Bäckman siblings joins ADAC GT4 Germany for 2023
The siblings Andreas and Jessica Bäckman from Sweden today announced that in 2023 they will be sharing a car and racing together in ADAC GT4 Germany for PROsport Racing Team in an Aston Martin GT4 car.
It will be exciting to try something completely different this season by competing in GT4, and it feels exciting to share a car with Jessica, Andreas Bäckman says.
Andreas and Jessica Bäckman have, despite their young age, already achieved great success in karting, rallycross and racing. In 2018, they both competed in STCC and the British counterpart TCR UK, where Andreas, among other things, took his very first racing victory and finished in third place in the championship. Jessica managed to finish on the podium at Brands Hatch and therefore became the first woman in TCR UK to take a podium place and also finished fourth in the championship. In 2019, the siblings took the step up in the European championship “TCR Europe” and competed there in 2020 as well. Over the years, Andreas has taken several wins and pole positions in the European Championship, while Jessica has managed to take podium places in 4 different TCR championships, while making history as the first woman ever to finish on the podium in TCR Europe.
In 2022, the siblings competed in two different championships and had a very successful year.
Andreas competed in the Scandinavian Touring Car Championship (STCC) and finished third overall in the championship with three wins, two pole positions, seven podiums and three fastest laps. Jessica was competing in the ADAC TCR Germany Championship, which is the German equivalent of the STCC. Jessica finished second overall in the championship with four wins, nine podiums, two pole positions and three fastest laps.
Bäckman’s switch from TCR to GT racing
Since the siblings made the step to car racing five years ago, they have competed in Touring Car Racing (TCR). For this season, the siblings have instead chosen to go a completely different route and enter GT racing in the German GT4 series; ADAC GT4 Germany. The series runs on the same race weekends and is a support series for both the DTM and ADAC GT Masters, which are the biggest racing series in Germany. Both of these series are considered two of the world's toughest GT series to win and attract a large audience to all race weekends.
Throughout Andreas and Jessica's motorsport career, they have competed individually in two different cars. For this season, they will share a car with each other and race together in an Aston Martin Vantage GT4 car. The races are 60 minutes long, with a mandatory driver change midway through the race, which will be something completely new for Jessica and Andreas to adjust to.
It will be fun to try something completely different for this season by competing in GT4, and it feels exciting to be able to share a car with Jessica. We will have a lot to learn during this season, but we still aim high and want to be able to challenge at the top, Andreas Bäckman says.
The GT Winter Series made Jessica hungry for more
At the end of 2022, Jessica got the opportunity to go to Phoenix in the USA for The Heart of Racing's driver shootout. There she had the opportunity to try a GT car for the first time and got to drive an Aston Martin Vantage GT4 car, a similar car that the siblings will now compete within the 2023 season for the reigning champions PROsport Racing Team.
Getting to test a GT car for the first time made Jessica hungry for more and last weekend she made her race debut in an Aston Martin AMR Vantage GT4 car at Circuito de Navarra in the GT Winter Series and she impressed the team in her debut by finishing the weekend with two second places.
Very happy to have this opportunity to compete for the PROsport Racing Team who are reigning champions in ADAC GT4 Germany. Being able to take the step to GT4 feels exciting and it will be a fun season to be able to share a car with my brother. It will be awesome to compete on the same weekends as the DTM and ADAC GT Masters, Jessica Bäckman says.
The structure of the ADAC GT4 Germany series
The 2023 ADAC GT4 Germany season will consist of five race weekends in Germany and one race weekend in the Netherlands. The series is considered one of the toughest GT4 series in the world and has a high status of drivers who come from several different countries around Europe. The start of the season will be at the Oschersleben track in Germany and will end at the well-known Formula 1 track Hockenheimring.
In addition to the Hockenheimring, the world-famous Formula 1 tracks Nürburgring and Zandvoort will also be on the calendar in 2023. Each race weekend consists of two free practice sessions, two timed qualifying’s and two 60-minute races with a mandatory driver change midway through the race. Points are awarded to the top 10 cars in the time qualifying and the top 15 in each race. The drivers in the car with the most points after the last round at the Hockenheimring will together take home the driver's title "ADAC GT4 Germany Drivers Title" in the ADAC GT4 Germany series.
PROsport Racing Team welcomes Jessica and Andreas to the team
I am proud of our team line-up for the 2023 season in ADAC GT4 Germany. Jessica made a lasting impression on us last weekend at the GT Winter Series in Navarra, Spain. I am sure that together with her brother Andreas she will be able to fight for the top results in our Aston Martin Vantage GT4 this season, Christoph Esser says, team owner of the PROsport Racing Team.
Andreas and Jessica Bäckman are looking forward to competing together in 2023, which they believe they can benefit from by helping each other forward. It will be a tough season where the siblings will give everything, they have to master a brand-new car model in a new championship. The start of the season takes place on May 26-28th at Oschersleben in Germany.
ADAC GT4 Germany 2023 Calendar:
May 26th-28th - Oschersleben, Germany
June 23rd-25th - Zandvoort, Netherlands
August 4th-6th- Nürburgring, Germany
August 18th-20th- Lausitzring, Germany
September 8th-10th - Sachsenring, Germany
October 20th-22nd - Hockenheim, Germany