Adrian Newey joins driver line-up for Silverstone
Adrian Newey, the Formula One technical guru, will be the star attraction at the second roundof the Lamborghini Blancpain Super Trofeo at his home track of Silverstone on 2-3 June.
The 53-year-old Englishman has overseen drivers' and teams' world championships in the past two seasons.
In all Newey has masterminded eight Formula One Constructors' titles and helped some of the world's best drivers to numerous championship victories.
He will share the #1 Lamborghini Gallardo Super Trofeo 570hp V10 race car with Alberto Sabbatini, Editor in Chief of Italian magazine Autosprint.
Behind the calm demeanour of Formula One's leading technical brain lurks a fierce competitor - particularly as a race driver in his spare time. He has competed at the Le Mans 24 Hours and in 2010 he drove his own Red Bull Racing RB5 Formula One race car, a gift from the team, at the Goodwood Festival of Speed.
Swiss newcomer Stefano Comini dominated the opening round of the 2012 season in Monza on April 14-15 with victory in both races. He leads the drivers' points standings with 30 points with Gianluca Carboni and the 2011 champion Cedric Leimer tied for second place on 20 points. Belgium's Bernard Delhez and Frenchman Dimitri Enjalbert are third with 17 points.
The teams' table is led by Bonaldi Motorsport on 30 points with Autocarrozzeria Imperiale SRL, Touring Auto 2000 SRL and Autovitesse Garage R. Affolter locked together in second place on 20 points. Heico Gravity-Charouz (12) and Lamborghini Dehler Team Germany (10) round out the standings.
The number of cars on the grid for Silverstone is likely to be 18 with a UK entry joining the fray.
Competition for the title is fierce with new teams entered from Italy, France, Germany, the Czech Republic and 13 new contenders from all over Europe.
The 2012 series will be shown on major broadcaster Eurosport. This agreement allows the series to reach all 59 countries, including Italy, covered by Eurosport, with its reach of 129 million households.
The Eurosport coverage includes a one-minute teaser shown on the Sunday of each race weekend on "Motorsports Weekend" magazine, followed by a 26-minute summary, highlights and interviews aired on the following Tuesday evening.
Additionally, Lamborghini and Blancpain have announced the launch of a new series of competitions in Asia for 2012. The Asian championship LamborghiniBlancpain Super Trofeo will debut in Sepang, Malaysia, on 26-27 May 2012 and will continue with five other weekends of racing in Japan, China and Taiwan.
2012 CALENDAR
The European calendar is matched to the Blancpain Endurance Series:
Event 1: April 14 to 15 Monza, Italy
Event 2: June 2 to 3 Silverstone, UK
Event 3: June 30 to July 1 HTTT Paul Ricard, France
Event 4: July 26 to 28 Spa-Francorchamps, Belgium
Event 5: September 22 to 23 Nürburgring, Germany
Event 6: October 13 to 14 Navarra, Spain