Georges Kaczka’s Energy Racing Team structure will receive customer and technical support from ART Grand Prix to field a McLaren 570S GT4 and a Porsche Cayman Clubsport MR GT4 in the GT4 European Series Southern Cup under the ‘Energy by ART’ banner.

Former French F4 and Eurocup Formula Renault 2.0 single-seaters ace Simon Gachet will team up with 2006 French FFSA GT champion Bruno Hernandez in a Silver-Bronze pairing aboard the Pro-Am-entered McLaren.

The Cayman GT4 will see Silver driver Grégoire Demoustier return to ART, with whom he previously tasted victory in the high-profile Blancpain GT Series.

His Bronze team-mate will be experienced racer Alain Ferté, whose track record includes many Le Mans 24 Hours entries.

The two ‘Energy by ART’ cars will follow a slightly different program this year.

While the McLaren will enter all of the Southern Cup’s six rounds, the Porsche will also take part in the three Northern Cup events that have been selected to make up the overall GT4 European Series classification, namely Brands Hatch, Zandvoort, and Nurburgring.

While known for its success in open-wheel, ART has also achieved a winning foray into the Blancpain GT Series with the McLaren MP4-12C, with Kaczka already involved in the program.

“We are delighted to be competing in France’s FFSA GT Championship as it comes back in an enticing and cost-effective GT4 format in 2017,” said Kaczka.

“Having the SRO Motorsports Group back at the helm further cements the credibility of the series, while also ensuring high operational standards.

France’s FFSA GT championship returns this year under the stewardship of SRO Motorsports Group, which is introducing its innovative GT4 format to the domestic market with valuable support from the FIA.

The GT4 European Series Southern Cup gets under way with Nogaro’s traditional Easter Cups on April 15-17.