Emil Frey Racing: Full program!
THREE GT3 SPORTS CARS The Emil Frey Racing Team, led by Lorenz Frey, is entering GT racing as strong as ever in 2018. Two Lexus RC F GT3s will be entered in all ten Blancpain GT Series races, and the team's own Jaguar in four of them. With Alex Fontana and Adrian Zaugg, two Swiss drivers are in this year's squad. [...]
2018 will be the most important year yet in the history of Emi Frey Racing, which stretches back to the 1960s. In an impressive, state-of-the-art hall in Safenwil, which was occupied in August 2017, two Lexus RC F GT3 and the proven Jaguar XK GT3 will be prepared for the 2018 racing season on an area of around 1200 square meters.
A new workshop with 26 employees
From an initial handful of employees in 2012, the workforce has grown to 26 full-time employees. Further specialists are being added to the team on the racecourse. Sounds huge, but it is also necessary in order to take on the big players in the industry.
This is because the Safenwil-based squad, split into Emil Frey Lexus Racing and Emil Frey Jaguar Racing, is still one of the smallest teams. All opponents can count on the support of the major manufacturers of their GT3 sports cars, while the Swiss team is on its own.
Reliable LExus GT3 at 24-hour test
After all, Lexus is fully backing Emil Frey Racing, with development and deployment of the RC F GT3 primarily in the hands of the Swiss. This includes a 24-hour test successfully completed last weekend in Spain. Apart from changing tires and refueling, no pit stops were necessary - which speaks for the quality of the Lexus as one is used to from the production model.
Lorenz Frey, who is concentrating entirely on the role of team boss (he has also been a director of the Emil Frey Group for two weeks), is therefore cautiously optimistic about the upcoming season inn the Blancpain GT Series.
Lorenz Frey: "Of course, you always race to win. But we have to remain realistic, because we're racing against the world's biggest manufacturers. That's why we're setting our sights on top ten finishes, as we've already achieved with the Jaguar."
Two Swiss drivers on the Jaguar
The two Lexus are entrusted to the two driver trios Albert Costa Balboa (E), Marco Seefried (D), Marcus Palttala (FIN) and Stéphane Ortelli (MC), Norbert Siedler (A), Christian Klien (A). Since both Lexus RC F GT3s start in the top Pro category and thus only drivers with Platinum or Gold ratings can compete, there was no more room for a Swiss.
Lorenz Frey: "We would have liked to have had another one, like Philipp Frommenwiler in 2017 in the GT Open as Costa's partner. But Philipp is only silver, and all the Swiss in question are already under contract with other teams or manufacturers."
Two other Swiss drivers - Alex Fontana and Adrian Zaugg - will drive the Emil Frey GT3 Jaguar. Unfortunately, for the time being, only in the first three endurance races and one sprint race in the first half of the season. After that, the homologation of the Jaguar expires, but Lorenz Frey is trying to extend it.
Adrian Zaugg returns to the race track
The Ticino native recommended himself at the 2017 Endurance finale with his good performance and the Bernese as a previous Lamborghini factory driver and former GP2 driver. The dual citizen (mom Janis is South African), who lives in nearby Lotzwil, had to take a break in 2017 for health reasons and is returning to the race track stronger than ever.
For the first time since the 2006 Renault World Series, Zaugg will drive with a Swiss license. The third Jaguar driver is Canadian Mikael Grenier, who won the Lamborghini Super Trofeo Europe in 2017.
The season starts for the Lexus team on April 7/8 with the first round of the Blancpain GT Series Sprint Cup in Zolder, Belgium. Emil Frey Racing will then also enter the Jaguar in the Endurance Cup opener at Monza on April 21/22. Frey: "Three cars means a huge task for us - but we're looking forward to this new challenge."
