Bathurst-based Brad Schumacher has stepped through the ranks of the GT World Challenge Australia Championship, taking a title in each class along the way. His 2025 Pro-Am championship win in a crazy finale that saw the championship result decided hours after the chequered flag fell completed a set of championship victories including an Am title in 2023, and Trophy-class honours in the inaugural GTWC Australia season in 2021.
Along the way, Schumacher has also been picked up to race in the Pro-Class factory-backed Audi at the Bathurst 12 Hour, driving alongside the likes of AudiSport’s best at one of the marquee events of the season.
Looking back to the 2025 GTWC Australia finale, Schumacher recalled the ‘fairytale’ weekend which saw the Kelso Electrical Audi R8 overcome a 30 point deficit to come out of the weekend as overall champions.
“We went into that weekend in a position that was unlikely to pull off a championship victory,” Brad said. “But at no point in the weekend were we saying that it wasn’t a possibility.
“We worked really hard on our attention to detail and to maximise every little piece of the weekend that we could. Of course, getting a double pole to begin with was the first two boxes ticked to get the two bonus points, and to maximise our potential starting at the front of the grid.”
A solid race 1 from the #888 Kelso Electrical Audi of Schumacher and his co-driver, Triple 8 Race Engineering Supercars ace Broc Feeney saw Feeney able to make the move for the win with under 5 minutes on the clock, and set up a title decided in the final race of the championship.
But that would come with the extra challenge of having to overcome an additional 15 seconds in the pit stop as a result of winning Race 1
“To get a victory in Race 1 was amazing, but the tall order was to then try and get the race win in Race 2, after a 15 second success penalty. It was going to be difficult and we knew that something would have to fall in our direction,” Schumacher recalled.
“Fortunately, we had a safety car intervention, and that gave us the opportunity to strike towards the end of the race.”
Restarting after the safety car with only 2 minutes left, and the title rival just ahead, Schumacher made a move on the penultimate lap and took the race win. But the championship was still to be decided, and a post-race investigation on the rival #26 Arise Racing Ferrari over the safety car restart procedure put the championship result in the balance.
“I was certainly aware that there was a potential penalty pending [for the #26 Ferrari],” Schumacher said. “I radioed the team to let them know that [the #26] had gone too early on the restart.
“That particular safety car restart sequence was mentioned in our driver’s briefing. We didn’t know for sure if it would be a penalty, but in the end it was. Rightly so!
“To win the race – to get two pole positions and two race wins in the same weekend – I can’t explain the feeling that came across me when we were able to pull that off.
“It was a fairytale situation and something that I’ll never forget.”
The double-victory weekend was only the second such example in GTWC Australia history, and it helped Schumacher and Feeney overcome a points deficit that had been in place since the very start of the season; a puncture on the last lap of the first race of the season at Phillip Island saw the #888 Audi drop from third to 9th, while the #26 Ferrari took victory on that day.
“The only reason we were behind towards the end of the season was because of that tyre failure in Round 1,” Brad explained. “Broc [Feeney] and I had a really strong year – we had a streak of 9 podiums, which is the longest streak in GTWC Australia history.
“Ultimately, the mistake [for the #26] in the last round was what it took to get us back to claim victory.”
For the Bathurst local, the GTWC Australia championship has been the perfect platform to hone his driving skills, coming through the ranks from GT4 competition prior to the Covid-19 outbreak to becoming one of the best Bronze-rated drivers in the country.
And he’s had success every step of the way; Schumacher is the first to take championship victories at each level of the GTWC Australia class structure, from Trophy, to Am, and now Pro-Am.
“I feel like starting in Trophy was the right place to do my apprenticeship in GT3 Racing,” Schumacher said. “I had driven in GT4 cars prior, in the [Bathurst] 12 Hour, but to jump into the GT3 and get the hang of it in Trophy (seen above in 2022) was perfect for the first couple of years.
“Then to progress into the Am class where it’s a little more competitive, and in current spec machinery was another great step.
“And now in my third year of competition in the Pro-Am/outright category, along with great co-drivers, it’s been great for my driver development as a Bronze driver.”
And it’s not just in GTWC Australia that Schumacher’s had the chance to race with Pro-class talent: The return of the Bathurst 12 Hour in 2022 saw Schumacher become an honorary factory Audi driver, alongside Nathaniel Berthon and Kelvin van der Linde, and Pro-Class entries in 2024 and 2026 (below) has seen him race alongside the likes of Christopher Haase, Ricardo Feller, and Marcus Winkelhock.
“I’ve been blessed with the opportunity to drive with the factory Audi Sport team at the Bathurst 12 Hour,” Schumacher said. “To be in a position where the Australian factory team and Audi Sport at Melbourne Performance Centre trust in me to drive with their factory Pro-drivers is really humbling.
“I’ve had the opportunity to race with some of the best GT3 drivers from around the world… it gives you an appreciation of how professional these guys are as full-time racing drivers. And it teaches me, as an amateur driver, how to maximise myself and my ability within the car.
“There’s actually not all that much difference in outright lap time between [the Pro-drivers and myself], but it’s the one-percenteres that they do that somebody like me, that isn’t in a car week in, week out, doesn’t do – you begin to learn off them.
“You wouldn’t have a chance of understanding those one-percenters without being involved with such drivers at a high calibre level.
“5 tenths is not very long, but getting that last 5 tenths out of the car, that’s the hard part!”
The GTWC Australia Pro-Am title is a solid marker point for Schumacher, and after leaving his mark on Australia, he is looking to tackle more of what the world of GT3 racing has to offer.
“I feel like I’m performing at a level which is probably on par with the best amateur drivers – bronze drivers – from around the world,” Schumacher commented. “That’s fortunately opened up some opportunities for me as well as a driver, which has been really great. I’ve been able to go over and do the 24 Hours of Spa and also some overseas racing in New Zealand with WolfBrook Motorsport.
“So while I’m at the peak of my Bronze ability, I’m looking to increase my opportunities internationally to drive with other teams.”
And that’s true for Bathurst as well, which is literally on Brad’s doorstep.
“I genuinely believe that the Bathurst 12 Hour is one of the premier races worldwide in GT3 racing. All the drivers that come here say that they love it,” Schumacher said. “Most drivers that come here and race it call it the ‘Mini Nordschleife’ – which is true! It’s a high risk circuit with great reward for a good drivers.
“My home looks directly down pit straight, so it is nice when you race at home, to sleep in your own bed and spend time with family. It’s certainly the one race I look forward to every year.”
As far as other races around the world, for Schumacher, nothing is off the table. But, there are a few bucket list items on the top of his mind.
“I’d love to get back to the Spa 24 Hour again, or maybe the 12 Hours of Suzuka,” Brad said. “Unfortunately I came down really sick while I was [at the Spa 24 in 2024]. I was able to push through the sickness and perform and provide a pretty good job for my role there.
“Now that I’ve been there and had a taste of what it’s all about, I would love the opportunity to go back now with a bit more experience under my belt to have a crack.
“But any race is open to negotiation – I’m not discriminating against anything!”
In the midst of this ambition is the realities of being an Am-driver, and having racing be the outlet from a focus on commitments at home.
“As a business owner here in Australia it can be a little tough racing the entire GT World Challenge Australia Championship, and then adding to that workload doing more sprint races,” Schumacher said. “But Endurance races, the 12-hour and 24-hour races are definitely on my radar.
“While I’m an extremely valuable Bronze-ranked driver, I am entirely open to discuss with teams internationally to provide my services and get the opportunity to branch out and do some overseas races.”
For the moment, the focus is on another GTWC Australia title hunt, in a category that is only getting more competitive. This season, 5 different crews have taken wins, and with 2 rounds remaining, 6 squads remain within 30 points of the leaders – the exact gap that Schumacher and Feeney overcame to win in the last round of last season.
This year, instead of the hunter, Schumacher has been the hunted.
“It feels great to run the #1 on the car.
“The past couple of years, we were chasing the championship,” Schumacher said. “In 2024, Will Brown and I finished second and we were always just one
step behind the Arise Racing Ferrari team.
“I do feel like we’ve been chasing all the time. It’s a nice feeling now to be in the lead with us being chased.
“But I must say it’s a different feeling – to be defending and minimising our mistakes so that we don’t allow people to get back and get in front of us again.”
And with Brad’s consistency, as one of Australia’s best Bronze-rated drivers, a second Pro-Am title doesn’t look too far away.
Pics: GT World Challenge Australia/ Daniel Kalitz/ Andrew Hall/ Jack Martin
