Apex Motorsport’s new GT3 programme has in recent weeks taken significant and major steps forward in the testing and development of the stunning-looking Jaguar XKR GT3, and it has now been decided that the car’s race debut will be made in Britain during the month of July.

Despite the original plan being to enter all five rounds of the FIA GT3 European Championship, delays in the technical development of the car, and in particular the adaptation of the engine for racing purposes, have meant that the car will not now been seen in this Championship until Brno in the Czech Republic in September.

In the interim it is planned that selected British and other GT races will be entered, including the Brands Hatch round of the British GT Championship on 14/15th July, to give both the car and the team an opportunity to gain valuable race miles.  The car will also be seen at the Goodwood Festival of Speed over the weekend of 22-24th June when Stuart Scott will be demonstrating the prowess of the car up the famous hill within the Goodwood estate in Sussex.

Richard Lloyd, Team Principal of Apex Motorsport, said, “It is obviously very disappointing that we will not be at Monza in June, but we don’t believe that would be in the best interests of anyone involved in the programme.

“At the beginning of the project we started down a road on engine preparation that didn’t turn out to be the correct one for us.  We’ve since made a lot of engineering progress, with the help of both AER and Mountune Limited – a division of Roush Technologies - who will now be responsible for all our GT3 engine preparation in the future. 

“Mountune are specialists in the adaptation of road engines for racing purposes,” continued Lloyd.  “They, with excellent help and technical input from Jaguar Cars’ own engine department, have taken over the development and build of our engines.  They’ve made huge progress since they got involved, but unfortunately there hasn’t been enough time for them to assemble enough parts, build and dyno test the engines. 

“We are enormously grateful to everyone involved in the programme, and particularly to Stuart Scott, CBT and our other partners, for their continued and unwavering support.  We are convinced that when the time comes for the Jaguar XKR GT3 to take to the track it will not only be reliable but also competitive.  If that takes time, then time is what we shall give it.”

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