Race ready: 2022 Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport debuts

If you think the new Porsche 718 Cayman GT4 RS is the meanest of its kind, the track-only Clubsport variant revealed here will make you reconsider.

Succeeding the 981-series model Clubsport special, the new GT4 RS version has undergone aero, handling, interior and drivetrain tuning at the hands of Porsche Motorsport to race in the GT class to which it owes name.

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Arriving in 2022, the GT4 RS Clubsport has focused on improving drivability and performance. Of course, the latter is helped by a 4.0-litre flat-six pinched from a 911 GT3 Cup car, employing 368kW/465Nm and now rated to last 100 hours between service intervals.

Although those figures are only 15Nm up on the road-going GT4 RS, it’s importantly 55kW/40Nm more than the old GT4 Clubsport’s 3.8-litre unit. Those outputs are channelled through a new seven-speed PDK with shortened gear ratios and Clubsport-spec locking rear differential.

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Handling upgrades include redesigned suspension with two-way adjustable dampers and new sword-type adjustable anti-roll bars at both ends.

That's combined with bodywork changes such as a new splitter and side flics, while the engine now also inhales via large ducts sitting aft of the B-pillar – equalling a two per cent improvement on lap times over the old car.

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Porsche is testing a new flax-fibre material with the Cayman GT4 RS Clubsport while considering it for road cars, used on the widened front guards and bonnet as a natural alternative to carbon fibre.

The front and rear bumpers are also made from a specific material to reduce costs once they're inevitably bent.

Inside, Porsche has updated the steering wheel and added a full-course yellow button in place of the old cruise control. The traction control and ABS have also been tweaked.

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And as you’d expect with a turnkey racecar, a welded-in roll-cage, six-point harness feature, built-in air jacks, 115L safety fuel-cell and fire-extinguisher are also included.

If this sounds like your bag, Porsche has not yet published pricing, but expect one on application should you be keen to race the new Clubsport when it arrives in 2022.