Lotus brand returns to British GT in 2024
The Lotus name will return to the British GT Championship as newly founded team Mahiki Racing is set to field two new Emira GT4s in the 2024 campaign.
The iconic British brand will compete in the championship for the first time since an invitational entry raced in 2017 at Silverstone, with the manufacturer's most recent GT4 appearance coming a year earlier with the Evora as the same model scored the last of Lotus's British GT wins in 2015.
The Emira was released last year having been developed with help from RML and is the first GT racing car produced by Lotus since the Evora in 2010, while it is set to be the last mass-produced internal combustion-engined machine from the company.
The two Emiras that will be used in British GT, as well as in the GT4 European Series, will be run by Mahiki, a team founded in partnership with Aim Technologies which is owned by Steve Lake, who is also set to drive one of the cars having previously competed in the Lotus Cup Europe and Radical Challenge.
"We've got a history of working with Lotus so it felt the right sort of car brand to go with. It's British as well, iconic, it's got a great racing history," he said.
"I don't really have any doubts the car is going to be good. We tested it and made sure we were comfortable with it, the balance of the car feels quite nice. Unless there's something fundamentally wrong, we should be able to make it go round the track quite well.
Photo by: Mahiki Racing Lotus
Mahiki Racing Lotus Emira GT4
"We didn't really consider anything else to be honest. If you look at the grid you can go and be another customer driver, buying a McLaren, but that's almost boring.
"We thought let's pick something new, let's stand out and make it more than just another race team."
Lake will be partnered by 2020 Mini Challenge champion Nathan Harrison, while the second car will be raced by Ian Duggan and Gordie Mutch.
The former is the only one out of the quartet with British GT experience, having raced with Toro Verde last year, while Mutch joins having won the Praga Cup title in 2022.
"Competing in British GT is something I’ve been pursuing for years, so to now have this opportunity is very special," said Mutch.
Photo by: Mahiki Racing Lotus
Mahiki Racing Lotus Emira GT4
"It’s been great to see the Mahiki team come together over the winter, and we’re very excited to hit the track with the new Lotus Emira and show what we are all about."
The nine-race British GT season gets underway at Oulton Park on 1 April but currently without a title sponsor after Intelligent Money ended its association with the championship that began in 2020 earlier this week.
Photo by: JEP / Motorsport Images
Stuart Hall, Gavan Kershaw, Stratton Motorsport Lotus Evora
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