Dual Bathurst 1000 starter turned OnlyFans entertainer Renee Gracie has revealed the next step in her return to racing.
After a seven-year hiatus following her last Supercars start in the Great Race, she returned to the sport that made her famous as a teenager.
Gracie won the Trophy Series in GT World Challenge Australia this year as part of the SpeedSeries, a class within the luxury sports car series for older, early-model GT3 cars.
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Now, she's confirmed her participation in the second division of the championship behind the wheel of a brand new Audi R8 at the season-ending Adelaide 500 on November 23-26.
For Gracie, it's a chance to prove she's as good as Australia's best sports car racers in equal equipment.
Although she'll race in the second-division Amateur class, Gracie will be able to see where she stacks up against the leading Pro-Am drivers in identical GT3 racing machines.
"In the older car, I think I sort of ticked all those boxes," the racer-turned-adult entertainer exclusively told Wide World of Sports.
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"I got the championship. I got some good results and I've done some testing. I was happy to put that to the side and I didn't think one more extra race was really gonna change anything.
"I was really happy with how everything had played out over the course of the year that I was ready to get in a new car when the opportunity obviously came about.
"It was a really good feeling to know that there's an opportunity and someone's willing to let me run in a new car."
The car represents a massive step up for Gracie, with a far more technically advanced brake package and aerodynamic set-up over her first-gen, decade-old Audi R8 she drove to the Trophy Series title.
The new machine comes with a more than 100-page manual, including a 10-page starting procedure for the $750,000 carbon fibre race car.
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"From what I understand, it is a huge jump," said Gracie.
"There are a lot of upgrades. There is more aerodynamic downforce, which is the main and obvious one.
"The braking capacity and ability is obviously huge compared to the car I'm in now. The ABS and traction control is a lot more advanced and a lot more racer-like."
Gracie said she's eager to see what she's capable of against other drivers in equal equipment.
That's been a particular bugbear upon her return to racing this year, having to explain to fans that she hasn't been on par with her rivals.
"It's been quite difficult to talk to people about my car being older and comparing myself to the newer cars," Gracie explained.
"I've just naturally gathered a lot of information from the guys who are in the newer cars as much as I can to get a base and understanding of where I should be at where my car is compared to them.
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"I've been making the comparisons all year unintentionally just to really get a gauge. It's hard comparing yourself to these newer cars and seeing them do different things.
"You go and chat to guys and you're like, 'can you do this or how come you can do that and I can't?' and it's really trying to wrap my head around making sure I'm not being too harsh on myself if I'm not able to do something cause the cars are different and acknowledging that."
Adelaide is a circuit Gracie knows well having raced there in Porsche Carrera Cup Australia and the Super2 Series.
The circuit is lined with concrete walls and is known to be a bit of a car cruncher. The smallest mistake could pay a big price.
"It's a bit of a ballsy track," said Gracie.
"I'm really excited to show people I can come in a new car, I can be ballsy, and I can be on an equal playing field, and I can be competitive. I do have my mind set on where I'm hoping to be at.
"I've had a really good year this year. Even in my older car, I was just as competitive and sometimes even faster than some of the newer cars. So there's definitely sort of a realm that I think that I would like to be and that I hope to be – maybe not straight away, maybe not initially, but definitely towards the end of the weekend."
GT World Challenge Australia confirmed its place on the SpeedSeries program in 2024. The season will open at the Bathurst 12 Hour.
The series will also feature at Phillip Island, The Bend, Queensland Raceway, and Sydney Motorsport Park and another as-yet-confirmed circuit.
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