Pippa Mann is set to join Carrie Schreiner (Germany) and Célia Martin (France) as one of the drivers for the WS Racing Giti Tire “Girls Only” team for the 2021 season, including the ADAC TOTAL 24 Hour race at the infamous Nordschleife circuit in Germany.
The “Girls Only” project was started by husband and wife team owners, Nicole and Thorsten Willems, in 2018 to prove that men and women perform at the same level in professional motorsports. While Thorsten Willems is the Team Manager of WS Racing, Nicole is the Team Manager of the Girls Only team—a separate team within WS Racing.
With an all-female driving crew, mechanics and engineers, the Giti Tire Motorsport by WS Racing “Girls Only” program has competed at the 24 Hour race at the Nurburgring Nordschleife circuit twice with a Golf GTI TCR. In 2021 they will compete for the first time in the GT4 class with an Audi R8 LMS GT4.
Nicknamed “The Green Hell”, the Nordschleife itself is a circuit with a famed and formidable reputation. Originally opened on the 19th of June 1927, the circuit is 20.8km in length, and comprises more than 70 turns. To be eligible to compete at the event, and in the Audi GT4, Pippa must first undergo a special licensing process unique to the race track she will be competing on, and she and team are hoping to start that process as early in 2021 as the weather in the Eiffel region of Germany, and restrictions surrounding the Coronavirus allow.
The 24 hour race and several of the build up events will also use the Nurburgring GP circuit, in addition to the original Nordschleife, creating a full circuit length of 25 km.
“I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to join the Giti Tire Motorsport by WS Racing “Girls Only” program”, said Pippa. “The goals of this program back up everything I believe in as a woman in motorsport, and I was thrilled when Thorsten and Nicole reached out to me this fall. I’m doing my best to learn the race track as best I can on a simulator here in Indy, and then hopefully we can start the licensing process in March, and I will be ready to race, and Rock the Green Hell with Carrie and Célia this summer.”
For the first time, race fans will also have the opportunity to become personally involved with the Girls Only team. While the Audi GT4 program is already fully funded, WS Racing is also looking to expand to a Girls Only LMP3 team, and are hoping to crowd-fund their way to their first races with the new project in 2021. The campaign launches on December 18th, 2020.