FIA GT3 European Championship

The FIA GT3 European Championship was launched in 2006 to expand manufacturer involvement in motorsports and to support amateur drivers across Europe. The championship sought to combine multiple one-make series into a larger event in which teams competed both within their own manufacturer cups and for overall race victories. The FIA and SRO planned to expand the European championship and assist in the development of national one-make series across Europe, similar to the Ferrari Challenge and Porsche Supercup.

From 2010 to 2012, the FIA GT1 World Championship acted as a senior series. GT1 drivers were more experienced, could be factory-hired, drove more powerful cars, and the GT1 season was longer with more countries visited. Because the GT1 Championship allowed performance-balanced GT3 cars and 2009-spec GT2 cars in 2012, the primary distinction remained that the GT3 Championship was restricted to GT3 cars. All GT3 races took place on the same weekend as a corresponding GT1 race, at different times of the day. Some manufacturers, including Aston Martin, competed with cars in both championships.

Following FIA GT naming conventions, the FIA's Group GT3 differed from its GT1 and GT2 counterparts by using more cost-effective engineering and design elements. The series aimed for parity through pre- and in-season performance balancing adjustments. Unlike GT1, GT3 cars were not permitted to be developed by manufacturers during a racing season. Manufacturers supplied ready-to-race cars to customer teams, which were limited in the modifications they could make from production specifications. All GT3 cars required FIA permission and equalization to participate.

The Jaguar XKR, Ford Mustang FR500GT, Ford GT, and Morgan Aero 8 were added to the homologation list for 2007. The Venturi Atlantique silhouette, Maserati Trofeo, and Lotus Exige were dropped that same year due to lack of participation. The Jaguar XKR, Ford Mustang, and Morgan were eventually dropped by the 2011 season. The Audi R8 LMS and the Alpina B6 were homologated for 2009; the Ferrari F430 GT3 was replaced by the Ferrari 430 GT3 Scuderia. The Alpina B6 and Chevrolet Corvette Z06R were also dropped by the 2011 season, and the Ferrari 430 GT3 Scuderia was replaced with the Ferrari 458 Italia GT3.

From 2006 to 2009, teams were limited to a maximum of three cars with two drivers per car. From 2010, teams were limited to a maximum of two cars with two drivers each. A team was required to use the same type of car for all of its entries. No more than six entries per marque were permitted (three two-car teams), although teams entering cars in the GT1 championship could enter GT3 cars beyond this restriction.

The drivers in the FIA GT3 Championship were intended to be more amateur than the professionals competing in FIA GT. The term "gentleman driver" was most commonly used to describe them. To ensure amateur status, the FIA put rules in place to determine a driver's skill level.

Drivers under the age of 55 who met any of the following criteria were not permitted to compete in FIA GT3:

Held an FIA Super Licence or Grade A Licence

Finished in the top 10 in Formula 3000, A1 Grand Prix, GP2, Indy Racing League, or Champ Car World Series

Finished in the top 6 of any international or national Formula 3 championship

Won the 24 Hours of Le Mans outright

Been a hired works driver for a major automobile manufacturer

Performed at a level deemed professional by the SRO and FIA

An exception allowed drivers over the age of 45 to petition the SRO and FIA for permission to race despite prior professional experience.

Each FIA GT3 event featured two individual races. Each driver on a two-car team qualified their car individually and started one of the two races from their respective grid position. Each race required one pit stop during which the team had to switch drivers and change all four tyres. Teams were limited to two pit crew members during a stop. All races were one hour in length.

The FIA GT3 championship was structured as a collection of cup races. Cars competed both for overall race wins and within their own manufacturer's class. Each manufacturer had its own drivers' championship alongside the overall GT3 Teams Championship and Drivers Championship. Points were awarded to the top eight finishers on a scale of 10-8-6-5-4-3-2-1, with each car in a team scoring points even if multiple entries finished in scoring positions.

On November 29, 2006, the German ADAC launched GT Masters, a national-level series for FIA GT3 cars. Its inaugural 2007 season featured six races, almost all in Germany, serving as support races for the 24 Hours Nürburgring and Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters. It was the first national-level GT3 series.

In 2005, the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport relaunched the Australian GT Championship using older GT2 and GT3 cars with balanced performance. As of 2012, the Australian GT Championship allowed GT3 cars alongside older GT cars.

The GT3 Brasil Championship commenced in 2007 in Brazil, also organised by SRO. Veteran drivers including former Formula One champions Emerson Fittipaldi and Nelson Piquet and former Brazilian Stock Car champions Chico Serra and Alexandre Negrão participated; Negrão became the inaugural series champion. Unlike the European series, GT3 Brasil accepted professional drivers, graded from A (International Driver) to D (Fully Amateur), with the requirement that at least one driver per car be of amateur status (C or D), unless a team comprised two B-graded drivers, in which case a 60 kg ballast penalty applied.

Other championships that allowed GT3-spec cars included the British GT Championship, FFSA GT Championship, Belcar, Super GT, and Super Taikyu.

In 2007, the SRO and FIA launched a companion series, the GT4 European Cup, using the same concept of production sports cars but with smaller engine sizes, minimal modifications, and restrictions on driver professionalism.

The FIA GT3 European Championship visited the following circuits during its history:

Adria International Raceway (2009)

Algarve International Circuit (2009–2012)

Automotodróm Slovakia Ring (2011)

Brno Circuit (2007–2008, 2010)

Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps (2006)

Circuit Paul Armagnac (2008, 2012)

Circuit Paul Ricard (2009–2011)

Circuit Zandvoort (2011)

Circuit Zolder (2009–2010, 2012)

Circuito de Navarra (2011–2012)

Circuito del Jarama (2010)

Dubai Autodrome (2007–2008)

Dijon-Prenois (2006)

Monza Circuit (2007–2008)

Moscow Raceway (2012)

Motorsport Arena Oschersleben (2006, 2008–2009)

Mugello Circuit (2006)

Nürburgring (2012)

Silverstone Circuit (2006–2011)

Bucharest Ring (2007–2008)

This article is based solely on the supplied corpus. No external sources were consulted; claims that could not be substantiated against the corpus were omitted under the drop-the-claim rule.