Two months after the season-opener in Dubai, action in the 24H SERIES powered by Hankook continues with the Hankook 12H MUGELLO (17-18 March, 2017). The entry list shows 54 cars with drivers from 21 different countries. Of course, many of the regular entrants will be present, but some teams will also be making their 24H SERIES debut at the beautiful circuit in the rolling hills of Tuscany.

Due to noise restrictions, the race at Mugello is again split up into two segments, the first part on Friday, 17 March, from 14.00 till 18.00 hrs and the second part on Saturday, 18 March, from 10.00 till 18.00 hrs. “It was something we did at Mugello for the first time some years ago, but meanwhile, we have done it at other races as well and many teams and drivers like it. They can enjoy a good meal together while the cars are under parc fermé conditions, have a good night’s sleep and then race again the next day. The race at Mugello is our first European event of this year and we are really looking forward to it,” says Natasha Mark on behalf of CREVENTIC. The Dutch agency is the promoter and organiser of the 24H SERIES powered by Hankook in co-operation with the DNRT (Dutch National Racing Team).

As usual, the A6 class, mainly for GT3 cars, is the biggest category at Mugello with 18 cars on the entry list. The category will be split up into an A6-Pro and an A6-Am class, with several teams already having expressed their preference. Other teams will be allocated to either class based on their lap times in practice and qualifying and their expected performance in the race. With Dutch team V8 Racing and German team Herberth Motorsport, the Mugello race winners of 2015 and 2016 are both on the grid, so there will be a direct ‘battle of the winners’. The Porsche 991 Cup class has five entries while the SP classes (SPX, SP2 and SP3-GT4) have a total entry of 19 cars between them. The touring car classes (TCR, A3 and A2) have a total entry of twelve cars. For the first time, four different brands will be represented in the TCR class with SEAT, Audi, Honda and Peugeot. It is also interesting to see that several regular entrants from other categories are also expanding into the TCR class, with German teams Car Collection Motorsport and Bonk Motorsport, French team B2F Compétition and Swiss outfit Stanco&Tanner Motorsport.

Optional private test sessions and rent-a-car rides are scheduled for Thursday, 16 March. Official track action gets underway on Friday, 17 March, with free practice from 9.00 till 10.30 hrs and qualifying from 10.45 till 11.45 hrs. The first part of the race runs from 14.00 till 18.00 hrs, followed by an intervention during which all cars remain under parc fermé conditions. On Saturday, pre-race activities start at 9.00 hrs while racing resumes at 10.00 hrs. The race ends at 18.00 hrs and will be followed by the prize-giving ceremony.

Source. Creventic