After the recent purple patch of results at the Nürburgring, Porsche and Manthey then crossed the Atlantic and were back at it again at the iconic Michelin Raceway Road Atlanta.
It must really pay to be Porsche brand ambassador, Joerg Bergmeister, who had the pleasurable responsibility of piloting three Manthey-equipped Porsche 911 models at the iconic American race track. In keeping with tradition of the former Porsche factory driver, this visit wasn’t just to take a few casual parade laps around the circuit for the marketing department. There was a very specific task at hand, as Porsche’s collaboration with Manthey ultimately continues to showcase how capable the German automaker’s platforms can become when pushed beyond their normal factory settings.
Old Guard Remains Flagbearer
Perhaps most impressive, at least to me, is how relevant the 2019 Porsche 911 GT2 RS remains today. Based on the past-generation (991.2) platform, the now-7-year-old Porsche 911 GT2 RS continues to—both symbolically and functionally—represent the peak of Porsche road car performance despite its aging technology. That being said, the 911 GT2 RS equipped with Manthey Kit set a new production car lap record at Road Atlanta, achieving a time of 1:22.649. It’s becoming crystal clear that the only Porsche road car that is going to usurp it is its successor—the upcoming 992 GT2 RS, which is rumored to be a mild-hybrid producing in excess of 1,000 hp. I’m so excited to see what the new car will be capable of, particularly when paired with the 992’s all-around double wishbone suspension tech.
The 2025 Porsche 911 GT3 RS (992.1) equipped with Manthey Kit also managed to set a new benchmark of its own, with Bergmeister able to set a lap time of 1:23.932, placing it atop the naturally-aspirated production car leaderboard in the process. In its own right, the Manthey-equipped 2026 Porsche 911 GT3 (992.2) also impressed, clocking in at 1:24.639, and perhaps most significantly, 1.8 seconds faster than the 2022 Porsche 911 GT3. Onboard videos of each of the precedent-setting laps have been embedded below, for your viewing pleasure.
