Stéphane Ratel, the godfather of GT3 racing, will join an expanded Le Mans Classic line-up for Barwell Motorsport, with the team fielding three cars for the next GT3 Revival Series event.
Ratel will handle an original Aston Martin DBRS9, which will be operated entirely by the Barwell GT3 Heritage team throughout the event across the weekend of July 2-5. Ratel will share the car with experienced GT3 racer Robert Hissom in the Generation 1 Am class.
The Aston joins the team’s regular Am Gen 2 class entries of Peter Moulsdale aboard the iconic British GT title-winning Ecurie Ecosse-liveried BMW Z4 GT3 Evo and Adam Balon, who will handle the restored Reiter Engineering Lamborghini Gallardo LP560 FL2 GT3.
The Le Mans Classic promises to be the blue riband event for the new GT3 Revival Series, which is jointly organised by both the SRO Motorsports Group and leading historic racing specialist Peter Auto.
The GT3 Revival Series will enjoy two Qualifying sessions and two standalone races around the full 13.6km Circuit de la Sarthe, with the Aston, BMW and Lamborghini sure to be eye-catching entries.
Barwell Motorsport began what has become an incredibly successful 20-year GT3 journey when it partnered with the Aston Martin brand to line up at the inaugural FIA GT3 European Championship race at Silverstone in 2006 with a trio of DBRS9s. The Surrey squad stands as one of only three teams from that event to have competed in every season since.
Barwell enjoyed a strong stint partnered with Aston Martin Racing, being a podium finisher in the FIA GT3 European Championship, celebrating the inaugural British GT GT3 class title in 2006 with Leo Machitski, and even expanding to run now-Team WRT boss Vincent Vosse in the Belgian Belcar series aboard a Total-backed DBRS9. Out of the 26 original DBRS9 chassis that were made, Barwell operated a total of 12 different cars across a six-year period.
Both the conception and the enduring success of the GT3 formula is down to Ratel and the work of his SRO concern. Not only did Ratel approach manufacturers with a tempting new concept to use their flagship sportscars as a basis to go racing, he also implemented Balance of Performance to ensure parity between them, a key feature of the competition that has been a major contributor to the formula’s success.
The DBRS9 that Barwell will field is personally owned by Ratel and kept on display at the Circuit Paul Ricard welcome centre. The car is an ex-Valmon Racing 2006 DBRS9, chassis #24, still resplendent in its original Lukoil colours. Built by Aston Martin Racing technical partner Prodrive, the car features a 5.9-litre V12 capable of producing in excess of 600bhp and spearheaded the British manufacturer’s GT3 campaigns until being superseded by the V12 Vantage GT3 in 2011.
Stéphane Ratel says: “I am delighted to be joining Barwell Motorsport for the Le Mans Classic and bringing my Aston Martin DBRS9 to the event. As one of the world's leading historic car events, the Le Mans Classic is the perfect place to highlight the GT3 Revival Series. As it is the 20th anniversary of GT3 this year, I wanted to be a part of the event, but I also wanted one of our original Aston Martin teams to run my car, so Barwell Motorsport is a natural fit. I have known Mark Lemmer for many years and know he runs a fantastic team, so I am really looking forward to getting on track, experiencing this world-class event and getting to grips again with the fantastic Aston Martin DBRS9.”
Moulsdale will handle the BMW Z4 solo, having impressed in outings so far alongside both Matt Topham (GT3 Revival Series, Circuit Paul Ricard) and Liam Griffin (GT3 Masters, Donington Park). Balon too opts to race on his own. He and Phil Keen have shared the car in the aforementioned previous rounds, securing a podium finish in France.
The Le Mans Classic Legend begins with an opening ceremony on Thursday, July 2, before twin Qualifying sessions on Friday. Race 1 is scheduled for 09:20 (08:20 UK) on Saturday, with Race 2 at 14:14 (13:15 UK) on Sunday.
“I was delighted to receive the call from Stéphane asking if we would run his car at the Le Mans Classic, and it’s an honour to accept such an invitation. It will be a real throwback to our early days in GT3, and a great way to mark the 20th anniversary of the formula. Obviously our GT3 Heritage department is well versed in running and maintaining the DBRS9, and just last year we completed a full recommission of our own Total-backed chassis, so it’s a car we know inside-out. The Le Mans Classic will be the highlight of the year, and seeing these wonderful cars back in action at a track like the Circuit de la Sarthe will be truly special.”
