The entry list for the final round of the 2025 GT World Challenge Australia season features a strong 14-car field, set to do battle on unfamiliar territory at New Zealand’s GT Festival Hampton Downs.
Featuring a mix of fresh faces and familiar contenders, the trip across the Tasman Sea promises to close out an entertaining season on a high, particularly within the Pro-Am class.
Headlining the entry list are the two main title contenders, led by Arise Racing GT’s Jaxon Evans and Elliott Schutte in the WA-based team’s Ferrari 296 GT3 and their Melbourne Performance Centre rivals Broc Feeney and Brad Schumacher.
Just 30 points separates the Ferrari from the Audi R8 LMS EVO II of Feeney and Schumacher – and with 52 on offer over the course of the weekend, an intriguing championship climax is in store.
Both title contenders will be well supported in their championship bids, with Evans and Schutte joined by teammates Jordan Love and Steven Wyatt in a second Arise Racing GT Ferrari 296 GT3. Feeney and Schumacher, meanwhile, will be backed by Kiwi locals Ryan Wood and Steve Brooks in the Wolfbrook Audi R8 LMS EVO II.
The Melbourne Performance Centre line-up will also feature Renee Gracie, who makes the trip across the Tasman in her OnlyFans Audi R8 LMS EVO II. The 2025 Am Class Champion steps up to the Pro-Am ranks for the season finale, teaming up with Kiwi racer Damon Leitch, who makes his series debut.
Gracie’s step up to Pro-Am headlines several class changes, as a mix of newcomers and returning drivers bolster the field for the finale.
Most notably, a third Ferrari 296 GT3 joins the field, with Josh Buchan and Cameron Campbell confirmed to steer the Zagame Autosport entry following the team’s recent announcement.
The field will also welcome an all-Kiwi debut entry, with Jonny Reid and Sam Fillmore teaming up in the highly successful IMS Racing Audi R8 LMS EVO II.
Fellow New Zealand outfit Mach 1 Engineering will make its return to the series for the first time since May, with its Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO back in action following extensive repairs after an unfortunate incident in testing prior to GT Festival Sydney.
While the team will welcome back Anthony Pedersen for the season finale on home soil, Monochrome GT4 Australia class champion Shane Smollen will step in as the Am driver - marking his long-awaited return to GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS after debuting at Phillip Island in April.
GT Festival Hampton Downs will be Smollen’s first outing in a Mercedes at this level after years in Porsche machinery, however, Smollen and the Mach 1 Engineering entry will benefit from Tigani Motorsport’s support, with the team bringing a pair of its own Mercedes-AMGs for the event.
Leading the New South Wales-based team’s charge will be Realta’s Jayden Ojeda and Paul Lucchitti, who will be aiming to secure third place in the championship standings, alongside teammates George King and Sergio Pires of Geyer Valmont Racing, who continue their pursuit of a maiden victory this season.
Rounding out the Pro-Am class field for the trip to New Zealand are Tony D’Alberto and Adrian Deitz in the Wall Racing Lamborghini Huracán GT3 EVO II, along with the Shannons Volante Rosso Motorsport Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3, which features a change of personnel as team co-owner Josh Hunt joins Liam Talbot.
The Am Class battle will feature two Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVOs, as Black Wolf Motorsport’s Benjamin Schoots and Shane Woodman look to lock down second place in the standings, and Darren Currie and Grant Donaldson chase their first win of the year.
While all debutants in the season finale will be eligible to compete for race wins and podium finishes, they will not be eligible to score points in the overall series standings under the GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS Series Sporting Regulations, meaning the points determining the title fights are not impacted by the new entries.
The series will run its usual race format in New Zealand with two practice sessions and Pre-Qualifying to take place on Friday, a double qualifying session on Saturday morning before Race 1 in the afternoon. The series will then wrap up the 2025 season with Race 2 on Sunday morning.
Tickets for GT Festival Hampton Downs, which doubles as the opening round of the Repco NextGen NZ Championship, are available for purchase via speedseries.com.au/tickets, while Australian fans who can’t make it to the event can watch via Saturday and Sunday’s qualifying sessions and races live and free on 7plus.
The 2025 GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS concludes the season with GT Festival Hampton Downs at Hampton Downs Motorsport Park on October 31–November 2.
