I was not alone in raising my eyebrows when Bentley first suggested it was going racing with its Continental GT coupé. Everything from its immense weight to its massive frontal area seemed to militate against the idea. Sure, weight could be shed and there would be some aero advantages in its immense size, but enough to bring it to terms with the Ferraris, Lamborghinis and McLarens against which it would compete? Where many rivals were already so light they’d need to shed only 100 or 200kg to be competitive, the Bentley would need to lose an entire tonne. They already had optimal weight distribution from their mid-engined configurations and snake’s belly centre of gravity. It had been a mantra from the 1920s that a Bentley should never enter a race it did not have a realistic chance of winning. But a racing Continental GT? It seemed to me that Bentley had become so desperate to race it would compromise its own values and be happy to make up the numbers.

Author Frankel gets a rundown of the Bentley’s controls.

Of course, history has proven me wrong. Last year GT3 Bentleys took the Blancpain Sprint Series championship, missed the Endurance crown by three points, claimed the GT Asia title for teams and lost the lead of the Bathurst 12 Hours with only two laps to go. In probably the most hotly contested category of racing in the world right now, Bentley and its M-Sport partner have fashioned a highly competitive racing car.