The wait is over GPX Unveils Martini Livery for Porsche 911 GT3 R
GPX Racing has revealed a new 1971-inspired Martini livery ahead of this weekend’s Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup opener at Monza. If you've been an observer on the Fanatec GT World Challenge entry list, you may have noticed that the Porsche 911 GT3 R / GPX Racing was number # 22. Matt Campbell, Mathieu Jaminet and Earl Bamber will wear the Martini colours this season. The livery of the Porsche 911 GT3 R is based on that of the # 22 Porsche 917 which won at the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans, 50 years ago with Helmut Marko and Gijs van Lennep sharing the wheel.
The partnership with Italian vermouth brand Martini marks a departure from the Targa Florio-inspired Gulf light blue and orange colors that the 2019 Total 24 Hours of Spa-winning squad has typically applied to its GT3 racers.
GPX entered last month’s official GTWC Europe pre-season test at Paul Ricard with a striking temporary livery that was revealed at the same time as the Dubai-based team’s announcement of its new technical partnership with French outfit ART Grand Prix.
“We are honored to bring these iconic colours back to life and to commemorate the Martini Racing Porsche 917’s victory in the 1971 24 Hours of Le Mans,” said GPX Racing team principal Pierre-Brice Mena.
“This 917 K also won the Index of Performance and shattered the distance record.
“For us, this is a bottomless well of inspiration at the very moment we’re planning to take on new sporting challenges and participate in the endurance racing battles of the future.”
GPX Racing’s new Martini livery, designed by Sean Bull, keeps up a trend of classic Porsche paint jobs being recreated on modern GT racing cars.
In addition to GPX’s Martini and Gulf designs in the GT3 arena, factory-run Porsche 911 RSRs have competed in special liveries at major races such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans and long-distance rounds of the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship.
Michael Christensen, Kevin Estre and Laurens Vanthoor won the GTE-Pro class at Le Mans in 2018 with a ‘Pink Pig’ livery referring to the scheme that featured on Willi Kauhsen and Reinhold Joest’s Porsche 917/20 at Le Mans in 1971.
Porsche’s other GTE-Pro entry in the 2018 edition featured a Rothmans tribute while Mobil 1-GT1, Coca-Cola and Brumos have all been recognized over in IMSA competition.