Maserati Returns To Sports Car Racing With The MC20 GT2

Hot on the heels of the track-only MC20-based Project24 Maserati has announced its return to customer racing with the MC20 GT2.

From 2023 onwards Maserati will return to sports car racing with this stripped back and angried up version of the brand's halo car allowing customer teams to do battle in the Fanatec GT2 European Series Championship. Maserati says this has been part of the plan since the earliest days of the MC20's development and will complement the storied Italian marque's entry into Formula E, also scheduled to get underway with the start of the 2023 season.

“Maserati Corse is bringing the link between Formula E factory program and our road cars with the MC20 GT2. This new step is completing the legacy and the legitimacy of Maserati in Motorsport. The MC20 is a fantastic road legal car. We are happy that our passionate customers will enjoy racing with it” - Jean-Marc Finot, Senior VP, Stellantis Motorsport

GT2 European Series Championship
Maserati's return to closed-wheel racing will see the MC20 GT2 take on competition in the form of the Porsche 911 GT2 RS Clubsport, Audi R8 LMS GT2, KTM X-Bow GT2 and the striking Brabham BT63 GT2 at circuits around Europe including Imola, Paul Ricard, Spa, and the Red Bull Ring.

Any excuse to include a picture of this.

MC20 GT2 Specs
If you read our article on Maserati's no limits track toy, the Project 24, you'll be familiar with the MC20 GT2's spec sheet. Slick tires, forged center-lock wheels, 3.0 liter twin-turbo Nettuno V6 putting out 630 horsepower pending Balance of Power changes, air jacks, FIA-approved roll cage, fuel cell, fire extinguisher. You know what goes into a modern racecar.

Curiously the GT2's spec sheet still lists air conditioning as standard equipment which we wouldn't have expected to see. You can no longer ask for a passenger seat either as the MC20 racer is a dedicated single seater while the bodywork also resembles the road car much more closely than the Project24 does.

Maserati's press release enthusiastically draws comparisons with the race version of the MC12 and reminds us that the car won the 24 Hours of Spa three times: "Maserati’s return to the track in GT competitions represents the ideal link between the brand’s new era and the victories achieved by the frequently victorious MC12 in the FIA GT Championships from 2004 to 2010."

Related Story: New Maserati GranTurismo Revealed With V6 Power

Images by Maserati and Brabham licensed by CC BY 2.0.

James Walker is an Automotive Journalist at Torque News focusing on Lucid Motors. If it's got wheels he's interested, and he's looking forward to seeing what kind of cars the EV revolution brings us. Whether it's fast, slow, new, or old, James wants to have a look around it and share it in print and on video, ideally with some twisty roads involved. You can connect with James on Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.