Chicago Performance will field one KTM X-BOW GT2 in the new GT2 Class of the GT America powered by AWS series, with Kevin Woods behind the wheel at the world-famous Brickyard.
SRO Motorsports Group has been pushing since May for the Intercontinental GT Challenge Indianapolis 8 Hour to showcase the GT2 platform as a viable option for teams to run in 2024 and beyond. At the “State of the Sport” address at Road America, it was confirmed that the GT2-homolgated cars would be eligible to run alongside the GT3 machines in GT America powered by AWS.
The GT2 Class has already been successfully running in Europe for the past three years with SRO, in the Fanatec GT2 European Series. The KTM X-BOW GT2 has proven to be a potent option. The car has achieved podium finishes at almost every race and two overall victories, one at the Austrian-based Marque’s home track at the Red Bull Ring in Spielberg, and the other in France at the Dijon-Prenois Circuit.
With the costs of the GT3 platform seemingly increasing over the last few years, SRO founder Stephane Ratel spoke to Sportscar365 earlier this year, saying that when you “now you look at the price of a new GT3, [a GT2 car is] almost half [the price]. You look at the cost of the [most recent] cars being presented in the Ford and Corvette vs. [a] GT2, the price difference is huge. So now, GT2 makes sense and could find its place in the [US] market. I don’t know how fast it’s going to find it.”
The success of the KTM X-BOW GT2 in the Fanatec GT2 European Series has been in part due to the high level of support from KTM. With dedicated engineering support and updates to the car’s suspension being recetly approved as an addendum to the homologation.
Managing Director of KTM Sportcar GmbH, Michael Woelfling touched on their success in Europe: “KTM is more than happy to be part of the SRO GT2 Series, [we’ve been] supporting the European series for almost 3 seasons now.”
KTM, with Michael Woelfling, have been very supportive of the GT2 Class making a return to the US. SRO’s founder Stephane Ratel requested earlier in the year, that each active GT2 manufacturer support the showcase by entering in a car. The GT2 Class is at its core a class designed for Bronze Drivers, so a full factory effort wouldn’t be possible, but KTM looked to instead answer Ratel’s call by choosing to support an existing US team to represent the Austrian Marque at the Brickyard.
Chicago Performance and KTM have worked together very closely on this program as a result, preparing the car and the team to carry the KTM banner, and serve as a spark to hopefully light the fire of GT2-based racing in the US. Woelfling feels the importance of this, stating:
“We strongly believe in the potential of a customer racing series in the US. At the same time, we know that our package is quite reliable and competitive to the other premium brands like Porsche, Audi and Mercedes!”
The aim to align the other key brands highlights that KTM also understands the importance behind other manufacturers’ participation being a crucial element in growing and sustaining the GT2 racing platform in the US.
Woelfling rounded out his thoughts, feeling “Hopeful [that] some additional brands will follow, [and we’ll] see a multiple brand grid soon!”
Photo: Kevin Woods (Center) with Michael Kopper (Left} & Kyle Washington {Right} | Credit: Reagan Thomas
Kevin Woods, driver of the #094 KTM X-BOW GT2, shared his feelings about the upcoming event:
“I’m very excited to make a return to SRO with support from KTM and Chicago Performance. The location being the legendary Brickyard makes it that much more special.”
When asked about his preparation for the event, Woods said “Both the car and team have been performing amazingly this season resulting in several wins and many podiums [in club events]. We hope to continue our success in the new GT2 category.” Woods previously ran a Porsche Cayman GT4 Clubsport MR in SRO’s GT4 America Sprint X West series in 2019. He has spent the majority of 2023 running the KTM X-BOW GT2 in club level events to prepare for the showcase event at Indianapolis.
Team Principal and Founder of Chicago Performance and Tuning Co., Al Uscinski shared Kevin’s positive outlook on the program, stating that “Kevin and KTM are the perfect partners for us to make our debut in higher level categories of racing, like SRO’s GT America series.
We’ve been intimately involved with KTM for just over a decade now, serving as one of their Sportcar dealers in the US. The GTX & GT2 have been great platforms for us to run in club level environments, and getting to stretch its legs in a proper GT2 field is very exciting.”
When asked about the newly released BoP for the event, Uscinski felt that “the BoP is actually very promising for the entire field. All the cars look like they will be a bit faster than how they run in Europe, so we’re hoping to race with the GT3 cars as well. That’s achievable with Kevin in the car, [he] is a fantastic guy to have in there, he always puts in 100%. Not just in his drives, but also [his] feedback to myself and the team. It really helps us get everything out of the car and ourselves, it should put us in a spot for a good result at Indy.”
The final rounds of the 2023 GT America powered by AWS series will be broadcast live on YouTube, on the SRO Official Channel, GT World. Race 1 starts at 1:40 p.m. local time on Friday October 6th, with Race 2 on Sunday October 8th, at 8:35 a.m.
Chicago Performance and Tuning Co. © 2023 | Author: Christopher Lester
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