Brabham is one of the most storied family names in the history of motor racing, and in a surprising twist, it’s now made a comeback. David Brabham, son of the legendary Jack Brabham, an F1 driver and one of the foremost greats in sports car racing, marks his return to the track. This coming May 19th, in Round 2 of the GT Cup Championship, now heading to Brands Hatch, David Brabham will soon compete with the first sustainably fuelled car on the GT Cup Championship grid. Bearing the iconic Brabham family name, he’ll be piloting the Kendall Development team’s Brabham BT62, competing in the GTO Class.
To showcase that a sustainable future is absolutely possible in motorsports, the Kendall Development Brabham BT62 will be powered by SUSTAIN Racing GT80 sustainable fuels. Made in close partnership with the alternative fuel specialists at Coryton, SUSTAIN Racing fuels uses an advanced biofuel mixture that is manufactured from agricultural waste. That includes by-products and waste such as straw, miscellaneous waste from crops, and other unwanted wastes that won’t be used for consumption anyway. In other words, these SUSTAIN Racing fuels utilise and re-use all the carbon emissions that already exist in the atmosphere.
Is Sustainable Fuels The Future Of Racing?
Therefore, as these plants and agricultural products absorb carbon emissions when they grow, it’s far less wasteful to recycle them, rather than releasing any additional CO2 emissions when opting to use fossil fuels. The blend itself is around 80% renewable materials, allowing it to deliver an impressive greenhouse gas saving of 65% when compared to conventional fossil fuels. Given that there are six more rounds of the GT Cup Championship, SUSTAIN Racing fuels estimates that the CO2 greenhouse gas savings in total could be around 1.08 tonnes worth. It’s worth bearing in mind, that these new sustainable fuels comply with the criteria set by the FIA.
The FIA themselves have been putting a huge amount of focus on adopting more sustainable or alternative fuels and making other eco-conscious changes in use in motorsports. When it comes to sustainable fuels, the FIA wants to ensure maximal sustainability and eco-friendliness, while also guaranteeing no compromises in performance compared to fossil fuels. With the sustainable fuels used by SUSTAIN Racing, such as the GT80, these greenhouse gas savings figures even include the carbon side-effects of producing and transporting these fuels to and from the track. But anyway, back to David Brabham and what all this means for racing…
David Brabham, a multiple Le Mans winner, will be partnered with Paul Bailey, the current reigning GT Cup Champion. Together, both of them have already gone through Round 1 of the GT Cup Championship, though that round was completed with a Lamborghini GT3 EVO, having claimed podium positions in four races. Now, with the Brabham BT62 and SUSTAIN Racing’s GT80 sustainable fuels, they aim to power through the championship’s remaining six rounds. Here’s hoping they could maintain a solid momentum, which could further help validate the many performance and eco-friendly benefits that sustainable fuels bring to motorsport.
The Return Of A Storied Motorsports Dynasty
This is a huge deal for David Brabham as well, an outspoken advocate for sustainable fuels, even back when it was just a pipedream, decades ago. Moreover, the GT Cup Championship is the first full motor racing event that David Brabham has taken part in since he partly retired from motorsports in 2012. To end off, here’s a takeaway from David Brabham, and what the growing acceptance of sustainable fuels means in motorsports…
“I first started talking about sustainable fuels around 20 years ago as I’ve always believed these fuels are essential for the survival of motorsport. In the early days, the options were somewhat limited. However, through its pioneering SUSTAIN brand, Coryton has shown just how far the technology has come. I can’t wait to showcase its potential as the first car to compete with sustainable fuel in the GT Cup Championship.
“The race at Brands Hatch will also be significant for me for another reason, as it’s the 10th anniversary of my father Jack’s passing. As a three-time Formula One World Champion and the Co- Founder of Brabham racing team, he devoted a great deal of his life to racing and future technologies. Taking a Brabham car through Brabham Straight feels like a very fitting way to honour his memory and I’m excited to be back behind the wheel again of a car that bears our name.”
