Alpina is to return to racing for the first time in 20 years after confirming that it will enter the GT3 European Championship in 2009.
The famed marque is best known for its past success in the European Touring Car Championship – where it secured three titles – and in endurance racing where it took honours in both the Nurburgring and Spa 24 Hours. Niki Lauda, Jacky Ickx and Hans Stuck are amongst the famous names to have represented Aplina in the past.
The company will now run the Alpina B6 GT3 in the series next season, with the race car being based on the
BMW Alpina B6 S. As well as running in the GT3 European Championship, the team also plans to compete in a number of other important endurance races over the course of the year.
"We think that the BMW 6 Series – especially with the super-charged, torque-laden 4.4 litre V8 Aplina engine from the B6 S – provides the ideal basis to challenge pure-bred sportscars such as
Ferrari, Lamborghini and Aston Martin within the framework of GT3 regulations," Aplina proprietor Andreas Bovensiepen said.
The company will also sell BMW Alpina B6 GT3 race cars to private teams wishing to run the machine during 2009 – which could mean the cars appear in a range of national series around the world including British GT and Belcar.
![Alpina will enter the 2009 GT3 European Championship with the B6 GT3 [Pic credit: Alpina]](http://pix.crash.net/thumbs/432000.jpg)
