Photo: SB-Medien
While we're all focusing on the street car prototypes doing their thing on the Nurburgring Nordschleife, Porsche has recently taken to the GP course of the infamous German circuit to test what should be its next racecar, the 911 GT3 Cup (yes, this is the motorsport incarnation of the GT3 road model).
Just to be clear, three are three tiers of Neunelfer racecars, listed here in the order of their sharpness: the said GT3 Cup, the GT3 R, which is based on the 911 GT3 RS street car and, of course, the see-me-at-Le-Mans 911 RSR, which has embraced a bonkers (for the Neunelfer) mid-engined configuration by switching the position of the engine and the gearbox.
Now, the air intakes on the rear fenders of the prototype spied here would suggest this is an R or and RSR. However, the clues in favor of the Cup can't be ignored.
For one thing, the front apron displayed here appears identical to the one displayed by the latest 911 GT3 road car prototypes. Then there are the "civilian" mirrors of the tester - both the R and the RSR feature sleeker racecar mirrors.
Oh, and let's not forget the timing - having already been teased via an ad and expected to launch within the next twelve months, the 992 Porsche 911 GT3 street car is almost here, so it would make sense for the German automaker to test its Cup circuit incarnation.
Body width is also an indicator (the Cup is the narrowest), but this seems hard to distinguish without the possibility to compare the machines.
For the record, Porsche explains that the GT3 Cup is built on the same Zuffenhausen factory production line as its road-going counterpart, while pro drivers set up the vehicle at the company's Motorsport Center in Weissach.
Regardless, our spy shooters mentioned that engineers from the Porsche-owned Manthey Racing teams were on site, along with Porsche factory drivers, as you would expect for such a development.
As far as the tech side is concerned, you can expect a naturally aspirated flat-six delivering around 500 hp and a sequential transmission. So, gentlemen racers should be prepared for the upcoming adventure.
Now, the air intakes on the rear fenders of the prototype spied here would suggest this is an R or and RSR. However, the clues in favor of the Cup can't be ignored.
For one thing, the front apron displayed here appears identical to the one displayed by the latest 911 GT3 road car prototypes. Then there are the "civilian" mirrors of the tester - both the R and the RSR feature sleeker racecar mirrors.
Oh, and let's not forget the timing - having already been teased via an ad and expected to launch within the next twelve months, the 992 Porsche 911 GT3 street car is almost here, so it would make sense for the German automaker to test its Cup circuit incarnation.
Body width is also an indicator (the Cup is the narrowest), but this seems hard to distinguish without the possibility to compare the machines.
For the record, Porsche explains that the GT3 Cup is built on the same Zuffenhausen factory production line as its road-going counterpart, while pro drivers set up the vehicle at the company's Motorsport Center in Weissach.
Regardless, our spy shooters mentioned that engineers from the Porsche-owned Manthey Racing teams were on site, along with Porsche factory drivers, as you would expect for such a development.
As far as the tech side is concerned, you can expect a naturally aspirated flat-six delivering around 500 hp and a sequential transmission. So, gentlemen racers should be prepared for the upcoming adventure.
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