> West, Goodwin and Ledogar share Pro/Am class Aston Martin
Garage 59 will contest all five rounds of this season’s Intercontinental GT Challenge Powered by Pirelli.
The British squad and its Aston Martin raced at Suzuka and Kyalami last year and are now expanding their commitment to encompass Spa, Indianapolis and the championship’s season opening Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour next weekend.
The team’s familiar Pro/Am trio of Alexander West, Chris Goodwin and Côme Ledogar will contest all five rounds while a second, Silver entry shared by Andrew Watson, Olivier Hart and Romain De Angelis is confirmed for Bathurst.
“As a team we enjoyed the Intercontinental GT Challenge races that we competed in last year so it was an easy decision for us to commit to the full season in 2020,” said team principal, Andrew Kirkaldy. “We think our driver line-ups are strong and we have a season of experience with the Vantage under our belts now so we are more than ready for the challenge that lies ahead of us.”
Of the #188 crew, only Goodwin is a Bathurst rookie. West debuted there in 2018 while Ledogar claimed a class podium first time out in ‘17.
The sister car features historic racing specialist and Goodwood RAC TT winner Hart, plus reigning US and Canadian Porsche GT3 Cup Challenge champion De Angelis. Both make their first appearances at Mount Panorama alongside Watson, who first raced there in 2016.
“Bathurst is my favourite track in the world,” said Watson. “It has a great layout with lots of undulation and the people there really make it an incredible event. Starting the race in darkness and watching the sunrise is amazing. I’ve been quick there in the past and the Vantage GT3 should be well suited to the circuit so I can’t wait to get out there and challenge for a podium with my new team-mates.”
Garage 59 joins R-Motorsport on the list of full-season Aston Martin entrants. However, AMR is not currently registered to score points towards Intercontinental’s Manufacturers’ and Overall Drivers’ titles.
Six manufacturers – Audi, Bentley, Honda, Lamborghini, Mercedes-AMG and Porsche – have already announced full-season #IntGTC programmes, while more are expected to confirm ahead of Bathurst’s season opener (January 31 – February 2).
That’s followed by Europe’s round at the Total 24 Hours of Spa (July 23-26) before the Suzuka 10 Hours hosts Asia’s leg on August 21-23. The iconic Brickyard stages the inaugural Indianapolis 8 Hour six weeks later before the Kyalami 9 Hour closes out the campaign.