Challengers Pack brings more cup cars to Assetto Corsa Competizione

KUNOS Simulazioni had this in development for quite a while, and this Wednesday (23), the new Challengers Pack DLC was finally released, moving the Unreal Engine based simulator into another direction other than the traditional FANATEC GT World Challenge base.

The new pack brings five cars to the simulator, and with the exception of the new Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II, the pack consists of the latest versions of single-make cup cars present around the World, either racing in their own environment or sharing tracks with each other. Both options will be available in Assetto Corsa Competizione, although due to their performance differences, players will tend to be around an specific car more than the others.

These new cup cars also open possibilities in the ESports department, as most of the single make series that these cars take part follow the GTWC wherever it goes, and as a regional exception to the SRO rules, they will race with the GT3s and GT4s, like in GTWC Asia and GTWC Australia in separate classes.

Being the only GT3 of the pack, the new Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II is somewhat more special, with minor tweaks into torque, aero and reliability to make it a bit more nimble and reliable than the previous Evo. It debuted in GTWC last year as an invitational car and customers are already putting it to use, while another illustrious one, a certain Valentino Rossi, will make his full time switch from MotoGP into one of these.

The Lamborghini Huracán Super Trofeo Evo2 is also a second update of its platform, probably as visually impressive as the Gallardo ST was due to its radical aerodynamic changes that make it look more like a GTP than a grand touring car. As much as Super Trofeo machinery is intended as the initial step into Lamborghini customer racing, with Super Trofeo series in North America, Europe and Asia, it also serves to give a competitive debut for Lamborghini Squadra Corse’s junior drivers, either with a seasoned pro or with a gentleman driver.

Compared to the 610 HP of the Huracán ST Evo2, the Ferrari 488 Challenge Evo is a bit more violent, with a whooping 670 HP coming from a turbo V8 engine, and while you have all the things to keep it in place, like traction control and ABS, you have to watch your step as the formula here is simple, fast on the straights and tricky into corners. It’s the heart of everything Ferrari Corse Clienti, as most of the gentleman drivers that are and were Ferrari customers had their first steps into GT competition with one of these having full support from the Maranello manufacturer.

Then you have the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup Type 992 and their 510 HP that can be raced almost in every sportscar championship around the World, as multiple countries have a Porsche Cup series along with the international Porsche Carrera Cup, and this type of car tends to be broadly accepted in multiple endurance races and championships. If the good news in the 991.2 spec was “Mo powah, baby”, Porsche still found a way to put more power, which combined with refined aerodynamics can result in probably the fastest Cup car Porsche ever created.

BMW has a long history of cup racing but it generally goes under the radar compared to the previous cars showed, but the BMW M2 CS Racing is a direct descendant of the likes of the M235i Racing and the M240i Racing, which have a long time history as a one-make class in the the NLS and Nürburgring 24 Hours, but also found home in North America as part of TC America, one of the competitions under the SRO umbrella. It recently got its exclusive one-make sprint series in Europe, so you know this car was prepared for everything, and being more tame and nimble, it can be a nice start for a beginner and an immediate jump to the BMW M4 GT4.

As maybe a sign of things to come, the M2 CS Racing is separated in the TCX class for online races, which is its official designation by the SRO, and with the Circuit of the Americas being featured in a recent roadmap video, it just reinforces the fact that the next content will be American. Also, some GT Cup cars got liveries based on the GT2 European Championship, which can be interpreted as sign that the most recent SRO GT spec may be on its way to ACC anyway.

The ACC Challengers Pack DLC is currently exclusive for PC on Steam for $ 10.99, with console players having the release at a later unspecified date.

IMAGES: Assetto Corsa Competizione screenshots