Andrew Watson will rejoin Garage 59 as the team switches to Aston Martin Vantage GT3s for this year’s Blancpain GT Series Endurance Cup and Intercontinental GT Challenge.
Being entered into the team’s #59 PRO class entry, Andrew Watson will team up with Le Mans-winning Aston Martin works driver Jonny Adam and teammate from last year, and former Blancpain Endurance Cup winner, Côme Ledogar. A squad strong enough to replicate the success of Garage 59’s 2016 Blancpain Endurance Cup PRO championship victory.
“I’m really excited to be rejoining Garage 59 as we switch to Aston Martin for the 2019 campaign,” said Watson. “ With myself, Côme and Jonny in the #59 Vantage, we’ve got a really quick lineup and the car itself has shown how competitive it can be. The Garage 59 team have great experience in the Blancpain GT Series, so I think in general we’ve got a great package for the season and should be fighting at the top.”
“I’m pleased with the driver line-ups we have secured,” said Team Principal Andrew Kirkaldy. “We worked with Andrew and Côme for many years on the McLaren GT programme. I’ve always been impressed with them and it is great to welcome Jonny to the team as an Aston Martin works driver who has been involved in the development of the new car. The AM squad was a case of getting the band back together so they can go after the title again.”
Since announcing its new partnership with Aston Martin in February, the team has been out testing its pair of new Aston Martin Vantage GT3s and completing an extensive re-branding programme with the Garage 59 Aston Martin Vantage GT3s now running in a striking blue and white livery
“Pre-season testing has been good,” said Kirkaldy. “We’re learning the new car and building a new relationship with Aston Martin Racing. As a team we still have much to learn and we’re all eager to see how we go at Monza. We’re very pleased to welcome Bayliss & Harding as a new partner for 2019. You’ll also notice our livery features the Aston Martin Drivers Club logo as this is a programme operated by Garage 59. We’re delighted with this collaboration and we’re enjoying working on such an exciting programme.”
The Garage 59 team will complete pre-season testing at the end of running tomorrow at Silverstone. The next stop for the team will be Monza in Italy for Round 1 of the Blancpain GT Series on 14 April.