1998 FIA GT Championship

Klaus Ludwig and Ricardo Zonta won the GT1 Drivers' Championship for 1998

The 1998 FIA GT Championship was the second season of FIA GT Championship, an auto racing series endorsed by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and organized by the Stéphane Ratel Organisation (SRO). The races featured grand touring cars conforming to two categories of regulations, GT1 and GT2, and awarded driver and team championships in each category. The season began on 12 April 1998 and ended on 25 October 1998 after ten rounds, visiting Europe, Japan, and the United States.

The GT1 championships were won by Klaus Ludwig and Ricardo Zonta of repeat champions AMG Mercedes, while the GT2 title was awarded to Olivier Beretta and Pedro Lamy of Viper Team Oreca.^[1] Following the season, the GT1 category was eliminated from the FIA GT Championship due to a lack of entries for 1999.

Schedule[]

All races were shortened to a 500 km (310 mi) distance with the exception of Suzuka. Oschersleben replaced the Nürburgring as the second German round of the series, while Hungaroring and Dijon-Prenois replaced Mugello, Spa, and Helskini for the rest of the European calendar.

Rnd	Race	Circuit	Date
1	Oschersleben 500	Motopark Oschersleben, Oschersleben, Germany	12 April
2	British Empire Trophy Race	Silverstone Circuit, Silverstone, United Kingdom	17 May
3	Hockenheim 500	Hockenheimring, Hockenheim, Germany	28 June
4	500 km de Dijon	Dijon-Prenois, Prenois, France	12 July
5	Hungaroring 500	Hungaroring, Mogyoród, Hungary	19 July
6	Suzuka 1000 km	Suzuka Circuit, Suzuka, Japan	23 August
7	Donington 500	Donington Park, Leicestershire, United Kingdom	6 September
8	500 km Zeltweg	A1-Ring, Spielberg, Austria	20 September
9	Miami 500	Homestead-Miami Speedway, Homestead, United States	18 October
10	Visa Sports Car Championships	Laguna Seca Raceway, Monterey, United States	25 October

Entries[]

GT1[]

Entrant	Car	Engine	Tyre	No.	Drivers	Rounds
AMG Mercedes	Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR Mercedes-Benz CLK LM	Mercedes-Benz GT112 6.0 L V12 Mercedes-Benz GT108B 5.0 L V8	B	1	Bernd Schneider	All
					Mark Webber	All
				2	Ricardo Zonta	All
					Klaus Ludwig	All
DAMS	Panoz GTR-1	Ford-Roush 6.0 L V8	M	3	Éric Bernard	1–5, 7, 9–10
					David Brabham	1–5, 7, 9–10
					Franck Lagorce	6, 8
					Christophe Tinseau	6, 8
					Johnny O'Connell	6
Zakspeed Racing	Porsche 911 GT1-98	Porsche 3.2 L Turbo Flat-6	P	5		1–5, 7–9
					Alexander Grau	1–5
					Armin Hahne	6–9
					Fabien Giroix	6
					Jean-Denis Délétraz	6
				6	Michael Bartels	All
					Armin Hahne	1–5
					Alexander Grau	6
						6
					Max Angelelli	7–10
Porsche AG	Porsche 911 GT1-98	Porsche 3.2 L Turbo Flat-6	M	7	Allan McNish	All
					Yannick Dalmas	1, 3–10
					Bob Wollek	2
					Stéphane Ortelli	6
				8	Jörg Müller	All
					Uwe Alzen	1–4, 6–10
					Bob Wollek	5–6
Team Hezemans	Bitter GT1	Chrysler 356-T6 8.0 L V10	G	9	Jan Lammers	2–3
					Mike Hezemans	2–3
				10		2–3
						2–3
						2
						3
Team Persson Motorsport	Mercedes-Benz CLK GTR	Mercedes-Benz GT112 6.0 L V12	B	11	Christophe Bouchut	All
					Bernd Mayländer	All
				12	Marcel Tiemann	All
					Jean-Marc Gounon	All
	McLaren F1 GTR	BMW S70/2 6.0 L V12	G	15	Thomas Bscher	1–3, 5–8
					Geoff Lees	1–3, 5–8
Larbre Compétition	Porsche 911 GT1 Evo	Porsche 3.2 L Turbo Flat-6	M	17	Patrice Goueslard	4–5
					Bob Wollek	4
					Carl Rosenblad	4
					Jack Leconte	5
					Jean-Luc Chéreau	5
	McLaren F1 GTR	BMW S70/2 6.0 L V12	D	27	Jean-Luc Maury-Laribière	2–4
						2–4
						3

GT2[]

Entrant	Car	Engine	Tyre	No.	Drivers	Rounds
Viper Team Oreca	Chrysler Viper GTS-R	Chrysler 356-T6 8.0 L V10	M	51	Olivier Beretta	All
					Pedro Lamy	All
					Dominique Dupuy	6
				52	Karl Wendlinger	All
					David Donohue	1, 3–4, 9–10
					Justin Bell	2, 6–8
					Marc Duez	5
					Hideshi Matsuda	6
Chamberlain Engineering	Chrysler Viper GTS-R	Chrysler 356-T6 8.0 L V10	D	53	Ni Amorim	1–5, 7–10
						1–3
					Gary Ayles	4–5
						6–7
						6, 9–10
						6
						7
					Manfred Stohl	8
					Dominic Chappell	9
						10
				54		1–2
						1
						2
Saleen-Allen Speedlab	Saleen Mustang SR	Ford 5.9 L V8		55	Andy Pilgrim	10
					Terry Borcheller	10
						10
Roock Racing	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	Y	56	Claudia Hürtgen	All
					Stéphane Ortelli	1–3, 5, 7–10
					Emmanuel Collard	4
					Mike Hezemans	6
					Jan Lammers	6
				57		All
					Sascha Maassen	1–6
						6
					Mike Hezemans	7–10
					André Ahrlé	7
Roock Sportsystem				58	André Ahrlé	1–6, 8–10
						1, 3–6
					Tim Sugden	2
						2
						6
						7
						7
					Sascha Maassen	8
					Andy Pilgrim	9
						10
						10
	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Flat-6	G	60	Michel Neugarten	All
						All
						1–5, 7–8
						6
					Zak Brown	9–10
				61	Éric Graham	1, 3–4, 6–7
						1, 3, 6–7
					Hervé Poulain	1, 4
					David Velay	3–4
						5, 8–9
					Kersten Jodexnis	5
						5
						6
					Emmanuel Clérico	7
						8, 10
						8
						9
						10
	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	P	62		All
						1-5, 7–9
						6
						6
					Renato Mastropietro	9–10
					Will Langhorne	10
	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	D	63		1–5, 7–10
						1–5, 7–10
Konrad Motorsport	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	D	65	Martin Stretton	All
						1–5, 7–10
					Yukihiro Hane	6
						6
				66	Franz Konrad	All
						1–3
						4, 6
					Altfrid Heger	5–8
					Jan Lammers	9–10
	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6		67		8
						8
Proton Competition	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	P	69		All
						All
						6
				96	Horst Felbermayr	1–5, 7–8
						1–5, 7–8
Marcos Racing International	Marcos LM600	Chevrolet 5.9 L V8	D	70	Cor Euser	All
						All
						3–4, 6–10
				71		9–10
						9–10
Paul Belmondo Racing	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Flat-6	P	74	Marc Rostan	3
						3
						3
Swiss Team Salamin	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6		75	Max Cohen-Olivar	3
						3
Seikel Motorsport	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	P	76		3, 5, 8
						3, 8
					Renato Mastropietro	3
						4
						4
						4
					Nigel Smith	5–7, 9–10
						5
						6
					Max Cohen-Olivar	7, 9–10
						7
						8
					Andrew Bagnall	9–10
				87		6, 9–10
						6
						6
						9–10
						9
						10
	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	P	77	Jean-Pierre Jarier	4
						4
Bovi Motorsport	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6		78	Kálmán Bódis	5, 8
					Attila Barta	5
						5
						8
RWS	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6		79	Günther Blieninger	8
						8
						8
	Saleen Mustang SR	Ford 5.9 L V8		80		9–10
						9–10
						9
						10
Freisinger Motorsport	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6		81		7–10
						7–10
Larbre Compétition	Porsche 911 GT2	Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	M	86	Jack Leconte	9–10
					Jean-Luc Chéreau	9–10
	Saleen Mustang SR Porsche 911 GT2	Ford 5.9 L V8 Porsche 3.6 L Turbo Flat-6	D	98		2, 7
						2
						3
						3
						3
						7
					Sascha Maassen	7

Results and standings[]

Mercedes-Benz won all ten races with the CLK GTR and CLK LM (pictured)

Race results[]

Rnd	Circuit	GT1 Winning Team	GT2 Winning Team	Report
		GT1 Winning Drivers	GT2 Winning Drivers
1	Oschersleben	No. 2 AMG Mercedes	No. 52 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Klaus Ludwig Ricardo Zonta	Olivier Beretta Pedro Lamy
2	Silverstone	No. 1 AMG Mercedes	No. 51 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Bernd Schneider Mark Webber	Olivier Beretta Pedro Lamy
3	Hockenheimring	No. 1 AMG Mercedes	No. 51 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Bernd Schneider Mark Webber	Olivier Beretta Pedro Lamy
4	Dijon	No. 2 AMG Mercedes	No. 51 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Klaus Ludwig Ricardo Zonta	Olivier Beretta Pedro Lamy
5	Hungaroring	No. 1 AMG Mercedes	No. 57 Roock Racing	Report
		Bernd Schneider Mark Webber	Sascha Maassen
6	Suzuka	No. 1 AMG Mercedes	No. 51 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Bernd Schneider Mark Webber	Olivier Beretta Pedro Lamy Dominique Dupuy
7	Donington	No. 1 AMG Mercedes	No. 51 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Bernd Schneider Mark Webber	Olivier Beretta Pedro Lamy
8	A1-Ring	No. 2 AMG Mercedes	No. 52 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Klaus Ludwig Ricardo Zonta	Karl Wendlinger Justin Bell
9	Homestead	No. 2 AMG Mercedes	No. 51 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Klaus Ludwig Ricardo Zonta	Olivier Beretta Pedro Lamy
10	Laguna Seca	No. 2 AMG Mercedes	No. 51 Viper Team Oreca	Report
		Klaus Ludwig Ricardo Zonta	Olivier Beretta Pedro Lamy

Points were awarded to the top six finishers in each category. Entries were required to complete 75% of the race distance in order to be classified as a finisher. Drivers were required to complete 20% of the total race distance for their car to earn points. Teams scored points for all cars that finished a race.^[2]

Driver championships[]

GT1[]

Pos. Driver Team OSC SIL HOC DIJ HUN SUZ DON A1R HOM LAG Total points 1 Klaus Ludwig AMG Mercedes 1 4 2 1 2 2 2 1 1 1 77 1 Ricardo Zonta AMG Mercedes 1 4 2 1 2 2 2 1 1 1 77 2 Bernd Schneider AMG Mercedes 3 1 1 9 1 1 1 2 4 2 69 2 Mark Webber AMG Mercedes 3 1 1 9 1 1 1 2 4 2 69 3 Allan McNish Porsche AG 7 Ret 6 2 3 3 3 3 3 Ret 27 3 Yannick Dalmas Porsche AG 7 6 2 3 3 3 3 3 Ret 27 4 Jörg Müller Porsche AG 8 2 8 11 4 Ret 4 8 2 3 22 5 Uwe Alzen Porsche AG 8 2 8 11 Ret 4 8 2 3 19 6 Marcel Tiemann Team Persson Motorsport 2 Ret 4 5 Ret 7 5 5 5 7 17 6 Jean-Marc Gounon Team Persson Motorsport 2 Ret 4 5 Ret 7 5 5 5 7 17 7 David Brabham DAMS 5 8 3 3 6 Ret 6 4 15 7 Éric Bernard DAMS 5 8 3 3 6 Ret 6 4 15 8 Michael Bartels Zakspeed Racing 6 3 7 6 5 6 NC 4 7 5 14 9 Armin Hahne Zakspeed Racing 6 3 7 6 5 8 6 9 DNS 9 10 Christophe Bouchut Team Persson Motorsport Ret 7 10 4 DNS 4 8 10 Ret 6 7 10 Bernd Mayländer Team Persson Motorsport Ret 7 10 4 DNS 4 8 10 Ret 6 7 11 Zakspeed Racing 4 5 Ret 7 Ret 6 6 9 DNS 7 12 Alexander Grau Zakspeed Racing 4 5 Ret 7 Ret 6 6 13 Max Angelelli Zakspeed Racing NC 4 7 5 5 14 Stéphane Ortelli Porsche AG 3 4 15 Geoff Lees Ret 6 5 Ret Ret 7 6 4 15 Thomas Bscher Ret 6 5 Ret Ret 7 6 4 16 Bob Wollek Porsche AG Ret 4 Ret 3 Larbre Compétition 8 17 Christophe Tinseau DAMS 5 7 2 17 Franck Lagorce DAMS 5 7 2 18 Johnny O'Connell DAMS 5 2 - Patrice Goueslard Larbre Compétition 8 Ret 0 - Carl Rosenblad Larbre Compétition 8 0 - Fabien Giroix Zakspeed Racing 8 0 - Jean-Denis Délétraz Zakspeed Racing 8 0 - Jean-Luc Maury-Laribière Ret 9 10 0 - Ret 9 10 0 - 9 0 - Mike Hezemans Team Hezemans WD Ret DNS 0 - Jan Lammers Team Hezemans WD Ret DNS 0 - Team Hezemans WD Ret DNS 0 - Team Hezemans WD Ret DNS 0 - Team Hezemans Ret 0 - Jack Leconte Larbre Compétition Ret 0 - Jean-Luc Chéreau Larbre Compétition Ret 0 - Team Hezemans DNS 0 Pos. Driver Team OSC SIL HOC DIJ HUN SUZ DON A1R HOM LAG Total points

Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Retired (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Withdrew (WD) Race cancelled (C) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Did not arrive (DNA) Excluded (EX)

GT2[]

Olivier Beretta and Pedro Lamy won the GT2 Drivers' Championship for Viper Team Oreca with eight victories

Pos.	Driver	Team	OSC	SIL	HOC	DIJ	HUN	SUZ	DON	A1R	HOM	LAG	Total points
1	Olivier Beretta	Viper Team Oreca	1	1	1	1	2	1	1	2	1	1	92
1	Pedro Lamy	Viper Team Oreca	1	1	1	1	2	1	1	2	1	1	92
2	Karl Wendlinger	Viper Team Oreca	2	Ret	2	2	Ret	2	3	1	Ret	DNS	38
3		Roock Racing	DSQ	Ret	3	5	1	Ret	12	9	12	2	22
4	Justin Bell	Viper Team Oreca		Ret				2	3	1			20
5	Franz Konrad	Konrad Motorsport	3	7	11	4	DNS	4	2	3	Ret	Ret	20
6	David Donohue	Viper Team Oreca	2		2	2					Ret	DNS	18
7	Sascha Maassen	Roock Racing	DSQ	Ret	3	5	1	Ret					17
									10
		Roock Sportsystem								6
8			7	2	5	15	4	5	Ret	8	Ret	5	15
8	Michel Neugarten		7	2	5	15	4	5	Ret	8	Ret	5	15
9			5	8	13	6	5		7	5	4	3	14
9			5	8	13	6	5		7	5	4	3	14
10	Altfrid Heger	Konrad Motorsport					DNS	4	2	3			13
11	Cor Euser	Marcos Racing International	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	3	3	DSQ	Ret	3	Ret	13
11		Marcos Racing International	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	3	3	DSQ	Ret	3	Ret	13
12			7	2	5	15	4		Ret	8			11
13	Dominique Dupuy	Viper Team Oreca						1					10
14	Claudia Hürtgen	Roock Racing	Ret	Ret	4	7	DNS	7	13	13	2	Ret	9
15	Stéphane Ortelli	Roock Racing	Ret	Ret	4		DNS		13	13	2	Ret	9
16								5					9
		Freisinger Motorsport							4	4	6	Ret
17		Marcos Racing International			Ret	Ret		3	DSQ	Ret	3	Ret	8
18		Freisinger Motorsport							4	4	6	Ret	7
19	André Ahrlé	Roock Sportsystem	9	10	14	10	6	Ret		6	5	4	7
		Roock Racing							12
20	Mike Hezemans	Roock Racing						7	12	9	12	2	6
21	Hideshi Matsuda	Viper Team Oreca						2					6
22		Konrad Motorsport				4		4					6
23			10	3	6	9	8	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	5
23			10	3	6	9	8		Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	5
24	Martin Stretton	Konrad Motorsport	4	9	7	15	Ret	Ret	5	7	7	10	5
24		Konrad Motorsport	4	9	7	15	Ret		5	7	7	10	5
25		Konrad Motorsport	3	7	11								4
26	Jean-Pierre Jarier				3								4
26					3								4
27		Chamberlain Engineering	Ret	5				6	6				4
28		Proton Competition	12	4	Ret	12	9	9	9	Ret	Ret	7	3
28		Proton Competition	12	4	Ret	12	9	9	9	Ret	Ret	7	3
29				Ret									3
											DNS
		Roock Sportsystem										4
29		Roock Sportsystem										4	3
30		Chamberlain Engineering		5				6			Ret	8	3
31	Zak Brown										Ret	5	2
31	Andy Pilgrim	Roock Sportsystem									5		2
32	Ni Amorim	Chamberlain Engineering	8	6	Ret	11	DNS		6	Ret	Ret	8	2
33		Chamberlain Engineering	8	6	Ret								1
34		Roock Sportsystem	9		14	10	6	Ret					1
35		Chamberlain Engineering						6					1
35		Chamberlain Engineering							6				1
35											DNS	6	1
35											DNS	6	1
35												6	1
Pos.	Driver	Team	OSC	SIL	HOC	DIJ	HUN	SUZ	DON	A1R	HOM	LAG	Total points

Team championships[]

GT1[]

Pos. Team OSC SIL HOC DIJ HUN SUZ DON A1R HOM LAG Total points 1 AMG Mercedes 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 146 3 4 2 9 2 2 2 2 4 2 2 Porsche AG 7 2 6 2 3 3 3 3 2 3 49 8 Ret 8 11 4 Ret 4 8 3 Ret 3 Team Persson Motorsport 2 7 4 4 Ret 4 5 5 5 6 24 Ret Ret 10 5 DNS 7 8 10 Ret 7 4 Zakspeed Racing 4 3 7 6 5 6 6 4 7 5 20 6 5 Ret 7 Ret 8 NC 9 DNS 5 DAMS 5 8 3 3 6 5 Ret 7 6 4 17 6 Ret 6 5 Ret Ret 7 6 4 – Larbre Compétition 8 Ret 0 – WD Ret 9 10 0 – Team Hezemans WD Ret DNS 0 WD Ret DNS

Colour Result Gold Winner Silver 2nd place Bronze 3rd place Green Points finish Blue Non-points finish Non-classified finish (NC) Purple Retired (Ret) Red Did not qualify (DNQ) Did not pre-qualify (DNPQ) Black Disqualified (DSQ) White Did not start (DNS) Withdrew (WD) Race cancelled (C) Blank Did not practice (DNP) Did not arrive (DNA) Excluded (EX)

GT2[]

Pos.	Team	OSC	SIL	HOC	DIJ	HUN	SUZ	DON	A1R	HOM	LAG	Total points
1	Viper Team Oreca	1	1	1	1	2	1	1	1	1	1	130
		2	Ret	2	2	Ret	2	3	2	Ret	DNS
2	Roock Racing	Ret	Ret	3	5	1	7	12	9	2	2	31
		DSQ	Ret	4	7	DNS	Ret	13	13	12	Ret
3	Konrad Motorsport	3	7	7	4	Ret	4	2	3	7	10	25
		4	9	11	15	DNS	Ret	5	7	Ret	Ret
4		7	2	5	13	4	5	11	8	9	5	15
		Ret		9	14	Ret	10	Ret	11	Ret	Ret
5		5	8	13	6	5		7	5	4	3	14
6	Marcos Racing International	6	Ret	Ret	Ret	3	3	DSQ	Ret	3	Ret	13
										13	Ret
7	Freisinger Motorsport							4	4	6	Ret	7
8	Roock Sportsystem	9	10	14	10	6	Ret	DSQ	6	5	4	7
9		10	3	6	9	8	Ret	Ret	Ret	DNS	Ret	5
10	Chamberlain Engineering	8	5	Ret	11	DNS	6	6	Ret	Ret	8	5
		Ret	6
11					3							4
12	Proton Competition	11	4	8	8	9	9	8	12	Ret	7	3
		12	Ret	Ret	12	10		9	Ret
13										DNS	6	1
–	Seikel Motorsport			12	Ret	7	8	Ret	Ret	8	9	0
							11			10	Ret
–			Ret	10				10				0
–	RWS								10			0
–	Larbre Compétition									11	Ret	0
–	Bovi Motorsport					Ret			Ret			0
–	Paul Belmondo Racing			Ret								0
–									Ret			0
–				DNS								0
–	Saleen-Allen Speedlab										DNS	0

References[]

See also[]

• GTR Euroseries