Mercedes-AMG Motorsport starts its 2018 season with a premiere: the Mercedes-AMG GT4 will be having its official competition debut in the hands of the first customer racing teams during the Dubai 24-hour race. In the Emirates, three Mercedes-AMG GT4 will be racing in the GT4 class while ten Mercedes-AMG GT3 will be competing in the two highest-ranking categories A6-PRO and A6-AM. Next to the first motorsport highlight of the season, the focus in Dubai will also be on a digital highlight: the performance brand from Affalterbach is launching RACE Scout, an innovative platform for the international motorsport community.
Competition debut for the Mercedes-AMG GT4
Ten Mercedes-AMG GT3 on the grid
Presentation of the new RACE Scout online platform
Dubai – It has already become a tradition that the motorsport season gets underway with the 24-hour race in Dubai. In 2018, Mercedes-AMG is not only celebrating the season opener in the metropolis in the desert, but also the competition debut of the Mercedes-AMG GT4. After an extensive test and development phase in 2017, the first customer racing teams will be running the new race car from Affalterbach in Dubai. The teams RACE Scout by Winward / HTP Motorsport (#84), Besagroup Racing (#233) and BLACK FALCON Team TMD Friction (#264) will each field one Mercedes-AMG GT4.
In the past years, Dubai has proven to be a good venue for Mercedes-AMG: in 2012, 2013 and 2015, customer racing teams managed to win the prestigious race in the Gulf region and added eight further podium finishes since 2011. Once the race gets underway in 2018, a total of ten Mercedes-AMG GT3 will be trying to secure the overall win for the brand from Affalterbach. BLACK FALCON has entered the cars with starting numbers 2, 3 and 7 while SPS automotive-performance is running two cars with starting numbers 16 and 24. RAM Racing (#5), Hofor Racing (#1), MP Motorsport (#19), HTP Motorsport (#25) and PROsport Performance (#85) will all have one Mercedes-AMG GT3 each in the race.
The Winward / HTP Motorsport car with starting number 84 will be sporting a special RACE Scout design. Thus, the car will be attracting attention for the new online platform that Mercedes-AMG is presenting to the global motorsport community for the first time in Dubai. In the upcoming weeks, the schedule for the developers includes an intense beta test of the application together with the initial users prior to the official launch in April, 2018, after which the RACE Scout app will be available for iOS free of charge. As a tool across manufacturers and series, RACE Scout is aimed at all motorsport teams and race drivers and allows for supplying or demanding vacant seats for race participations. The online platform, conceptualised in co-operation with Lab1886, is providing the global motorsport community with an optimal way of intense interaction.
