As if the Audi Sport contingent at this year’s Goodwood Festival of Speed wasn’t enough, Audi Sport has thrilled motorsport fans with the unveiling of an all-new track weapon – the Audi R8 LMS GT2. 

This new addition to the Audi Sport stables was unveiled by motorsport royalty, nine-times LeMans winner, Tom Kristensen, along with Oliver Hoffmann, CEO of Audi Sport GmbH, Chris Reinke, Head of Audi Sport customer racing and the Duke of Richmond – the gentleman good enough to put on the festival each year.

With its 470kW of power, the R8 LMS GT2 is the most powerful in the 11 year history of the customer racing program and joins the all-conquering R8 LMS GT3 and GT4 cars as well as the Audi RS 3 LMS designed specifically for TCR racing.

“This sports car with its emotive high-performance V10 engine marks the top end of our customer racing program. The legendary event at Goodwood is the ideal venue for unveiling such a fascinating sports car,” said Oliver Hoffmann at the unveiling. 

This particular race car has been created for a future racing category, called the GT2 class which will come to life in Europe and North America in 2020. It will fill a gap between the existing GT3 and GT4 categories and specifically feature cars with high longitudinal dynamics. This type of race car addresses gentleman drivers who have been the backbone of GT racing for decades. The Audi R8 LMS GT2 is the ideal sports car for classic fielding in races, as well as being suitable for Track Days and events at Race Resorts, which enjoy increasing popularity among this group of customers worldwide. 

In terms of technology, the Audi R8 LMS GT2 is based on the production version Audi R8, although aerodynamically, the GT2 race car clearly differs from its siblings. Huge radiators at the front end have CFD-optimised air flow channels. Unlike the GT3 and GT4, the vents are on the right and left, causing the air to flow past the windscreens in order to avoid thermal conflicts with the engine’s air intake on the roof. 

A camera-based digital rear-view mirror is new because the car has no rear window due to the voluminous intake system. The construction of the doors is also new too, made of carbon fibre and together with the CFRP-AFRP side impact protection with aluminium honeycomb. 

Audi Sport has upgraded the electronic architecture including the Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS), Traction Control (ASR) and the Electronic Stability Program (ESP) versus the GT4 model. 

At a glance, the Audi R8 LMS GT2 features an Audi Space Frame (ASF) with aluminium-CFRP hybrid design and a steel roll cage. There are the energy-absorbing aluminium crash structures front and rear and of course the rescue hatch incorporated in the roof for driver evacuation in the event of an accident. It makes it possible to remove the helmet of the driver in need of help and to apply a Kendrick Extrication Device for stabilisation. 

The heart of this new race car is the Audi V10 engine produced at the Győr site in Hungary, displacing 5.2 litres and producing 470kW of power and in excess of 550Nm of torque depending on final tune. The car is a rear-wheel drive in accordance with race regulations and uses a seven-speed S ironic transmission and a mechanical limited-slip differential.

Dry weight is just 1350kg, which brings it in 100kg lighter than its GT4 sibling and equates to a power to weight ration of 2.85kg/kW which makes for some serious performance from the latest from Audi Sport customer racing.

Available to order now, Audi Sport customer racing will start delivering the first R8 LMS GT2 race cars to customers in December. From the 2020 season on, they will be able to compete in the new GT2 class that will open up a new stage in racing to the world’s most beautiful super sports cars.