22-car field including eight different manufacturers ready for round one
Eight drivers go head-to-head in new SRO GT Academy contest
GT World’s return to Monza set to be a fan favourite
The GT2 European Series powered by Pirelli will roar into a new era at Monza next weekend (May 29-31) with a record entry packed with new teams and drivers, plus a unique prize on offer through the new SRO GT Academy.
GT2 Europe will return to Monza for the first time since 2024 to begin a five-event calendar, with the Temple of Speed set to be a fitting place to kick-start the season. A total of 39 drivers from 14 different nations will compete in the twin sprint races, with the field featuring eight different world-class supercar brands – Maserati, Mercedes-AMG, Audi, Lamborghini, Ferrari, Porsche, Ginetta and KTM. The 22 cars betters the series’ previous entry record from 2024.
The weekend will also feature the first round of the new SRO GT Academy contest, where eight Silver-graded drivers aged under 30 will battle it out for a career-boosting prize.
The GT2 grid joins forces with the GT World family, with a near 60-car GT3 entry set to headline the action with a three-hour race on Sunday, plus the GT4 European Series and McLaren Trophy Europe completing what promises to be a feast for supercar fans.
TO SEE AND DO AT MONZA
The on-track action is only part of what promises to be a packed event. As well as open paddocks and busy grandstands creating a festival-like atmosphere, the fan area will show the racing on a big screen while also offering a wide choice of food and drink options plus the GT World DJ. There will also an autograph session with the GT2 Europe drivers on Saturday. The always popular pit walk (above) is on Saturday evening.
Display cars are scheduled to include the only road-going Nissan R390 GT1 car in existence, plus an example of the new Kimera restomod, which reimagines the iconic Lancia 037 rally design. It all promises to create an unforgettable start to the season.
GREAT EIGHT CHASE SRO GT ACADEMY PRIZE
Eight drivers across six different cars will begin the fight for a potentially career-changing prize this season: Ethan Gialdini and Mikkel Njor (CMR Ginetta); Branden Oxley and Adrian Ferrer (NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG), Antoine Potty (i4Race Maserati); Niccolo Pirri (LP Racing Maserati) plus Moritz Wiskirchen and Jay Mo Härtling (both SR Motorsport by Schnitzelalm Mercedes-AMGs).
Open to Silver-graded drivers aged under 30 and competing in machinery from Mercedes-AMG, Maserati and Ginetta, drivers will score points across a number of different criteria, from outright speed to racecraft and behaviour on and off the track.
The winner will receive a fully funded (excluding crash damage) seat with a Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing Team for the full 2027 GT World Europe Endurance Cup.
Gialdini graduates from Championnat de France FFSA GT, while Njor is a former Danish rally champion and the Danish Motorsport Association’s Motorsport Talent of the Year 2022. Oxley was a GT4 European Series podium finisher last year while Ferrer has been a champion in the Toyota GR Cup Spain. Potty brings experience from the GT4 European Series and selected GT World outings. Pirri, son of LP Racing team founder Luca, is set to be the youngest driver on the GT2 Europe grid this year at just 17 as he steps up from French F4. Wiskirchen was a podium finisher in ADAC GT Masters while Härtling is the reigning ADAC GT4 Germany champion.
REFRESHED FIELD SET TO ROAR AT THE TEMPLE OF SPEED
Monza is a place where GT2 machinery can be showcased to the fullest. Featuring all of the power of a GT3 but with less aero and therefore less drag, the GT2 grid will reach its highest speeds of the season at the historic Italian track. With average speeds nudging 200kph, GT2 cars are only fractionally slower than the GT3 headliners, with flat-out times under a second away from those at the front of the GT World grid.
The reenergised field will be split into three classes catering for all levels of experience and ability; Silver for semi-professionals, Pro-Am and Masters for gentlemen drivers.
Pro-Am leads the way with an impressive 10-car entry. After finishing as championship runners-up last season, Nil Montserrat and Alberto de Martin reunite to try and go one better in their NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG. Mauro Calamia and Roberto Pampanini (above) were third in the points and will reignite their chase for honours in their striking gold Dinamic Motorsport Maserati.
The last brand to win a GT2 Europe race at Monza was KTM, and one of the winning drivers from 2024 returns with Reinhard Kofler sharing his MZR X-Bow with Marius Aigner. Matej Homola shares RTR Projects’ X-Bow with Viktor Mraz.
New entries include twin Mercedes-AMGs from top German squad SR Motorsport by Schnitzelalm, a Maserati from the Belgian i4Race team and a piece of history from Iron Dames/SP Racing where Sarah Bovy and Laura van den Hengel will become the first all-female GT2 Europe crew in their distinctive pink Porsche.
Masters has attracted an eight-car entry, led by two-time champion Philippe Prette (LP Racing Maserati), while the CMR Ginetta shared by Ethan Gialdini and Mikkel Njor and the NM Racing Team Mercedes-AMG of Branden Oxley and Adrian Ferrer headline the Silver category.
TIMETABLE (CEST)
THURSDAY 28 MAY
Paid Test Session: 15:45–17:45
FRIDAY 29 MAY
Free Practice: 11:20–12:20
Free Practice 2: 14:50–15:50
SATURDAY 30 MAY
Qualifying: 10:40–11:15
Race 1: 13:25–14:15 LIVE TV
SUNDAY 31 MAY
Race 2: 11:15–12:05 LIVE TV
