Mercedes-AMG has clinched a sixth successive global Fanatec GT World Challenge powered by AWS title.
The crown was secured with Winward Racing’s overall victory in the Fanatec GT Europe finale – the 6 Hours of Jeddah – on November 30. Competing under the Mercedes-AMG Team Mann-Filter banner, the trio of Maro Engel, Lucas Auer and Daniel Morad emerged at the front of the field during the third hour and proved untouchable thereafter.
As well as securing global glory for Mercedes-AMG, the win also helped Engel and Auer to snatch the continent’s overall drivers' title.
The Affalterbach marque held a narrow lead over Porsche ahead of the event. This was reduced further on Friday morning when the RACB Sport National Court annulled the result of the opening Fanatec GT Europe Sprint Cup race at Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya by ruling in favour of an appeal lodged by Team WRT.
Practice and Pre-Qualifying hinted at a slight pace advantage for the Porsche contingent, but Winward's faultless race performance in the 19-car Pro class ensured that the title remained with Mercedes-AMG for another year. Porsche's effort was led by the Schumacher CLRT entry, which ran third during the opening stint but was pegged back by a puncture, effectively ending the brand's challenge.
There was still reason for Porsche to celebrate, however, as Rutronik Racing earned an impressive Bronze Cup win. This helped the German squad to take the overall Bronze Cup teams' title despite starting the day fourth in the standings. Audi also enjoyed an excellent weekend thanks to Saintéloc Racing, which claimed top spot in both the Gold Cup and Silver Cup classes.
Official confirmation of this year’s global champions was delayed by the Barcelona result’s
appeal process. However, with that now complete, SRO Motorsports Group can publish the
final Fanatec GT World Challenge standings.
Mercedes-AMG end the 52-race campaign on top with 20,964 points, while Porsche takes
runner-up spot with 20,069. Audi finished third thanks to its strong performance in Jeddah,
closely followed by Ferrari and BMW. Lamborghini, Aston Martin, McLaren and Ford
complete the 2024 table.
While Mercedes-AMG continued its run of success in 2024, there can be no doubt that Porsche provided its sternest test yet. The battle went down to the final race of the season, with both brands able to plot a realistic course to victory. Ultimately, only fine margins decided the outcome in Mercedes-AMG's favour.
Indeed, the brand can take extra pride in its 2024 title, with a record nine manufacturers having competed in what was the biggest season yet for Fanatec GT World Challenge powered by AWS.