Johansson enters Spa 24 Hours

The 53-year-old former grand prix driver will share a GT3 Audi R8 LMS with Mark Patterson, Alain Li and a yet to be confirmed fourth driver.

Johansson won the Le Mans 24 Hours in 1997, but this year will be his first appearance in Spa's endurance event.

"Spa is one of few true classic race tracks left in the world," said Johansson. "There are some fantastic high-speed corners that require a lot of rhythm. The other challenge you always face is the weather - I don't think I have raced there without it raining for at least one day of a race meeting.

"My first Spa race was back in 1981 [Formula 2] and I've gone on to race pretty much everything from F1, Group C and current sportscars there, and I'm very much looking forward to racing a GT3 car for the first time.

"I've always enjoyed sportscar racing and love 24-hour races, it's racing in its purest form. I love the solitude of being in the car for up to four hours sometimes, it's a personal challenge more than anything and you really have to dig pretty deep by late morning on the second day to stay focused while still going as fast as you possibly can. The car is normally pretty beaten up by then so there are a number of challenges to deal with in that respect, too."