Since its launch 20 years ago, the GT3 era has grown into one of the most influential and competitive categories in global motorsport. With factory stars, long-time ambassadors, and rising talents all sharing the grid on an international scale, the category has produced unforgettable moments, legendary races, and a generation of specialists whose impact will be felt long after they have stepped away from the wheel.
Over the years, many GT3 drivers have emerged and truly made a name for themselves, leaving their mark in more ways than one. They have not only succeeded in their own right, but they have gone on to define the class through their accomplishments, longevity, versatility, and undeniable greatness.
Here is a snapshot of a few racers whose years in GT3 competition will stand the test of time:
Philip Ellis
A force across North America with an immense amount of success. He is consistently the fastest on the grid in GT World Challenge America with his signature relentless pace, as well as a multi-time 24 Hours of Daytona and 12 Hours of Sebring winner. He’s become one of the most complete GT3 all-rounders of the modern era.
Chris Mies
Audi’s GT3 cornerstone. A development workhorse who became synonymous with the R8 LMS, then proved his versatility by winning in a new factory environment with the Ford Mustang GT3.
Laurens Vanthoor
Broke through at Audi and became a global star at Porsche. One of the most decorated GT drivers of the last decade, with major wins and titles across nearly every major GT championship.
Dries Vanthoor
His post-2020 résumé is staggering: multiple wins, titles, and marquee endurance triumphs. A modern GT3 powerhouse whose rise was as rapid as it was dominant.
Kevin Estre
He is fearless, flamboyant, and impossibly fast, making him one of the most energetic drivers to watch. A Porsche icon known for breathtaking racecraft and daring heroics, but his time as a McLaren factory driver included setting the Nürburgring production car lap record.
Raffaele Marciello
A generational talent. From dominating with Mercedes-AMG to continuing that success at BMW, he makes elite performance look effortless in both sprint and endurance formats.
Maro Engel
If GT3 racing had a poster child for success, it would look like Engel. A master of qualifying, superb in traffic, and known as the King of Macau for a reason.
Maxime Martin
Whether in BMWs, Astons, or Mercedes-AMGs, Martin is a model of adaptability. A constant presence at the front across championships, platforms, and continents.
Jules Gounon
One of the most gifted GT3 racers of his generation, with multiple Bathurst 12 Hour wins, CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa success, and Intercontinental GT triumphs. When it matters most, he’s almost always in the fight.
Kelvin van der Linde
Aggressive, fast, and razor-sharp. A GT3 champion with a reputation for extracting every last ounce of performance from a car. His intensity behind the wheel has shaped many defining GT3 battles.
Nicky Catsburg
A key figure during BMW’s Z4 era and a relentless winner ever since. Endurance-race victories, Nürburgring success, and unmatched versatility across GT3 platforms.
Bryan Sellers
A champion and multi-race winner who set the benchmark for consistency across North America. His evolution into a program manager at DXDT Racing shows how drivers can continue shaping the sport beyond the cockpit, putting his stamp on the GT3 world in a different yet highly valuable way.
Mirko Bortolotti
The Lamborghini ace. His win list includes major venues such as Daytona, Sebring, Spa-Francorchamps, and titles in both GT3 and DTM machinery. One of the category’s most complete modern stars.
Luca Stolz
A quiet assassin of the GT3 grid with multiple GT World Challenge Europe Sprint and Endurance Cup triumphs, Bathurst 12 Hour wins, and constant competitiveness across Europe and America’s top GT stages.
Chris Haase
An Audi stalwart whose partnership with Mies defined the R8 program’s early success. Renowned for consistency, racecraft, and longevity in factory GT3 competition.
Jordan Pepper
A global winner with major endurance victories at Bathurst, Spa, and Petit Le Mans, plus success across America and Europe. He is exceptionally fast and universally respected for his adaptability.
Charles Weerts
A new-generation GT3 standout whose win tally speaks for itself. A multi-time Sprint Cup champion, the newly crowned Intercontinental GT Challenge champion, and a cornerstone of a dominant factory-backed program.
Franck Stippler
One of GT3’s founding-era greats with encyclopedia-level knowledge of the Nürburgring Nordschleife. Mentor, tester, and race-winning veteran whose influence spans more than a decade.
Alessandro Pier Guidi
Best known for his Ferrari GTE and Hypercar triumphs, but his GT3 résumé is vast, encompassing championship-winning campaigns, endurance victories, and unmatched technical understanding.
Markus Winkelhock
A legend of Audi GT machinery. Multiple Nürburgring and Spa triumphs, and a pivotal figure in establishing the R8 LMS as one of the most successful GT3 platforms ever built.
GT3 has thrived because of its diversity of brands, teams, races, and especially the drivers who represent the backbone of the category, spanning eras, manufacturers, driving styles, and continents. Each contributed something uniquely valuable, helping GT3 evolve into the world’s most successful customer-racing formula.