Villadsen and Magnussen ready for joint GT3 challenge at Misano World Circuit

Mathias Villadsen faces the first endurance race of the Italian GT3 Championship season this weekend, where he will share a BMW M4 GT3 with Jan Magnussen for the very first time.

Following a valuable debut weekend in Campionato Italiano Gran Turismo, Mathias Villadsen returns to Italy this weekend for the second round of the prestigious GT3 championship at Misano World Circuit. However, a completely new challenge awaits the 29-year-old Dane and the rest of the Team Spirit Racing squad. While the season opener at Imola in April was contested in sprint format, this weekend marks the first endurance race of the season – a three-hour contest in which Villadsen will share driving duties in the BMW M4 GT3 with his coach, Jan Magnussen.

It will be the first time Villadsen and Magnussen compete together, and with a record-breaking field of 39 GT3 cars entered, an intense weekend awaits at the famous MotoGP venue on the Adriatic coast. With driver changes expected roughly every 30 minutes, both the circuit and the pit lane are set for nonstop action throughout the race.

“We’re ready, and I’m really excited to see how this field compares to the sprint races. I’ve spent a lot of time in the simulator preparing for the track, but also mentally, because it’s going to be intense with so many cars in the race. There will be a lot of decisions throughout the race regarding which battles to fight and which ones to let go,” said Mathias Villadsen.

“This will be our first endurance race, where we’ll be sharing the car approximately every half hour, so it’s a completely different way of racing. Of course, we’re hoping for a strong result, but above all I’m looking forward to seeing how the weekend develops. It’s definitely going to provide a lot of learning and further development,” the Dane added.

For Jan Magnussen, the weekend also marks a return to GT3 competition after spending the season opener – and most of the 2025 season – coaching from the sidelines while Villadsen fought for results on track.

“Obviously, I’m very much looking forward to getting back behind the wheel of a GT3 car and going racing again. It’s an exciting championship with a strong and varied field, and we have a very solid team behind us. At the same time, I still have the role as coach, and the goal is to turn the things Mathias and I have been working on into performance on track. We’re hoping for a good result, but first and foremost for a strong weekend with plenty of development,” said Jan Magnussen.

Qualifying for the second round of the Campionato Italiano Gran Turismo takes place on Saturday, May 9, while the three-hour GT3 race at Misano World Circuit gets underway on Sunday, May 10, at 14:50 local time.