Aston Martin’s new ‘EVO’-spec Vantage AMR GT3 is set to make its 24H SERIES powered by Hankook debut at the upcoming Hankook 12H MISANO with series newcomer Prime Speed Sport. 

Since the new generation’s debut in 2018, two of Aston’s Vantage AMR GT3 have contested a round of the 24H SERIES. Both of which, interestingly, came at the Hankook 24H DUBAI in 2022, when former Overall Teams’ champions PROsport Performance and Duel Racing (the latter in collaboration with Britain’s TF Sport) raced in the GT3-Am category. The 2024 Hankook 12H MISANO though will mark the first time the upgraded, Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO has competed at an official CREVENTIC event. 

The entry also means six different brands – Aston Martin, Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche, Mercedes-AMG and Audi – will be represented in the GT3 class at the Misano World Circuit Marco Simoncelli on 5-6 July.

Prime Speed Sport meanwhile is preparing for only its second 12-hour motor race with its new Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3 EVO at Misano. The New Zealand team, working together with compatriot FHK Racing and Earl Bamber Motorsport, made its first overseas start, and its first with the new Aston Martin, at the 12 Hours of Sepang in March. After an encouraging run, the Vantage finished 2nd in the Pro/Am class with Heremana Malmezac, Francois Beziac and Jono Lester onboard.

The Hankook 12H MISANO will thus mark Prime Speed Sport’s first endurance race in Europe. Malmezac is expected to be on driver detail once again, this time alongside fellow Kiwi Liam Talbot. Two-time 24 Hours of Le Mans winner and 2017 FIA World Endurance Champion Earl Bamber is expected to be the pair’s PRO driver for the weekend.   

Based out of both Hampton Downs Motorsport Park and Taupo Motorsport Park in New Zealand, much of Prime Speed Sport’s on-track focus in 2024 has been spent in the North Island Endurance Series, just one year on from an exploratory season in national club racing.

Announced in October 2023 ahead of its launch earlier this year in February, the new Vantage AMR GT3 EVO has been termed a “comprehensive evolution” over its predecessor. 

Powered by the same 4-litre twin-turbo V8 and built around the same bonded aluminium chassis as the latest generation Vantage road car, the most notable changes include “all-new nose-to-tail” aerodynamics, revised suspension, and state-of-the-art electronics, the latter a nod to Aston Martin Racing’s first joint-project with the British brand’s Performance Technologies (AMPT) division. 

These changes been incorporated to “address some of the old car’s more challenging handling characteristics,” and thus make the EVO easier to drive competitively for PRO and AM drivers alike. 

The updated front end, put to the test when the EVO made its competitive debut with 24H SERIES class winner The Heart of Racing earlier this year in January, has been designed to allow more cooling air to the brakes to increase their performance. The new nose, constructed from carbon fibre, now features a quick release system to ease rapid removal and replacement. 

The new unit also features a full-width laser light, and, beneath this, a shorter front splitter, designed to move the centre of pressure rearwards to reduce pitch sensitivity and aid stability. Larger louvres in the front wheel arches allow high-pressure air to escape, thus reducing lift, while similar louvres at the rear have been designed to tackle excessive drag. 

When combined with reworked damper tuning, it is hoped this will eliminate the old Vantage GT3’s propensity to “dive” under braking and overwork its tyres:

“The old car would dive a lot under braking, so we had to try and control the pitch with the rear suspension set-up,” Aston Martin Racing’s Head of Performance Gustavo Betelli explained at the EVO’s launch. “But this meant it was stiff, which made it quite snappy and, also over-worked the tyres.

“Working heavily on damper tuning, we have found a much better balance with the new car so we can generate the downforce without compromising the suspension set-up. The result is much-improved progression and greater stability in all conditions. It also works its tyres much more evenly, so teams have more options on strategy.”

The Prime Speed Sport example entered for the Hankook 12H MISANO on 5-6 July is one of up to 30 Vantage GT3s that Aston Martin Racing projected would be actively competing by the end of 2024.