The Garage 59 outfit will return to the Blancpain GT Series this term with a fresh look, having made the change to Aston Martin machinery for the 2019 season.
The British squad joined the series in 2016 and made an instant impact, winning both the Endurance Cup teams’ and drivers’ titles with its McLaren 650S GT3.
It has continued to run the same car since, but will now move to the Aston camp to field a brace of the iconic marque’s new Vantage GT3s.
Despite the change of machinery Garage 59’s on-track programme will remain unaltered from 2018, with the team set to enter one car in the Pro category and a second in the Am ranks for the full Endurance Cup schedule. The British squad also plans to contest selected rounds of the Intercontinental GT Challenge later in the year, beginning at the Total 24 Hours of Spa (25-28 July).
No drivers have yet been announced for the programme, though Chris Goodwin, Andrew Watson and Jonny Adam will test the car this week at Circuit Paul Ricard. Adam is an Aston Martin factory driver while Watson and new team co-owner Goodwin drove for the squad last term in the Pro and Am Cup classes respectively.
Speaking about the switch to a new manufacturer, team principal Andrew Kirkaldy commented: “The Vantage GT3 looks great. It’s a very high-end GT car based on a strong foundation car so we have high hopes for the season ahead. We’re looking forward to working with Aston Martin Racing, along with new sponsors who will be revealed in the future.
“It has been an interesting and enjoyable process to re-brand the team. All you can see at the moment is the new logo but we’ll soon be ready to show you our new racing livery, which we are working on now.”
In addition to Kirkaldy and Goodwin, the team’s ownership structure now includes Alexander West. The Swedish racer drove alongside Goodwin and Chris Harris during the 2018 campaign, scoring a brace of Am Cup victories along the way. His competitive plans for 2019 are yet to be revealed.