The Ex - WRT Team Audi France, Ortelli, Race Winning
2010 Audi R8 LMS Ultra GT3
A triple race winning example of Audi’s all-conquering R8 LMS GT3.
Supplied new to Oreca and run under the Audi Team Oreca banner for drivers Bruno Hernandez and Soyeil Ayari in CarGlass livery, taking 4th in the 2010 FFSA French GT series.
Run by works team WRT as Team Audi France in 2011, 0209 was driven by singer David Hallyday and Audi works driver Stephane Ortelli in the FFSA GT Championship, finishing 2nd with LG livery.
Upgraded to Ultra specifications in 2012 and adorned in the striking Xbox livery during its final year as an Audi Team France entry.
Subsequently sold to the USA and run by GMG Racing under the Swisher Racing banner for Bill Ziegler in the Pirelli GT World Challenge.
More recently raced in various USA GT events and maintained regardless of cost. Near zero mileage components with new Audi supplied engine installed, rebuilt gearbox, rebuilt brake callipers along with two weekend old driveshafts and clutch. Also benefitting from 2024 fuel cell and in-date harness.
Accompanied by a great spares package including three spare sets of wheels, suspension parts, bodywork and running kit with wheel socket and Staubli fuel churn.
Price: £245,000 GBP
Chassis Number: AS42A0FGT3100209
Audi’s R8
Evolved from Audi AG’s ground-breaking aluminium chassised rear-engined R8, launched to great acclaim in 2006, the second generation model - powered by the Volkswagen group’s 5.2-litre 90 degree V10 engine shared with Lamborghini’s later Gallardo and Huracan, instead of the original 4.2-litre V8 - remains among the world’s most engaging, tractable and practical supercars. Announced in 2011, the LMS ultra racing version, designed to meet prevailing FIA GT3 regulations, enhanced the R8’s already phenomenal record of on-track success.
Audi’s illustrious competition history could already be traced back almost 80 years to 1932, when amalgamation with rival German car makers DKW, Horch and Wanderer formed Auto Union AG. Under this banner, advanced Silver Arrow racers - aerodynamic tours de force with mighty rear-mounted V12 and V16 engines - took the world by storm later in the decade, piloted by such intrepid heroes as Bernd Rosemeyer and Hans Stuck.
In 2012, the R8 LMS ultra scored the marque’s first victory in the prestigious Nurburgring 24 Hours with Team Phoenix operating as Audi Sport. The squad, in its own name, repeated the feat in 2014 and R8 derivatives have subsequently won the annual showpiece five more times. Over the border in Belgium, Audi teams also won four editions of the Spa 24 Hours between 2011 and 2019, LMS Ultra cars prevailing in 2012 and 2014.
With 570bhp on tap, the performance of the factory-built LMS Ultra models was sharpened by a weight reduction over the already impressive GT3 category specification. Lightweight doors and windows were allied to an improved aero package, boasting larger carbon composite wings balanced by complementary front dive planes. Belgian-based Team WRT - founded in the autumn of 2009 by engineer René Verbist (formerly head of VW Motorsport), racer Vincent Vosse and businessman Yves Weerts - won the Spa classic at its second attempt in 2011, cementing its Audi works team status.
Revered among the greatest GT cars in motorsport history, as its stellar results attest, the Audi R8 LMS Ultra and derivatives have contributed hugely to the Ingolstadt-headquartered marque’s rise to prominence over a golden era. Formula 1-bound Audi’s sports prototypes won the Le Mans 24 Hours 13 times between 2000 and 2014, a total second only to Porsche, which has competed in the French classic continuously since 1951 and famously landed its first victory with a 917 in 1970.
This car, AS42A0FGT31100209
Chassis number AS42A0FGT31100209 was built at Audi Sport in 2010 as a R8 LMS GT3 and was destined for French equip extraordinaire Oreca. Running under the Team Audi Oreca banner, they fielded this and one other R8 LMS GT3 in the FFSA French GT Championship.
Finished in Audi silver with red detail, 0209 bore Gazechim and CarGlass sponsorship for drivers Bruno Hernandez and seasoned Oreca pro Soyeil Ayari. Together, the duo were very competitive in the series, and took their first victory in the second meeting of the year at Ledenon, bolstered by a podium in the 2nd race.
Another podium followed at Magny-Cours in August when they scored a 2nd place finish in 0209 and at the close of the year the team were classified 4th in the FFSA French GT Championship.
For 2011, 0209 was taken over by French singer David Hallyday and Audi works driver Stephane Ortelli. Preparation changed to the Belgian mega-squad WRT and 0209 was entered under Audi Team France, though 0209 remained Audi silver and gained sponsorship from LG. Another competitive pairing, Hallyday and Ortelli scored podiums in the first two race weekends at Ledenon and Nogaro.
At Dijon in May, 0209 took victory once again and the following round at Val de Vienne yielded another podium. Magny-Cours in July saw them take a pair of 2nd places behind the Labre Competition Porsche GT3R. As the 2011 season wrapped up, Hallyday and Ortelli took 2nd in the FFSA GT Championship standings, and were best of the Audi runners.
2012 saw 0209 receive the Ultra evolution package from Audi, an upgrade that signalled a step change in the performance of the R8. From an improved gearbox and new exhausts to revised, remounted rear wing, deeper front splitter, carbon doors, polycarbonate windscreen and windows, wider wheels and revised suspension bushings, the Ultra package consisted of some 400 parts in total.
0209 remained in the hands of Hallyday and Ortelli with Team Audi France for the 2012 FFSA GT Championship. The addition of Microsoft’s Xbox gaming console as sponsor saw the livery change to white and red with the Xbox logo adorning the sides of 0209.
Hallyday and Ortelli scored several 4th places through the 2012 season, bolstered by 3rd places at Val de Vienne and Navarra before they rounded out the season with victory at Paul Ricard, in what would be 0209’s final European race.
After the conclusion of the 2012 season, 0209 was sold to the USA and entered the care of GMG Racing. GMG had been successfully running another R8 GT3 for James Sofronas and 0209 joined the stable for client Bill Ziegler. Ziegler would go on to race 0209 in the Pirelli GT World Challenge from the middle of 2013 through to the end of 2014, finished in the black and silver livery of Swisher Racing.
From Ziegler, 0209 went to a private US owner and took part in track days before being bought by Three Thieves Racing. With TTR, preparation was handled by AR Motorsports in Oregon and a series of endurance races within the USA were completed, including the 24 Hours of Sonoma and 25 Hours of Thunderhill.
At the end of the 2024 season, 0209 underwent extensive maintenance including the fitment of a new engine from Audi Sport, a gearbox rebuild, brake calliper rebuild and new fuel cell, after which a rolling-road shakedown was undertaken.
Unused on track since, and now in the UK with UK taxes paid, 0209 is resplendent in its 2012 Audi Team France/Xbox livery. With low mileage on key components, it offers the next owner extensive use, thanks in part to Audi’s very impressive recommended engine rebuild interval of 20,000km.
0209 further benefits from a great spares package which includes three sets of wheels, all with new slick tyres, bodywork, suspension, brake spares, gearbox parts and running equipment, importantly being accompanied by the Staubli fuel churn and wheel nut socket.
The 2026 season looks to offer some incredible GT3 racing in which 0209 is both eligible and should be competitive within. Whether racing with Motor Racing Legends’ GT3 Legends series or Peter Auto’s new GT3 Revival grid which graces the Le Mans Classic and follows the SRO GT World Challenge calendar, 0209 would be a distinguished entry to challenge as the Audi works drivers did in GT classics like the Spa 24 Hours.
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