European racing fans will have a new series to cheer for in 2019, as Global Rallycross Europe will soon make its debut.
Riding a slogan of “Be Loud, Be Wild, Be Real,” GRC Europe will feature the new Pantera RX6, a 500-plus horsepower livery for series contestants that was introduced Thursday at the series’ unveiling in Vienna, Austria.
GRC Europe will host races in England, Italy, Hungary, France, Germany and Austria or Slovakia. The 2019 season will run from May to October. The inaugural schedule is still being finalized.
Three-time World Rallycross Championship winner and Austrian native Max J. Pucher is CEO of MJP Promotions and founder of GRC Europe.
Pucher believes the series will be a success, based upon top competition but also with affordable costs for teams and drivers.
“It is a very exciting moment for me and my team,” Pucher said in a media release. “Standing here with the series set up and the new car in front of us, is as breathtaking as standing on the grid, when the lights go green.”
The plan for the new series is to race upon short, mixed-surface tracks.
“Rallycross is explosive, it’s pure emotion,” two-time Le Mans winner and former Formula One driver Alex Wurz said. “While driving, you are so focused, you nearly forget to breathe.”
Wurz’s father, Franz, is a former two-time European Rallycross winner and introduced the sport to his native Austria nearly 50 years ago. The younger Wurz plans to be a competitor in the new GRC Europe series.
“I have grown up with Rallycross,” Alex Wurz said. “Hence, I love the sport and fully support this project.”
Plans are to have a total of 15 Pantera RX6 cars entered in the GRC Europe GRC Titan championship class. A second category, GRC Supercars, will also be part of the series.