James Cottingham and Lewis Williamson are joining forces aboard 2 Seas Motorsport’s Mercedes-AMG GT3 for their first full-season Intelligent Money British GT Championship assaults.
The Anglo-Bahraini squad has won races in each of its two domestic campaigns to date, first with McLaren during 2020’s full-time, two-car programme and then with Mercedes-AMG on a one-off outing at the Silverstone 500 last year.
Now it returns to the same championship’s full-season ranks with a promising Pro-Am line-up boasting existing experience of the Mercedes-AMG GT3 – a car with which the team also claimed Gulf 12 Hours victory in early January.
Decorated historic racer Cottingham contested a handful of rounds with RAM last season – some of his first-ever such GT3 outings – after amassing an impressive classic competition CV that includes Tour Auto and Spa 6 Hours successes, notable race wins in the Sussex Trophy and Stirling Moss Memorial Trophy at Goodwood Revival, and victories in the British Grand Prix and Le Mans support races.
However, contemporary GT racing is very much his priority throughout 2022.
“It is great to confirm a full programme of modern motorsport after competing across various disciplines of historic racing during the last 20 years,” he said. “At this stage, I feel I have progressed as far as I can with that, and I have always wanted to make the move, so it feels like the next natural step. It is an exciting new challenge as an entirely new discipline, taking on the full British GT season with 2 Seas Motorsport, and I am looking forward to racing with Lewis to keep the momentum up, pushing for race wins and the championship.”
His co-driver, a former McLaren Autosport BRDC Young Driver of the Year Award winner, makes his British GT debut at Oulton Park on April 16 & 18, albeit in familiar surroundings after previously competing with 2 Seas at the 2021 Gulf 12 Hours.
He also racked up significant experience of the previous-generation Mercedes-AMG GT3 during his time with Strakka Racing in 2018/19 – a period in which he was crowned Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe Pro-Am champion, scored class podiums at Bathurst and Spa, and finished second overall at the Suzuka 10 Hours.
And it’s that combination of experience and proven speed that the team’s co-owner, Isa Al Khalifa, believes will make Cottingham and Williamson a formidable duo this year.
“The British GT Championship has proved itself to be one of the most competitive domestic GT series, and I am really pleased to have 2 Seas Motorsport back where we started out with a podium [at Oulton] in 2020,” he said. “We have enjoyed some strong results since then, and it was great to kick things off this year with a victory already, but the calibre of the grid is looking extremely strong with speed and experience across the whole field, so we know that it is going to be a real challenge for the whole team. It is great to have James joining the team, and I am really pleased to have Lewis back in the car with us. They are both extremely quick, proven race winners, and I think they are going to be a tough pair to beat.”
The team’s Mercedes-AMG GT3 will appear in its 2021 livery at Oulton Park tomorrow. Its new design will be revealed just before British GT’s opening round at the same circuit on Easter Bank Holiday Weekend.