BPR Global GT Series
The BPR Global GT Series was an international racing series in which near-production supercars and sports cars were used. The series was founded in 1994 and ran until the end of 1996. It was replaced in 1997 by the FIA GT Championship .
history
The series was founded in the early 1990s on the initiative of Jürgen Barth , Patrick Peter and Stéphane Ratel . The first letters of the founder's surnames formed the name BPR . The international endurance race replaced the series for the sports car world championship, which ended in 1992. Stéphane Ratel, the owner of the SRO Motorsports Group , drew for the series and was also responsible for the commercial marketing rights.
The series began in 1994 with eight races, including events in Japan and China. The races usually lasted around four hours and all near-series sports car classes were allowed. Mainly private teams and drivers took part first.
In 1995 the series was expanded to twelve races and various super sports car manufacturers with works teams such as McLaren with the F1 GTR, Ferrari with the F40 GTE and Jaguar with the XJ220 took part in the series. In the lower class, the competitors were Porsche with the 911 GT2 and De Tomaso Pantera. In 1996 the races were held with homologated super sports cars of the GT1 and GT2 classes. Due to the high participation and the interest of the manufacturers, the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) decided that the series should be included in the FIA GT championship.
Although the BPR series was practically ended by the FIA decision, Patrick Peter founded a new series in France in association with the French FFSA motorsport organization. This series became known as the FFSA GT Championship . The vehicles were less powerful than those in the other years of the BPR Series. Stéphane Ratel founded the GTR Euro Series in 1998 for private teams. The GTR Euro Series also adopted the 4 hour race format.
Overall ranking BPR Global GT Series
| driver | team | |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | 8 races without FIA championship classification | |
| 1995 |
 Thomas Bscher John Nielsen
|
 David Price Racing McLaren F1 GTR
|
| 1996 |
Ray Bellm James Weaver
|
GTC Competition McLaren F1 GTR
|
swell
- BPR Global GT Series history and results ( WSPR-Racing website no longer available online)
- BPR Global GT Series 1995 season
- BPR Global GT Series 1996 season