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Exciting times for NGK-sponsored race ace Charlie Martin

It has been a memorable few days for NGK-sponsored transgender racing driver Charlie Martin as she achieved a fourth place finish in her first-ever 24-hour race at the World-famous Nürburgring circuit in Germany just days after signing up to a new race team for 2021.

She became the first transgender competitor in the history of the race and has become the latest racing driver to join Praga as the marque expands its motorsport programme.

After taking her Adrenalin Motorsport BMW M240i to fourth position at the ADAC TOTAL 24-hr Rennen in Germany, she said: “P4 baby!! One step away from a podium in my first ever 24hr race. Absolutely stoked about our performance in this race, we knew it would be tough and we pulled off a faultless effort.

“The race is one of the toughest endurance races out there, so this feels totally mega – it’s a big win for LGBTQ visibility in motorsport too.”

Meanwhile, for 2021, the Leicestershire-born professional driver joins a line-up of Praga drivers from a variety of backgrounds, competing in a much-expanded Praga campaign with VR Motorsport.

She will race the new, fifth generation, all-carbon Praga R1 racing car, full details of which will be revealed later this year.

Praga’s all-new dedicated Britcar race class was announced by Managing Director of Praga Cars UK Mark Harrison, a former McLaren and BMW executive, as the company sets a course towards an international one-make race series.

Details of the fifth generation Praga R1 will be revealed at Silverstone’s MotorsportDays Live in November. The new version of the car that has won four of the five Britcar Endurance races so far this season will feature a larger fuel cell, revised aero package, improved safety features and enhanced driver adjustment to make it even better suited to endurance racing and even more attractive to racing drivers and team owners.

Charlie Martin said: “I am very excited to be invited to join the Praga family. I first tested both versions of the R1 at MotorsportDays Live in 2019 and was really impressed by how the car offers the best of GT and prototype driving in one package – and there’s no ignoring how fantastic it looks on track! I have been really impressed by Praga’s long-term vision for the brand and I’m excited to make a real contribution. We know that the car is a race-winning package and the first task is to deliver strong race results and set our sights on winning the championship. I can’t wait to get behind the wheel of the R1 again next month.”

Mark Harrison, Managing Director at Praga Cars UK said: “Charlie is a superb addition to the Praga Cars motorsport programme. Her experience in multiple cars and categories will be a terrific asset to the team in terms of feedback and outright performance, but especially her drive to help us look to the future and our ambition for an international single-make series. The R1 is perfect for what Charlie wants to achieve and we are looking forward to going racing with her throughout next year.”

Mark Hallam, Marketing Manager, NGK Spark Plugs (UK) Ltd, said: “It has been a memorable few days for Charlie who is such a role model and ambassador for motorsport. To do so well at the Nürburgring was a remarkable achievement by Charlie and we look forward to seeing her in action on the track with Praga next season.”

 

Notes to Editors

About NGK SPARK PLUG:

Worldwide: NGK SPARK PLUG is one of the leading automotive and technical ceramics suppliers, with its corporate headquarters in Nagoya, Japan and sales organisations and production facilities all over the world. The automotive side of the company specialises in the fields of ignition and sensor technology, supplying Original Equipment customers across the globe. For the Aftermarket, its product portfolio comprises spark plugs, glow plugs, ignition coils and leads under the NGK Ignition Parts brand. Under the brand NTK Vehicle Electronics the company offers oxygen sensors (including NOx sensors), exhaust gas temperature sensors (EGTS), mass air flow (MAF) and manifold absolute/boost pressure (MAP) sensors as well as engine speed and position sensors. With around 16,000 employees, the company’s automotive and technical ceramics activities generate a total annual turnover of around 3.5 billion Euros worldwide. NGK SPARK PLUG’s EMEA sales (including its EU, UK, France and Eurasia subsidiaries) represent 26.1% of this global turnover. NGK SPARK PLUG operates on all continents and has 41 group companies, 24 production plants and four Technical Centres.

 

Aftermarket EMEA: NGK SPARK PLUG has seen significant growth across the Aftermarket since expanding beyond motorcycle parts into the automotive sector in the 1970s. With an outstanding commitment to quality, technology and research & development the company has become the world’s number one in spark plugs and oxygen sensors, and a leading provider of glow plugs, ignition coils and leads as well as further sensor technology. Organisationally NGK SPARK PLUG’s regional headquarters in Ratingen, Germany serves the Aftermarket across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. In the EMEA region the company has ten group companies and more than 1,000 employees, as well as two production plants in France and South Africa and a Technical Centre in Germany.

 

For further information contact:

Andy Hurst

Hurst Media Services

Tel: +44 (0)1354 657253; Mobile: 0773 694 7803

Email: andyiuh.stonec1yvtgrossec@bintern8yvbzet.com/thv

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