Engelhart Returns to Grasser in Bronze Cup Sprint Entry

Photo: GRT Grasser Racing Team

Christian Engelhart will rejoin GRT Grasser Racing Team after spending a part of last year on the sidelines due to knee surgery, signing up to compete in GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Sprint Cup with the Austrian squad.

Engelhart will pilot the No. 1 Lamborghini Huracan GT3 EVO2, which has been entered into the Bronze Cup class. His co-driver is Bulgarian racer Georgi Donchev, who steps up to GT3 after several years competing in Porsche one-make machinery.

For Bronze Cup squads, the Sprint Cup season kicks off at Zandvoort on May 16-18, as they will be absent from the first round at Brands Hatch due to paddock space constraints.

Engelhart returned to the Lamborghini factory driver roster ahead of the 2024 and was originally set for a dual campaign in GTWC Europe and DTM with Grasser.

However, he only contested seven races before he was sidelined during the summer to undergo knee surgery, getting replaced in Grasser’s Endurance Cup lineup by Jordan Pepper.

“To continue our successful co-operation with Christian in the Sprint Cup means a lot to us,” said team principal Gottfried Grasser.

“He has fought his way back from injury last season and we are looking forward to competing with him again in a championship as strong as the GT World Challenge Europe.

“It will be a new adventure for Georgi, but he has already shown in other racing series that he knows his trade.

“He is an excellent bronze driver and will form a powerful duo with Christian in the cup. I am sure that the two of them have a chance of winning the class!“

Grasser will field a total of three cars in Sprint Cup, with its effort led by a Pro entry for Lamborghini factory aces Luca Engstler and Jordan Pepper.

A second car, entered into the Silver Cup ranks, will feature the pairing of Ivan Ekelchik and Baptiste Moulin.

Ekelchik and Moulin will also contest the Endurance Cup rounds alongside Dante Rappange. The team also confirmed on Monday that Jiatong Liang is set to complete the lineup for the No. 19 car in June’s CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa.

Liang, hailing from China, recently raced Lamborghini machinery with ARC Bratislava in the Michelin 12H Mugello and will contest the full GTWC Asia season with Craft-Bamboo Racing alongside a yet-to-be-confirmed co-driver.