Reigning Fanatec GT2 European Series champion, Nicolas Saelens will return to defend his Pro-Am title this season at the wheel of a KTM X-BOW GT2.
Saelens, who won the 2022 title alongside Stienes Longin in the PK Carsport Audi R8 LMS GT2, has confirmed his switch to the True Racing by Reiter Engineering squad. The Belgian will team up with last year’s Vice Champion, Stefan Rosina in the #15 KTM, making a formidable partnership certain to be at the forefront of the 2023 championship fight.
The duo fought hammer and tong for the second ever Fanatec GT2 European Series crown last season – a battle that went right up to the final laps of the final race of the season at Circuit Paul Ricard last October.
Now Saelens is busy preparing for his 2023 campaign in new machinery. The official pre-season test at Dijon, France, earlier this week proved invaluable in preparing for the upcoming season.
“The car felt great. The test in Dijon was very valuable for us in many ways. On the one hand to understand the car even better, on the other hand to get to know the racetrack in the dry and in the wet,” explains Saelens. “I've always been a fan of the KTM X-BOW GT2. The tests confirmed this again. Lots of power, fantastic brakes and an excellent gearbox characterise the car for me.”
Saelens and Rosina will lead a trio of entries for the True Racing by Reiter Engineering team, confirming high interest for the KTM X-BOW GT2 to compete in to the ever-growing Fanatec GT2 European Series.
The squad will also include established GT2 stars, Klaus Angerhofer and Sehdi Sarmini in the #16 car, while Hubert Trunkenpolz returns to the series partnered with Reinhard Kofler in the #17 KTM X-BOW.
The KTM brand also welcomes RTR Projects to its ranks for the first time 2023. The customer racing team from the Czech Republic and based in Brno will be announcing the driver line-up for its inaugural GT2 campaign shortly.
The opening round of the Fanatec GT2 European Series will take place at the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, Italy, from 21-23 April. The 2023 battles will playout across 12 races hosted across six rounds held at Europe’s elite ‘sunshine’ circuits, including The Red Bull Ring, Dijon, Portimão, Valencia and Circuit Paul Ricard.