competition
+ Hundreds of GT cars will be in action across a packed three days
+ Provisional entry list, Circuit Paul Ricard
The GT4 European Series will begin a landmark season at Circuit Paul Ricard next weekend (April 10-12) with an all-star grid assembled for what promises to be a thrilling year.
A total of 38 cars from 10 different world-class brands will contest the opening round in the south of France, with a mixture of rising stars and experienced hands set to make the three class title fights highly unpredictable.
The GT4 European Series once again joins a capacity GT World field to create an action-packed event that will feature hundreds of GT cars in action at Circuit Paul Ricard.
SEASON OPENER SET TO BE A SPECTACLE
Since 2017 the GT4 European Series has been the premier feeder series to the GT World, featuring huge grids, thrilling door-to-door racing and stars of the future. All GT4 European Series events this season form an integral part of GT World weekends, meaning the series benefits from competing in front of the world’s biggest brands, best teams and hundreds of thousands of spectators across the year.
The grid this year includes drivers from 22 different nationalities and supercars from 10 manufacturers; Audi, Aston Martin, BMW, Ford, Ginetta, Lotus, McLaren, Mercedes-AMG, Porsche and Toyota GR.
Circuit Paul Ricard is a fitting place for the season opener, with the Le Castellet circuit producing great racing. With fast turns and the long Mistral Straight, GT4 cars produce slipstream racing in packs. Last year both the records for the closest overall race finish and the closest class victory were set here, with Robert Consani and Benjamin Lariche winning by just 0.076s in their Team Speedcar Audi and Hendrik Still/Joachim Bölting taking Pro-Am glory by 0.002s in their W&S Motorsport Porsche.
With the GT World race taking centre stage on Saturday night, the GT4 European Series will headline Sunday’s action, promising high-quality competition across all three classes.
HISTORY COULD BE MADE ACROSS THE GRID
Despite a decade of competition, no driver has managed to win the Silver title more than once, which proves the challenge of staying on top in such an ultra-competitive category. Reigning champions Consani and Lariche return aiming to break that trend. The Team Speedcar Audi pair have been standout across recent seasons, racking up nine wins and 12 podiums since 2023, and if they can replicate their winning form from last year, they would be assured a spot in the history books.
They face a huge challenge from a grid that is filled with potential race winners and even former champions such as Gabriele Piana, who lifted the title in 2023 and now returns alongside young German Thomas Rackl in a Borusan Otomotiv Motorsport BMW. Grégory Guilvert, 2023 Pro-Am champion, lines up with Paul Petit in a second Team Speedcar Audi, while SR Motorsport by Schnitzelalm brings a pair of GT4 Germany champions to the European stage for the first time, pairing outright 2025 winner Enrico Förderer with Rookie champion Cedric Fuchs in its Mercedes-AMG.
Max Kronberg made his own piece of history last year when he became the first back-to-back GT4 European Series class champion, lifting the Am title alongside Daniel Blickle to follow his Pro-Am glory in 2024. While the pair return this season in their W&S Motorsport Porsche, Kronberg will skip the opening weekend for personal reasons, leaving Blickle to go for a title double. He will be partnered by Moritz Berrenberg for the first two races.
We are guaranteed new champions in Pro-Am, which as usual has attracted a quality field. With 14 cars, Pro-Am is second only to Silver for entries. Bölting and Still finished second last season in their W&S Porsche and begin the season as favourites. They won four of the first five races last season, so will be looking for another flying start.
PLENTY TO SEE AND DO
The opening GT World event of the season promises to be action-packed from start to finish, both on and off track. With a capacity 58-car grid for its season-opening six-hour race on Saturday night, GT World will light up the circuit. Spectators can enjoy the accompanying Fan Zone which will show the action live on a big screen while featuring a DJ, photo booth, bars and food trucks.
Alongside the twin one-hour GT4 European Series races, the Lamborghini Super Trofeo and new GT3 Revival Series provide the action on Sunday, celebrating GT machinery across many forms and eras. All competing series feature open paddocks, allowing fans to get close to the stars and their cars. There will also be a special display of Lamborghini supercars to celebrate 30 years of the Super Trofeo.
The GT4 European Series season opener at Circuit Paul Ricard begins with paid testing on Friday, April 10 before Free Practice that afternoon (17:20). Saturday stages Free Practice 2 (10:00) and Qualifying (15:50) with both races taking place on Sunday (Race 1 at 11:00, Race 2 at 16:30). Both Qualifying and the races will be streamed live on the GT World YouTube channel.