The Mercedes-AMG works ace will share a Mercedes-AMG GT3 at HTP-Winward Motorsport with Anglo-German driver Philip Ellis. Marciello comes to the Super Sports Car League with an amazing CV. He was European Formula 3 champion, has undertaken Formula 1 testing for Ferrari and Sauber, has won races in GP2 and triumphed in the FIA GT World Cup in Macau at the end of 2019, which is the unofficial GT3 World Championship. People have high expectations of him – but he doesn’t feel any pressure: "Of course, good results are expected," said ‘Lello’. "But I want to win races in the world’s best GT3 race series, and so, am very happy with the current situation. Positive pressure is always good. I know what I can do and what my partner and the team are capable of. You only have pressure when you set yourself impossible goals. I see no reason why we shouldn’t be successful. We have to focus on doing our job, and then the results should follow. HTP-Winward are one of the best and most successful Mercedes-AMG outfits around, so I’m really looking forward to driving for them. My former team-mate, Christian Hohenadel, is going to be my team boss. It should be a whole lot of fun."

Marciello would like to go racing every weekend and hopes to compete some day in the Dakar Rally and Indy 500 (“I’m just crazy about motorsport”). He is well aware of the extremely competitive nature of the ADAC GT Masters and told us: "The standard is very high. I like the sprint format, and the series is certainly one of the world’s two strongest in that respect, which is why it’s always been my aim to compete in the ADAC GT Masters. The opportunity came my way this year, and I immediately took it."

The racing driver currently lives in Lugano and got his first idea of just what the Super Sports Cars League is like back in 2018 when he contested two race weekends as a guest entrant and finished on the podium at Zandvoort with Patrick Assenheimer. "I found the close fought scraps amazing even back then. You have to have your wits about you in order to achieve the maximum every weekend. If you make a careless mistake, you drop way down the field, so it’s not just a question of outright speed. To be successful in the end, you must always secure as many points as possible."

28-year-old Philip Ellis, Marciello’s team-mate, has already won a race in the ADAC GT Masters and is looking forward to having the Italian join him: "Raffaele is one of the strongest GT3 drivers there is. He is fast, consistent and makes few mistakes, so I’m feeling quite confident. We aim to attack and fight for the title. Our team are also well placed with the sister car driven by Maximilian Götz and Indy Dontje, so we have two irons in the fire." Ellis hopes to be able to learn a thing or two from his partner: "My situation has changed completely compared to last year. In 2019, I was the more experienced driver in the car and my team-mate at the time, Fabian Vettel, the rookie. I now hope to learn from Raffaele and make big progress. But still, I think he can also learn from me. We will spur each other on." Marciello has similar ideas: "We make a really good combination. Philip has always been fast. He’ll be very well placed at the outset for the first time now, so this will be a key year for him. We will push each other to do better and should then find ourselves among the front-runners."

Marciello and Ellis first met two years ago: “We were doing our permit to race on the Nordschleife together in a Toyota. We obviously wanted to find out who was faster, but our times were practically the same in the end,” said Ellis. The two drivers will now be sharing a vehicle once more – but the focus this time will be on teamwork!