Reigning (and double) GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS champion Liam Talbot will switch to Volante Rosso Motorsport and Aston Martin for 2025 to be partnered by young gun Declan Fraser.
Wi: “Volante Rosso Motorsport is an impressive outfit, I’m definitely looking forward to joining the team and getting some amazing results,” said Talbot.
“The team has plenty of experience running the car from last season and at the Bathurst 12 Hour earlier this year. I have experience running the GTE version of the Vantage AMR GT3 and I have a lot of experience driving an Aston Martin in the Nurburgring 24 Hour, so it’s exciting to return home to a British marque.
“I look forward to getting some great results for Volante Rosso, which is a bit of an underdog in the GT scene and it will be nice to press the team forward to build it into a force to be reckoned with.
“Volante Rosso is really keen to get results this year. Josh (Hunt) and Chris (Papadopoulos) wanted me to drive, and it’s been pretty humbling from my point of view that he’s headhunted me so strongly.
“I’m excited to potentially extend the legacy from two manufacturers and two titles to three manufacturers and titles in as many years.
“This is a new challenge. The engine is in the front, which I don’t have as much experience with, but I did drive an Aston in 2023, so it won’t take long for me to get a feel for it. I’m looking forward to doing something different, but the bigger the challenge, the harder I fight.”
Declan Fraser: “It’s a category I absolutely loved racing last year, with great exposure especially worldwide,” said Fraser.
“To be back racing in GT World Challenge Australia, it’s a privilege to be back and I’m excited to get after it.
“It’s pretty exciting to be teaming up with Liam. He has won multiple championships and I’ve seen him around the pits and I love the way he goes about his racing. I feel like we’re both fierce competitors – we just want to win as much as possible. Going into this year, it’s absolutely no different, we both want to go out and win trophies, and take championships.
“And I feel like that is why Volante Rosso has put its trust in us to go out there and deliver some results for Aston Martin.
“Volante Rosso demonstrated at the Bathurst 12 Hour that the Aston Martin’s pace is extremely competitive, even with the car being so new to Australia.
“Having the support of Aston Martin Racing back in the UK and all of the credentials over there alongside the success already achieved with the Vantage AMR GT3, it’s pretty substantial in helping us achieve what we want here in Australia.
“We’re in a really, really good position to go out and be in with a chance. Our team is a little bit of an underdog, but also the driver pairing is extremely strong and we should be ranked as a title contender.”
Chris Papadopoulos – Director, Volante Rosso Motorsport: “Liam is an amazing driver and a successive champion in GT World Challenge Australia,” said Papadopoulos.
“We can’t wait to race with him this season. We identified Liam as part of an ideal driver pairing a long time ago so to pull the deal together is immensely satisfying.
“I’ve raced against Liam for many years and he’s always been a tough one to beat, so racing with him is both an honour and an incredible opportunity and we’re thrilled that he’s chosen Volante Rosso and Aston Martin to defend last year’s title.
“We’re also excited to welcome Declan into our team for the 2025 season. He has proven over his short years in national motorsport competition that he has what it takes to be a genuine star.
“We have signed him because we know he is fast, but we also know that he is consistent and a real team player. He is a key component to our ambitions this year.
“We’re really happy with the performance of our Aston Martin Vantage GT3 after getting to know the car and its specific optimisations. We showed some of that speed at the Bathurst 12 Hour and will be taking that pace and performance into the season as we aim to get back on the top step of the GT World Challenge podium this year.”
