Action in the 24H SERIES powered by Hankook continues at a venue that has a long heritage in motor racing. The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari in Imola will be hosting the second running of the Hankook 12H IMOLA (24-26 May, 2018). The race in Imola will bring an interesting novelty: for the first time, the start will be in two groups, one for the GT segment and one for the TCE segment. Over 50 cars are expected on the grid for the event that marks the third round of the European Championship in the 24H GT SERIES and the second event in the European Championship in the 24H TCE SERIES, both powered by Hankook.

Only one week after the Mille Miglia, car lovers can look forward to another nice event in Italy with the Hankook 12H IMOLA. The Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari, opened in 1953 and the venue of many Formula 1 Grands Prix, is located in the heart of the Emilia Romagna region, also known as the ‘terra di motori’ or ‘motor valley’. It is here that iconic sports car brands like Ferrari, Lamborghini, Maserati and Pagani come from, just like the Ducati motor cycles. Some beautiful car collections are also located here, and let’s not forget the many other pleasant things Italy has in store, from beautiful landscapes and attractive cities to its world-famous cuisine.

Over 50 cars expected on the grid

The provisional entry list for the Hankook 12H IMOLA shows 28 cars in the 24H GT SERIES and 24 cars in the TCE SERIES, adding up to a total of 52 entries. “And there is a good balance between GTs and touring cars, too,” says Peter Freij on behalf of series’ promoters and organisers, CREVENTIC. For the first time, there will be separate starting groups for the GTs and the touring cars. “We already had separate pole positions for each category in previous races, but now, we will see two leading cars for the formation laps and two race starts: one for the GTs and one for the touring cars,” Freij explains.

In the GT field, the A6 class includes many familiar teams with GT3 machinery from Audi, Ferrari, Mercedes-AMG and Porsche. Last year,

German team, Car Collection Motorsport, won the inaugural Hankook 12H IMOLA and caused quite a stir by becoming the first A6-Am team to score an outright win in 2017. The team will be back to defend its success. The SPX class includes one Lamborghini and one Porsche. Great competition can be expected in the 991 class with no less than eleven Porsche Cup cars entered. A MARC Focus and a BMW in the SP2 class and a Mercedes, a Porsche and a Ginetta in the GT4 class round out the GT field.

TCR class the biggest in the field

With 15 cars entered, the TCR class spearheads the touring car field and numerically, it is also the biggest class on the grid. Audi, Cupra, Hyundai, Peugeot, SEAT and Volkswagen are all represented here. The SP3 class includes two BMWs up against one Ginetta and the remainder of the touring car field is an all-BMW affair with one car in the A3 class and three BMW M235i Racing Cup cars in the CUP1 class.

The first four hours of the race are running on Friday from 15.30-19.30 hrs, with the remaining eight hours to be held on Saturday from 11.30-19.30 hrs. The 7 Race Series is the official support category for the event with one race each on Friday and on Saturday. The full time schedule for the event can be found on the series’ website.

Throughout the weekend, there will be live streaming of the track action on the series’ website, http://www.24hseries.com, as well as the series’ official YouTube channel.

Source. Creventic/Photo. Petr Frýba/Boost Racing Images