Mardenborough set for CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa return with all-British RJN McLaren assault

The GT Academy winner made his most recent appearance at the Belgian enduro in 2013, piloting an RJN-run Nissan in the Pro-Am class. Subject of the Gran Turismo movie chronicling his rise from gamer to professional racer, Mardenborough has since carved out a successful career in Japan, contesting the top-level Super GT series between 2016 and 2020.

He will return to Spa-Francorchamps this year as one of two professional drivers in a Pro-Am class entry. Mardenborough shares the 720S with Simon Watts, Alex Buncombe and Chris Buncombe, all of whom have also represented RJN during this season's British GT Championship.

Mardenborough’s real-world racing career began with RJN in the same series 12 years ago. His recent return, along with the team and Chris Buncombe, resulted in a Pro-Am class win and overall podium finish at the Silverstone 500.

"I'm grateful to be on the grid and to compete in this great race in its centenary year," he said. "It’s been a target of mine for a while and I'm pleased to be accomplishing it. I've got big ambitions, so it's time to get to work with the whole team."

At Spa Mardenborough is also joined by Watts who makes his debut in the twice-around-the-clock event this June. Pro driver Alex Buncombe returns to the race for the first time since 2019, when he competed as a factory Bentley driver, while brother Chris gets his first outing in the Ardennes since 2018. This will also be RJN's first Spa assault since 2019, when Neville's squad ran Honda machinery.

The crew will join what is expected to be a bumper grid at the Belgian endurance classic, which marks the centenary of its inaugural running this summer. Track activity begins on Tuesday 26 June, building up to the start of the main event at 16:30 CEST on Saturday 29 June.