The GT World Challenge America 2023 season races seven and eight ran from 16 to 18 June. Mario Farnbacher and teammate Ashton Harrison were on the Virginia International Raceway at Alton for Racers Edge Motorsports and clinched a fifth in the overall classification, as well as a second place in the Pro category. 

“We were expecting more pace. In addition, we had to deal with some tyre problems over the weekend. So, it wasn’t an easy one for us,” said the Franconian. “But despite a few hitches, we got the best out of it. The entire Racers Edge Motorsports team did a fantastic job again and prepared the car incredibly well.”

Things looked good for Farnbacher and Harrison in Sunday’s qualifying. The 30-year-old secured a pole position in the Pro category with a time of 1:43.646, which also meant a third on the grid in the overall classification. 

The duo placed all their bets on turning this good opening position into a strong result. And they succeeded! After a total of 48 laps, Harrison came in second in the Pro category. The day before, tyre damage had unfortunately frustrated hopes of a top result. 

“It seems BMW and Mercedes are presently driving in another dimension, so we’re trying to get the best out of the situation,” the Acura works driver continued. “Of course, we’re a bit disappointed about Saturday’s result, we could have done better. However, everything’s still open in the championship and we’re concentrating on that.”

The next 2023 GT World Challenge America round is scheduled for 18 to 20 August in Elkhart Lake, Wisconsin. Races nine and ten are on the programme.

The second round of the GT World Challenge America with Racers Edge Motorsports was on Mario Farnbacher’s schedule from 28 to 30 April. Together with teammate Ashton Harrison, the Ansbach native had been focusing on a top placement, but despite strong qualifying sessions, the duo couldn’t make it onto the podium.

„We were in fact very confident about the weekend”, said Farnbacher. „Last year we did well on the track. We also had a good pace in the training sessions but couldn’t turn that into good results this time.” 

Turbulent weather conditions made it clear that the race weekend in Avondale, Louisiana, wouldn’t be an easy one. Harrison started the first race from fifth on the grid, gained positions and cut the gap to the leaders. Farnbacher hoped to follow up on this positive trend, however, the part-dry, part-wet track made it difficult. He managed to gain ground and had the frontrunners well within reach, until a slide into the gravel dashed all hopes of a top result.

„Initially, things looked really good on Saturday. Then I made a mistake which cost us the good placement”, the Acura works driver explained. “My apologies to the team, but mistakes are human. I’ll learn from them, and I’ll do better next time.”

Farnbacher had the opportunity to make amends a day later and secured a pole position in the Pro category after a strong qualifying. He and Harrison displayed all their skills in the race, but another participant touched their car, which spelt the end for the duo. US driver Harrison went into a spin and got stuck in the gravel, causing a loss of several laps. Another 16th place was the result.

19 to 21 May is the next date on the GT World Challenge America calendar. Season races five and six will take place on the Circuit of the Americas.

Strong debut in the Pro class: Mario Farnbacher and teammate Ashton Harrison were able to celebrate a successful GT World Challenge America weekend with a victory and a third place. The Racers Edge Motorsports duo delivered two powerful races and great fighting spirit at Sonoma Raceway.

“We knew right from the start that the weekend wouldn’t be straightforward”, the driver from Ansbach explained after the opening weekend. “The track doesn’t really suit our car and we had to deal with tyre wear the entire time. We made the most out of the races  – and can certainly be happy with a win and a podium!”

Both qualifying sessions had already made it clear that the two Sonoma races would be far from easy. A red flag in the first session made it impossible for Harrison to achieve a better position than her 14th on the grid. However, the Acura NSX GT3 Evo22 duo went on to produce a strong recovery in the race itself and fought forwards to an overall sixth. This also meant third place in the category and the step onto the podium.

“We got the best potential out of the first race and collected valuable points”, the 30-year-old continued. “The second race saw us improving, despite me having a few problems in my stint. Ashton did an absolutely awesome job though. She made up numerous places and her manoeuvre in the last lap clinched the victory.”

The Ansbach native’s second race of the season began initially without any big hitches. Deteriorating tyres after mid-stint and an involuntary touch did however throw Farnbacher back. “I didn’t see the Porsche coming and was forced into a spin. The manoeuvre was far too optimistic. There was nothing I could do about it, and I was simply pushed out. After that, all I wanted was to make up as much ground as possible”, the Acura works driver commented. With this goal in mind, US American Harrison advanced steadily forwards and with a remarkable pass, she finally secured the Pro class win.

Farnbacher continues on 28 to 30 April to the season’s second race weekend at the NOLA Motorsports Park.

Mario Farnbacher is back in the GT World Challenge America. The driver from Ansbach in Bavaria will once again compete in the championship alongside Ashton Harrison with Racers Edge Motorsports. The duo pilots an Acura NSX GT3 Evo22. Together, Farnbacher and Harrison clinched four wins in the 2022 season on their way to being crowned champions in the Pro-Am category. In 2023, the Acura works driver and his American co-driver are moving up to the Pro class.

Continue reading “Starting the GT World Challenge America season”

Starting the motorsport season with the Daytona 24-hour race, has become a tradition for Mario Farnbacher. However, one thing was different in 2023: In addition to participation in the endurance classic in Florida, a guest appearance within the TCR scene was also on the agenda.

Continue reading “Rolex 24 fourth place and initial TCR experience gained”

Together with Ashton Harrison and Christina Nielsen, Mario Farnbacher was on the grid for the GT World Challenge America season’s last race. Venue for the eight-hour race and showdown for the championship final was the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. In the end, the Racers Edge Motorsports trio ranked third in the race and thus clinched the longed-for title.

Continue reading “Title win in GT World Challenge America”

Mario Farnbacher and teammates Kyffin Simpson and Till Bechtolsheimer were at the start of the Petit Le Mans on the Road Atlanta. The Acura works driver was behind the wheel of the NSX GT3 for Team Gradient Racing again and fighting for a win of the 10-hour-race in the US state of Georgia. In the end, the Franconian was lost for words!

Ten years earlier, Mario Farnbacher drove his first race in the US on the circuit close to Atlanta and promptly won it. A decade later, history was to repeat itself, despite the fact that the odds before the race start seemed against the 30-year-old from Ansbach. “Right from the beginning, things weren’t quite right. The trainings didn’t go smoothly, and we couldn’t run through the programme. But we felt it was important not to give up, because a lot can happen in an endurance race”, said Farnbacher. Gradient Racing’s qualifying ended before even a lap was completed, meaning starting the race from the last row on the grid.

Farnbacher’s battle declaration for the race was accordingly rather cautious: ”Nothing seemed to go well for us up till now. We have to look ahead and keep our chins up. It’s a long race and we’ll wait and see where it takes us.” From the first race minute onwards, the big chase began. The trio steadily fought its way forwards position by position and later even took the lead.

After 10 nail-biting hours, Farnbacher triumphantly crossed the finish line in first place and got out of his car, totally overwhelmed. “Nobody really expected this. The team did a fantastic job, Kyffin and Till gave 100% in their stints. My last one was incredibly tough and I’m sure it gave me one or two grey hairs. The cars in the GTD-Pro class in front of me were in a fearsome battle and I wanted to stay out of harm’s way. At the same time, I had to look behind to stop our rival from finding a way past. It all worked out though, and nobody had reckoned with us winning right from the rear. Simply awesome!”, Farnbacher exclaimed after his victory.

The 30-year-old now heads directly to Indianapolis. The GT World Challenge America is visiting the traditional circuit and for Farnbacher it will mean fighting for the title in the Pro-Am class.

Together with Racers Edge Motorsports and Ashton Harrison, Mario Farnbacher was at the start of the GT World Challenge America’s fourth weekend from 22 to 24 July. Ranking third in the standings, the Acura works driver travelled to Watkins Glen with his teammate and focused on making a good points haul. Despite a few complications, the end of the weekend produced another podium.

Continue reading “Podium for Mario Farnbacher in Watkins Glen”

Mario Farnbacher was on the road in Virginia from 17 to 19 June. The 30-year-old was competing in the season’s fifth and sixth races against around 20 GT3 opponents, aiming to collect further points in the third event of the GT World Challenge America. Together with Racers Edge Motorsports and team colleague Ashton Harrison, he was hoping to repeat the positive results of the first two race weekends. 

As Farnbacher and Harrison couldn’t participate in the test days, the Acura duo first had to get a feel for the track during the practice sessions. Harrison qualified for the first race in fifth with the Acura NSX GT3 #93, while Farnbacher clinched pole for race two. “It was good to see we’re competitive, which is not what we were initially expecting. The team did everything in their power to support us”, said the Ansbach-born driver.

However, the races didn’t go as hoped: After a good start phase, Harrison was involved in a collision after a full-course yellow. This not only meant an early ending for the first race, but also a great deal of work for the crew. “The car was badly damaged, luckily Rick Ware Racing was nearby and helped us out with spare parts”, the Acura works-driver explained afterwards. “It’s not a given that another team is so helpful in view of a forthcoming event. It was only thanks to them that we could participate in the second race.”

Starting the second race from pole, Farnbacher developed a good lead. After the driver change, the German-American duo were still in the lead for a long time, until an error led to the loss of several positions. Harrison finally crossed the finish line with an overall tenth, which meant a sixth in the Pro-Am classification.

“Of course, it’s a shame we’re not the glorious victors after all, but those errors are part of the parcel. It’s happened to me too”, Farnbacher summarized. “Sometimes you only gain experience. I’m quite sure, that sooner or later our work will pay off. There are several races still to come, so we have further opportunities to prove our worth.”

There’ll be another chance for top results from 22 to 24 July, when the GT World Challenge America is guesting in Watkins Glen. Farnbacher himself will be competing on 26 June at the same spot in his next race – the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship “Six Hours of the Glen”.

Five weeks after the Sonoma season-opener, Mario Farnbacher travelled to the NOLA Motorsports Park in Louisiana for the second round of the GT World Challenge America. Together with Racers Edge Motorsports and team colleague Ashton Harrison, the Acura works driver was able to celebrate two podiums.

Originally, the race had been scheduled at the Ozark International Raceway, but was relocated to the track in Avondale, near New Orleans, at short notice. Despite a lack of practice possibilities, Farnbacher and Harrison delivered an encouraging performance right from the beginning and secured promising start positions for the races with a qualifying first and fourth. The 30-year-old was satisfied with the result: “After quite a difficult kick-off to the season, we pulled out all the stops and improved ourselves considerably. It’s so important we keep developing if we want to continue producing positive results.”

Both races saw the team smoothly continuing this strong performance. The duo clinched second place in the ProAm class on Saturday and topped it in the following race with a class win that meant an overall second. Thanks to this strong yield, the two Acura drivers moved up to third place in the ProAm championship.

All reason for the Ansbach-born native to feel happy: “Just last week, I celebrated a landmark birthday and now here’s a belated birthday present. The entire team did a great job, and we got the most out of the weekend. We’re playing a central role and aren’t just bystanders – we’ve certainly worked ourselves forward in the championship. We can see the positive trend and that’s how we’d like to keep it!”

The fifth and sixth races of the GT World Challenge America season are scheduled for 17 to 19 June on the Virginia International Raceway. However, things are moving fast for Farnbacher, and he’ll be heading for the 24-hour race at the Nürburgring from 26 to 29 May.