German based tuner Gemballa is known first and foremost for the personalisation of Porsche cars, something it has been doing for 30 years with notable examples including the Avalanche, based on the Porsche 911, the Tornado, based on the Cayenne, and the Mirage GT, based on the Porsche Carrera GT. Now, the famous tuning company is venturing into motorsports with its newly formed racing division headed by Gemballa Supervisory Board director, Marco Marquardt.
Surprisingly, Gemballa Racing won’t be using a Porsche for its motorsport debut, as the company announced that the new team will enter two McLaren MP4-12C GT3 cars in the 2012 motorsport season.
Team owner and Gemballa investor, Steffen Korbach explained: “We chose the McLaren MP4-12C GT3 because we think this car has the potential to be one of the season’s leaders. We have also put together a team of drivers and mechanics who are proven winners. Racing is in our blood! We want to win!”
The Gemballa Racing team will be managed by Sascha Bert, a former German kart champion, Formula 3 and FIA GT driver, who has stood on the winners’ podium at the Nürburgring VLN 24-hour race amongst others. “Sascha Bert is an absolute pro and is ideally qualified to manage our new racing team,” said Korbach.
Gemballa’s GT3 racecar is based on the recently launched McLaren MP4-12C supercar featuring a 3.8-litre, twin-turbocharged V8 engine, bespoke racing gearbox, carbon safety cell, race front splitter, large fixed rear wing, optimised air vents at the front and a racing diffuser at the rear.
