GT4 AMERICA DEBUT FOR BRABHAM IN LONG BEACH
Third generation racer, Matt Brabham will be busy on the streets of Long Beach, contesting the Stadium SUPER Trucks Championship and debuting in the Pirelli GT4 America series this weekend.
The 2018 SST Champion will be behind the wheel of the #20 CRP Racing GT4 Porsche Cayman. It will be his first taste of the Porsche machinery and his second GT4 outing after winning the class at the Bathurst 12 Hour in 2018.
Brabham’s stint in the Pirelli GT4 America Series comes as a result of a tie in with his sponsor Carlisle, which features on his Stadium SUPER Truck.
Last year, Brabham raced with the team in the Pirelli World Challenge in their Mercedes AMG for their Portland and Utah rounds. This will be the first outing for the team in 2019, and Brabham’s first time in the car.
Having steered a BMW M4 in the Bathurst 12 Hour, Brabham has some familiarity with the GT4 category and while his ride for this weekend – the Porsche Cayman had led the class in the early stages of that race, The Boatworks BMW with Brabham on board were the eventual winners.
With practice planned for Friday and Saturday, Brabham has some time to get up to speed in the Porsche in between his duties in the Stadium SUPER Trucks series.
Supporting the IndyCar series, the Stadium SUPER Trucks are yet again a major drawcard for the event.
Brabham comes into the weekend with a target on his back, having won the round here both in 2017 and 2018 and is eager to do the triple.
The reining event winner trails Blade Hildebrand by just four points, while series-creator Robby Gordon lurks in the shadows, just nine points behind Brabham.
The Long Beach story for the Brabham family is 37-years long, going back to Matt’s Father winning the Toyota Atlantics races in 1981 and 1982. And then going on to finish second, sixth and third in the CART/PPG IndyCar World Series races at the famous temporary Californian venue from 1984 to 1986.
Fresh off a podium in the NASA Western Endurance Series with Valkyrie Autosport with fellow Stadium SUPER Trucks competitor, Bill Hynes, the 24-year old has a packed schedule this Long Beach Grand Prix weekend.
It’s been a back-to-back-to-back string of events for Brabham with two SST rounds, the Western Endurance Series and now heading into Long Beach, but the young charger is keen to get behind the wheel of anything he can.
WHAT MATT HAD TO SAY…
“Racing in GT4 this weekend is an awesome opportunity, being teamed with CRP Racing again thanks to Carlisle is great. Racing with them last year in the GT3 Challenge was a definite highlight and I’m excited to get on track this weekend,” said Brabham.
“I’ve never been in the car, I haven’t even seen the car so this weekend will really be one of just trying the waters. If we’re competitive straight off the bat that’s great but if we’re down the order it’s not going to be a huge disappointment. I always want to win and would hope to but I don’t have expectations set.
“Long Beach is a track I’ve never had bad luck. I’ve won here for the last two years in Stadium SUPER Trucks and my Dad was successful here back in the day as well.
“In Stadium SUPER Trucks we’ve had an up and down season so far but despite that we’re still in the fight for the title. I just need to be consistent and bag some decent points in the next few rounds.
“It’s going to be a busy weekend with the trucks and GT4 but I can’t wait to get out there.”