Mercedes-AMG is back on top of the Fanatec GT World Challenge Powered by AWS Manufacturer Ranking ahead of this weekend’s season finale in Jeddah.
It comes after a potentially decisive Fanatec GT Australia finale at Mount Panorama on November 8-10 when the defending five-time champion began 134 points adrift of Porsche but took full advantage of its numerical superiority to score 581 points.
Meanwhile, with a single 911 GT3 R on the grid, the Stuttgart marque managed to secure just 20 points. That significant swing now sees the two manufacturers separated by 427 points ahead of the 6 Hours of Jeddah, which closes out this year’s Fanatec GT Europe campaign on Saturday evening.
Audi Sport has moved up one place to third by top scoring at Bathurst. It bagged a bumper 780 points thanks to Pro-Am wins for Team MPC and Team BRM, while Valmont Racing took a clean sweep in the Am class. The Trophy class victories were shared by Aston Martin (KMB Motorsport) and Ferrari (Stephen Coe Racing).
Mercedes-AMG was rewarded for its consistency. Triple Eight finished as Pro-Am runner-up in Race 2, while RAM Motorsport secured a brace of P2 finishes in Am. In contrast the lone Porsche representative – a guest entry from European squad Car Collection – did not trouble the front of the order.
The results from Bathurst mean that Mercedes-AMG – which has won every global Fanatec GT World Challenge Powered by AWS title since it was introduced in 2019 – is in prime position to maintain that streak ahead of 2024’s 52 nd and final race.
But its advantage is by no means insurmountable: indeed, Porsche outscored Mercedes- AMG by 560 points when the Endurance Cup raced at the Nürburgring in July. This was a three-hour contest, while Jeddah will stage a six-hour event and therefore offers even greater scoring opportunities.
The provisional 49-car entry list features seven crews each from Mercedes-AMG and Porsche. If there is an advantage then it belongs to the Stuttgart marque, which has three entries in the 15-car Bronze Cup where Mercedes-AMG is unrepresented.
And there might yet be a further twist: the result of the opening Fanatec GT Europe Sprint Cup race at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya remains under appeal. Any changes would also likely impact the global standings, which are currently based on the provisional result.
Third place also remains up for grabs after Audi and Ferrari both scored well at Bathurst. They are separated by 597 points, while the German brand has a one-car advantage heading into the finale. Saturday’s six-hour race gets underway at 17:00 local time (14:00 GMT).