Volante Rosso has confirmed a two-car charge for the 2026 GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS season, with the team bringing in a strong line-up for its expansion.
Once again running the Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3, Volante Rosso has also brought in a new McLaren GT3 EVO for the season, which will be piloted by team owner Josh Hunt and the ever-successful Geoff Emery, who makes his return to Australia’s top-tier GT series after a break on the sidelines.
Behind the wheel of the Aston Martin will be young gun Alex Gardner, who makes his return to the category and the team for the first time since 2024, and a series debutant Lee Stibbs.
While Emery and Hunt will be running in the Pro-Am class, Gardner and Stibbs will be running in the Trophy Class.
All four drivers have plenty of experience in Australian motorsport, with Emery known as one of the strongest Am drivers in the country. A three-time champion in GT racing within the country, the Victorian has driven at the top level for a long period of time.
Debuting at the start of the century, Emery was successful right off the bat, winning a number of national categories before gravitating to the Super2 Series, where he raced for more than a decade in the late 2000s and early 2010s – scoring a number of podiums towards the latter part of his career.
While he also raced in the Porsche Carrera Cup, which he won the Pro-Am class in 2022, Porsche Sprint Challenge Australia, Audi R8 LMS Cup and multiple Bathurst 12 Hour events, scoring a class victory in 2022, he is best known for his efforts in Australian GT - which saw him win three titles over the years.
His co-driver Hunt also boasts a longstanding motorsport career, having carved out a successful career across all parts of the world.
Having raced in a number of national-level competitions throughout his career, such as Aussie Racing Cars, Australian Production Cars, Australian Formula 3, Australian Sports Race Series, Radical Cup Australia and Porsche Carrera Cup, Hunt has built a solid national and international presence.
Between 2015 and 2016, Hunt competed in a number of popular endurance events across Thailand, Malaysia and Japan, while also finishing third in the 2016 Asian Le Mans Series GT class, with one win and one podium.
He has also had plenty of success in Australia, scoring a runner-up place in the 2023 Bathurst 12 Hour Class A field, while also picking up a podium in his brief stint last year in New Zealand at GT Festival Hampton Downs.
On the other side of the garage, Gardner is a familiar face in GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS, having made his series debut in 2024 in the Aston Martin.
Prior to his brief stint in the series, the 19-year-old achieved quite a lot in his career, winning Radical Cup Australia in his rookie season in 2023 with Volante Rosso and having been selected to attend the Ferrari Driver Academy Asia Pacific and Oceania Selection Program in 2022.
Rounding out the team is Stibbs, who made his motor racing debut in 2023 in the TA2 Muscle Car Series, winning once and scoring three podiums.
He then spent the following two years in the Trans Am Series and TA2 Series, picking up a number of solid results along the way and producing consistent driving.
This year’s move to the GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS will mark Stibbs’ first run in a GT3 car as he looks to continue developing his race craft.
The quartet will all feature in the 2026 GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS season opener at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit on 27-29 March.
QUOTES
Josh Hunt
#15 Volante Rosso McLaren 720s EVO
“I’m really keen to be back in. I got bitten by the bug in NZ and this time, it will be nice to commit to a full season of racing,” said Hunt.
“The McLaren is just a great race car, and I’m excited to play a part in shaping the brand’s program here in Australia.
“Typically, I’m in the back ground, developing, testing and driving the business forward, but now that I’ll be back in the car full-time, the aim is to fast track the on-track development. Plus, it will put me in a better position to coach our drivers and customers.
“To be driving with Geoff is really cool. I’ve known him for a long time and he brings a lot of experience. We are like minded personalities, and it’s going to be a fun year working with him.
“The fields in GT World Challenge Australia are getting stronger year on year, so we have cautious with our exceptions. Our whole team is just keen to get out and see where we land.”
Geoff Emery
15 Volante Rosso McLaren 720s EVO
“I’ve been keeping pretty busy in race cars in recent times, so I feel that I’m ready to step back into GT World Challenge,” said Emery.
“Josh has done a fair bit of racing over the years, so he should be a very solid Pro. He’s got some serious competition to race against, but that is all part of the challenge in GT racing.
“My job is to to match it with the Bronzes, and once we get up to speed with the McLaren and get a good understanding of what it needs, I’m confident that we can be a threat.
“Driving the McLaren is going to be an all new challenge, but I feel it’s going to feel like a cross between an Audi and a Porsche. It will be nimble, but we’ll build up our confidence and speed through the weekend and we’ll see where we end up.”
Alex Gardner
#14 Volante Rosso Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3
“I'm very happy to be back on the grid with Volante Rosso in GT World Challenge Australia,” said Gardner.
“The team is my home away from home. Even while I wasn't racing, I was working with the team, so I’m looking forward to representing them again and being back in the Aston Martin.
“It's definitely good that I'm driving a car that I know, but we’ll just ease into the weekend, find our feet and see where we end up.
“Teaming up with Lee (Stibbs) is going to be great, and it’s cool to see such a competitive GT field to race against. I just can’t wait to get back in the car and onto one of the best race tracks in Australia.”
Lee Stibbs
#14 Volante Rosso Aston Martin Vantage AMR GT3
“I’m looking forward to getting to Phillip Island with Volante Rosso and driving the Aston Martin with Alex,” said Stibbs.
“Alex is obviously a young talent on the rise, and he has done plenty of miles in the Aston. That will be a big head start for us.
“I’m going to look to acclimate myself as quickly as possible, and my aim is to be able to give constructive feedback that will help drive us forward. I don’t plan on being the Bronze that's a burden. I really want to contribute and be an asset.
“With the racing that I’ve been doing recently, I feel race fit for it. I haven’t raced a GT car before, but for everything I’ve been told, and the knowledge that the team has with the car, I hope that we’ll be able to get onto a good pace early."