Leonardo Gorini and Luca Pirri have been entered as the inaugural drivers of the GT2 in the first participation of a contemporary Maserati in GT competition since the revered MC12 GT1 bowed out at the end of its title-winning campaign in the 2010 FIA GT1 World Championship.
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Maserati made its long-awaited return to motorsport by taking over the Venturi Formula E team ahead of the all-electric championship's switch to Gen3 rules for 2022-23, and also revealed a racing version of its MC20 sportscar.
Powered by the same 3-litre twin-turbocharged Nettuno V6 engine as the road-going model, the Maserati GT2 has undergone extensive development by Italian company YCOM, whose managing director Nicola Scimeca was the head designer on the MC12 project for Dallara.
Furthering its links to the MC12, the GT2's lead test driver Andrea Bertolini won four titles spanning the FIA GT and GT1 World Championship eras in six seasons with the MC12.
LP Racing has entered three examples of the Audi R8 LMS GT2 this season in the SRO-run championship for pro-am lineups, featuring drivers with Silver and Bronze gradings, with cars that have more power but are less reliant on aerodynamics than GT3 machines.
LP Racing team boss Pirri, who made one outing in an MC12 at Zhuhai with JMB Motorsport in 2005, said the opportunity to be a part of Maserati's GT comeback was too good to pass up.
His co-driver Gorini is a series regular who has spent the season to date in an Ebimotors Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport.
“We have followed the project and the development from the beginning, and we immediately decided to become a part of the great comeback of Maserati to GT racing,” Pirri said.
Source: Autosport