Melbourne Performance Centre outlines programme
Melbourne Performance Centre has revealed the drivers for its 2024 World Challenge Australia programme.
The first pairing sees New Zealanders Tim Miles and Brendon Leitch team up for the full season.
Gold Coast-based businessman and highly experienced Porsche Carrera Cup Australia Pro-Am Class racer Miles has previously featured at selected rounds in the Series notably being partnered by Jack Smith in the three hour event at the Bathurst International in 2022. Miles also contested a full-season of Australian GT campaign in 2017 driving a Lamborghini Gallardo R-EX GT3.
Leitch, has huge experience in international GT racing including winter progrmmes in the 24H Series and Asian Le Mans Series with Leipert Motorsport together with race-winning form in Lamborghini’s Super Trofeo Europe Series. Leitch will base himself in Sydney after being situated in Europe for many seasons.
“The GT calendar really appealed to me. Thursday testing is great, and the cars are a heap of fun to drive with all the downforce and electronic aids that give you confidence,” said Miles.
“I haven’t been to Phillip Island for a number of years, same with Sydney Motorsport Park, so for me, going back to those places is really appealing.
“The calendar is perfect for GT race cars – Tailem Bend, Phillip Island and Bathurst immensely suit the GT cars.
“Having a young Kiwi bloke that I’ve known for many years is going to be really fun too. Brendon is blinding fast and trying to forge a career in Europe and has a number of races over there but not enough to constitute a year.
“I drove with him in Highlands 6 Hour and I was really impressed. I was keen to partner with him, help him get into the Australian scene and hopefully do a good job of showcasing himself close to home.”
And another full season Audi effort will see Bathurst local Brad Schumacher step up to a Pro-Am effort alongside Supercars star Will Brown and Melbourne Performance Centre.
Schumacher was last year’s Am Class winner following initial success in GT Trophy during Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS’s maiden season in 2021.
Brown brings loads of experience in GT racing albeit in Mercedes-AMG machinery rather than Audi, but he has enjoyed success with the marque through numerous race wins in TCR Australia driving the brand’s RS3 LMS TCR fielded by Melbourne Performance Centre.
Schumacher made the step up in late-2022 to the latest specification R8 LMS GT3 Evo 2 and enjoyed success almost immediately when he was partnered by Tim Slade to finish runner-up at the Supercheap Auto Bathurst International Three Hour.
The highlight of Schumacher’s Am Class victory last season was finishing third outright in both contests at his home circuit, Mount Panorama as he defeated strong competition.
Having previously run his entry out of a close-knit team in Bathurst, Schumacher will join reigning Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS winning squad Melbourne Performance Centre, which remains undefeated in titles since the inaugural series in 2021.
Triple Eight confirms Driver Line-Up
Triple Eight Race Engineering has confirmed that Declan Fraser and Peter Hackett will take the wheel of its Mercedes AMG GT3 in the 2024 Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS.
The champion Queensland-based squad will enter one car for the full championship in the Pro-Am class.
Fraser is no stranger to Triple Eight. The North Queensland native drove one of the team’s Super2 entries to title success in 2022 and competed in its Bathurst 1000 wildcard with Craig Lowndes the same year.
The 2024 season will mark Fraser’s first drive in GT racing machinery. His only experience in sports cars was a one-off race in a GT4 car at Sandown in 2022 with Mark Griffith.
Hackett is a stalwart of GT racing in Australia and around the world. These days, he fills his time being responsible for conducting the on track experiences for Mercedes Benz and AMG in South East Asia, but he has plenty of runs on the board behind the wheel in competition. He won the 2017 Australian GT Championship with New Zealander Dominic Storey and finished on the podium in his class at the Bathurst 12 Hour in 2012.
Hackett’s last race in the Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia came at Mount Panorama in 2022 where he partnered Prince Jefri Ibrahim.
The team will reveal the look of the Mercedes AMG GT3 in the coming weeks ahead of a test day for both Fraser and Hackett at Queensland Raceway.
This year marks the fourth season that Triple Eight will compete in Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS having been involved in the series since the inception of SRO into the Australian market in 2021.
The team has enjoyed great success in the national category, claiming five race wins with a best championship finish of third in 2022.
Triple Eight is dovetailing its Australian GT program with its exploits in selected rounds of the Intercontinental GT Challenge, spearheaded by drivers Ibrahim, Jordan Love and Luca Stolz. The team will compete at prestigious events like the Crowdstrike 24 Hour of Spa and the Indianapolis 8 Hour.
Peroni and Rosser to team up in Team BRM Audi
Former FIA Formula 3 driver Alex Peroni will contest the opening round of the Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS at Phillip Island joining Mark Rosser in a Team BRM-run Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo 2.
Peroni is set to race on Australian soil for the first time following a stint pursuing a career in Formula 1. The Tasmanian was a podium winner in the FIA Formula 3 Championship against the likes of fellow Australian and now McLaren Formula 1 driver Oscar Piastri.
Moving to the US the next season, Peroni contested Indy Lights scoring a podium on the way to 10th in what was a part-season before transferring into prototypes in 2022 entering the European Le Mans Series in the LMP2 Class.
Last year, Peroni joined Mercedes-AMG outfit GetSpeed Performance for the Fanatec GT World Challenge Europe powered by AWS Endurance Cup in the Bronze Class alongside Florian Scholze and Patrick Assenheimer.
Rosser makes his return to the class after racing S5000 and will once again race his spectacularly liveried Audi run by noted South Australian squad Team BRM.
Arise 296 GT3s test ahead of season opener
Arise Racing GT’s pair of Ferrari 296 GT3s have broken cover at Phillip Island today ahead of the opening round of the Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS at the same venue next week.
As part of an open test day at the famous Island circuit, Arise Racing GT has revealed its pair of 296s, being driven today by the team’s Pro-Am combinations of Chaz Mostert/Liam Talbot and Jaxon Evans/Elliott Schutte.
After a number of test days at Carco.com.au Raceway (Wanneroo), this is the first time that the new Ferraris have ventured across to the East Coast for a public test day.
The Ferraris feature a traditional red colour scheme, with splashes of green and white reminiscent of the Italian flag, while yellow also adorns the 296 GT3s.
Tigani Motorsport signs Ojeda
Fresh off the back of his back-to-back Bathurst 6 Hour win, Jayden Ojeda has revealed that he will join Tigani Motorsport’s Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia campaign.
The Sydney-based racer will join Paul Lucchitti as one of three entries in the series from the Wollongong-based squad.
Ojeda will add his recent international experience with Mercedes AMG GT3 to Lucchitti’s campaign, with the gentlemen racer making the step up from Trophy Class with a full-season campaign in Pro Am in 2024.
His recent GT experience includes starts in Asian Le Mans Series and Bathurst 12 Hour with Craft Bamboo Racing and competing in the Mercedes-AMG Customer Racing Young Driver Test. As well as competing in last year’s Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia with Volante Rosso.
“I’m looking forward to furthering my GT development here in Australia with Paul Luchitti and Tigani Motorsport.” said Ojeda.
“I’ve really enjoyed where GT racing has taken me so far and I’m looking forward to what we can accomplish together as a team throughout the year.”
“Paul is seriously committed to his driving and all aspects of improving his driving, which makes working with him such an enjoyable experience.”
“I’ve had a lot of experience as of late in a Mercedes GT3 so I’m looking forward to putting what I’ve learnt into the programme and ensure we put our best foot forward.”
The opening round of the 2024 Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS season will be held at Phillip Island on April 12-14 as part of the Shannons SpeedSeries.
