Bentley will return to motor racing and aims to construct a GT3 class supercar according to the regulations as laid down by the FIA, motor racing's ruling body, which also governs the ADAC GT Masters. Bentley presented the Continental GT3 model at the Paris Motor Show. It is based on the GT Speed production model, the fastest previous Bentley. This signals the British company's return to the race track for the first time since victory at the Le Mans 24 Hours in 2003 with the Bentley Speed 8.

Bentley's factory in Crewe is currently developing and building the GT3, and the competition will get first sight of the massive super sports car on the racetrack in the autumn of 2013.

Bentley has not made any technical details available but the technical spec alone of the GT Speed production version is enough to whet the appetite for the Continental GT3: The standard version of the Speed GT has 625bhp on tap from a six-litre W12 engine with twin turbos.

"Our customers told us loudly and clearly that Bentley belongs on the race track and the Continental GT3 is the realisation of a dream that we have nursed since the launch of the Continental GT model," said Bentley boss Dr Wolfgang Schreiber in Paris. "The new GT Speed is the perfect platform for a race car and has shown great potential so far. The Continental GT3 is set to show the world what the Continental GT is capable of in its most extreme form and establishes a solid foundation for Bentley's long-term motor racing plans."