It’s GT1 time in Automobilista 2

After an initial focus in Brazilian competitions dictated the content development for Automobilista 2, REIZA Studios is targeting the mainstream classes to attract even more adepts to the cause, and the introduction of the late 90s GT1 sportscars was a late move in 2020 to add to this idea.

Three models that bend the line between GTs and prototypes were brought in, and along with their fame in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, they also were the protagonists in a short lived era of the young FIA GT Championship, with one specific being mentioned as the root cause of the GT1 regulation demise as its dominance was so absolute that other manufacturers and teams didn’t want to take part of the GT1 class.

It’s worth talking first about the Mercedes CLK LM, as the V8 powered machine was still a dominant force in FIA GT, having to continue the legacy from the Mercedes CLK GTR which also having an eye or two at La Sarthe. While the CLK LM simply crushed the opposition in FIA GT in a similar manner of the current Formula 1 squad, FIA GT champions Klaus Ludwig and Ricardo Zonta saw their cars call it a day early at La Sarthe, having not making it to the night time.

Next to talk is the Porsche 911 GT1-98, the final iteration of the beast from Stuttgart, with its lines already more inclined to a prototype than a GT, being part of the reason why the LMGTP class was created. The GT1-98 was the closest thing of a threat to the Mercedes show in FIA GT, but still wasn’t able to mount a significant challenge, while at the 24 Hours of Le Mans the class of its classic flat 6 engine. Even though the GT1-98 wasn’t exactly the pacesetter at Le Mans, its absolute reliability gave a 1-2 after a full day, beating the factory squads from Mercedes, Toyota, BMW and Panoz without a drop of mercy.

The final GT1 to bring here is the McLaren F1 GTR LT, with the final evolution of the famous Le Mans winner being in the hands of multiple customer teams in 1998, being absurdly off the pace of the frontrunners in both the FIA GT front and at Le Mans. In fact, what saved the F1 GTR LT was the reliability from the accumulated from years of experience, which gave Gulf Team Davidoff a humble fourth place at Le Mans.

Along the trio of GT1s, the ultra rare McLaren F1 LM was included in the road car list, and Spa-Francorchamps was finally released, with only the modern 2020 layout being available, while historical layouts will appear in the future. If you can’t acquire it now, don’t worry, REIZA made Spa available in championships even if you don’t own the track, in what they mention as a measure to help customers during these financially challenging times.

The GT1 class is available from the go, just needing an update on Steam, while Spa-Francorchamps can be aquired alone or as part of the Premium Track DLC bundle. There was also a bunch of updates during these last days of 2020 for Automobilista 2, so better check their Steam page for the changelog and then drive (with further patches included).

IMAGES: Automobilista 2 in-game screenshots