Intercontinental GT Challenge
Marciello joins Rossi for BMW debut in Bathurst 12 Hour
Raffaele Marciello will make his first competitive outing as a factory BMW driver in the Bathurst 12 Hour next month.
Rachit Thukral
Edited: Jan 12, 2024, 9:15 AM
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Marciello will drive a WRT-entered BMW M4 GT3 in the Australian endurance classic on February 18, sharing the car with MotoGP legend Valentino Rossi and Le Mans 24 Hours class winner Maxime Martin.
He takes the place of Augusto Farfus in the #46 BMW, with the Brazilian focusing on other programmes in 2024 including an endurance campaign in the IMSA SportsCar Championship with the BMW M Hybrid V8.
The #32 BMW M4 will again be crewed by 2022 DTM champion Sheldon van der Linde, Dries Vanthoor and Charles Weerts after the trio finished fourth in their first combined attempt on Mount Panorama last year.
With this announcement, BMW has confirmed that it will again be present at Mount Panorama with an all-factory line-up, with WRT once again nominated to field two works-backed cars in the opening round of the Intercontinental GT Challenge.
BMW has also taken the opportunity to give Marciello his first race outing in the M4 GT3. When the Italian was officially added to its factory roster at the end of November, BMW stopped short of revealing his exact programme for 2024.
Marciello is expected to spend most of the year driving the M Hybrid V8 in the World Endurance Championship, while being lined up for further outings in GT3 races.
Despite his illustrious record in GT racing with Mercedes which included outright success in events such as Spa 24 Hours and the Macau GP, Marciello is yet to won the Mount Panorama race, although he did steer GruppeM to pole position in 2019.
“Bathurst is a very special place for me – the perfect first race with BMW M Motorsport. I love the circuit and have come very close to winning on a few occasions,” said the 29-year-old. "Unfortunately, it has never quite worked out so far.
“However, I believe I have a good chance to change all that this year with BMW M Team WRT. WRT is one of the best teams in the world, and my team-mates Maxime and Valentino are extremely quick.
“Sharing the car with Vale is very special for me. I watched him in MotoGP when I was a kid.”
Photo by: BMW Motorsport
#46 Team WRT, BMW M4 GT3: Valentino Rossi, Augusto Farfus, Maxime Martin
WRT and BMW finished fourth and sixth when they joined forces for the first time at Bathurst in 2023, falling short of their target of finishing on the podium.
But BMW motorsport boss Andreas Roos is confident about the Bavarian manufacturer’s chances of a strong result following the addition of Marciello to its line-up.
“The Bathurst 12 Hour is a spectacular event to start the year with, and we are delighted to field another strong line-up in Australia in 2024,” said Roos.
“Together with BMW M Team WRT, we enjoyed many fantastic successes in our first season. Unfortunately, we were denied a Bathurst podium. We obviously want to make amends for that this time.
“With our driver line-up, I believe we are in an excellent position to enjoy a strong race. I am particularly looking forward to seeing Raffaele Marciello in a BMW M4 GT3 for the first time.”
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