Lexus Gazoo Racing will enter its Lexus RC F GT3 for customer racing in international GT series in North America and Japan, starting from the 2017 season.

The competition car is based on the RC F performance coupe and has been engineered to compete in GT3 category races worldwide.

It will make its debut at the 24 Hours of Daytona in the USA on the last weekend of January, launching two-car entries in the leading GT series in North America and Japan.

In the USA, it will compete in the GTD category in the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship series with 3GT Racing. In Japan, it will contest the Super GT GT300 class with LMcorsa.

Lexus International president Tokuo Fukuichi said Lexus is embracing new challenges as a luxury lifestyle brand.

“Our decision to enter in customer motorsports will both refine the performance of our high-performance F models and give our customers an amazing experience,” Mr Fukuichi said.

Lexus Gazoo Racing will increase its focus on motorsports participation with the production model-based RC F GT3 race car, strengthening the performance image of the Lexus brand with an even larger global audience.