Grand Prix Masters, the international race series for historic Formula One cars from 1966–1978, is expanding its role in historic motorsport with the acquisition of Group 4 Racing, the organizers of the European Sports Prototype Trophy.
Ron Maydon, owner of Grand Prix Masters, has announced that well-known racer and series owner Jonathan Baker has, with immediate effect, transferred all his interests in the long-running Group 4 European Sports Prototype Trophy series—which Baker founded more than 12 years ago—to Grand Prix Masters. The newly merged entity has ambitious plans for rapid combined growth during the 2005 race season, and for further developments and acquisitions in the future.
Baker’s Group 4 series has long been one of the most prestigious sports car series on the historic tracks of Europe, regularly showing off the speed and style of its Le Mans–type prototype, sports and GT cars, all dating from the iconic period of 1965–1974. That era saw Ferrari (250 LM, 312, 512), Matra, Porsche prototypes (including the 917 and 908 models), Alfa Romeo T-33’s, Lola T70, and cars such as Chevron, Lotus, Elva and Abarth all in dramatic sports car action—a spectacle recreated in recent years by Group 4 Racing, and one which will be expanded and developed by GPM. Under Baker’s long-standing control, Group 4 has always focussed on racing at the best European tracks and at the most prestigious events.
According to Baker, “I thought they [GPM] had a lot of great ideas and I saw there was an obvious fit; a combination of interests, not just in the closely matched age of our respective series’ cars, but also in GPM’s obvious sense of fun and of love for the cars. It seemed to me that GP Masters, from the word go, had shown their determination to do things in style. Above all, I could see they had the people and the infrastructure to make it happen. In addition, we both saw that many drivers owned both F1 and endurance sports cars of the right eras, and so I believe that many drivers will welcome the chance to now race at the same events, sharing facilities, as our two race calendars converge.”
More information, and details on both series, are available on the Web site: www.grandprixmasters.org.
