American Team Members to Return Home Until Further Notice

K-PAX Racing has opted not to participate in the two-day test by GT World Challenge Europe Powered By AWS at Circuit Paul Ricard the team announced Thursday, amid the growing concern over the coronavirus pandemic. The long-time American-operated team, set to make its full-season debut in Europe, will withdraw its crew as soon as possible, with an uncertain timetable of their return to its newly acquired satellite shop in Germany.

K-PAX Racing is taking steps to ensure both the health and safety of all its members, which includes making travel arrangements for its American-based crew to return stateside ahead of the new travel restrictions imposed Wednesday evening by the U.S. government.

“We understand that theoretically the U.S. cannot keep our guys from returning, but K-PAX Racing makes the well-being of each member on our team a priority,” Team Manager Thomas Blam said. “We have decided to withdraw from the series’ testing at Paul Ricard, and we will continue to adapt as a team ahead of the series’ start of the Endurance Cup. Series officials have been very understanding and accommodating under these unfortunate circumstances, which motivates us to return with a winning product – similar to what fans have seen in America over the last 13 seasons.”

While the K-PAX Racing two-car effort will not join the field of those testing, the team will still have a presence in the paddock. Team drivers, all hailing from different parts of the world, will stay on-site, helping other Bentley Motorsport customer teams within the series.

“It’s a real shame that the K-PAX Racing guys had to pack up and go home, but of course it’s the right thing to do, following the advice from the authorities to keep them safe,” Bentley Director of Motorsport Paul Williams said. “It’s been good to meet up with them and do some planning for the season, and the works drivers are staying behind which is a great chance for them to interact with the customer teams and Bentley Motorsport Academy. I look forward to seeing K-PAX Racing next time.”

About K-PAX Racing
Based in Sonoma, Calif., K-PAX Racing has celebrated a total 148 podiums, 59 wins, four Driver Championships and three Manufacturer Championships, solidifying the team as a continuous championship contender. In the GT Class, K-PAX Racing has fielded Porsche 911 GT3s during the 2007 – 2008 seasons, Volvo S60s during the 2009 – 2013 seasons, McLaren 12C GT3s in 2014 and McLaren 650S GT3s from 2015 – 2017. The team made a switch to Bentley for 2018, fielding the first-generation Continental GT3 in its first season and the second-generation model in 2019.

About Bentley Motorsport
Bentley Motorsport is based at the Bentley Motors headquarters in Crewe. From there, the operation runs Bentley Team M-Sport, and oversees customer racing operations around the world.

The Continental GT3 is built by the Bentley motorsport team in conjunction with M-Sport. The Bentley Motorsport team is led by Bentley Director of Motorsport, Paul Williams supported by M-Sport’s Chief Engineer, Christian Loriaux.

Bentley Motors’ headquarters in Crewe is home to all of its operations including design, R&D, engineering and production of the company’s four model lines, Continental, Bentayga, Flying Spur and Mulsanne. The combination of fine craftsmanship, using skills that have been handed down through generations, alongside engineering expertise and cutting-edge technology is unique to UK luxury car brands.