Team NZ was founded by Graeme Dowsett and Earl Bamber, beginning as a karting team before graduating into cars.

Earl Bamber Motorsport, a staple of the GT3 and GT4 racing scene in Asia, will support the Bathurst entry.

Chris van der Drift will spearhead the program with Aston Martin junior Romain Leroux joining the team alongside owner-driver Dowsett.

It will be the first Bathurst 12 Hour start for Leroux and Dowsett, while van der Drift brings a heap of experience at Mount Panorama in various classes.

Van der Drift has one Bathurst 1000 start to his name with Erebus Motorsport in 2016 alongside Shae Davies. He also has four Bathurst 12 Hour starts, all in Porsche 911 GT3 Cup cars.

Dowsett isn’t entirely unfamiliar with The Mountain, however, with one Bathurst 6 Hour start to his name.

Leroux, just 23 years old, has been plying his trade in GT3 and GT4 classes – namely GT World Challenge Europe.

This year, he joined Team NZ in the Thailand Super Series, sharing the Aston Martin Vantage GT4 with Dowsett.

It marks a return for the Team NZ name to the Bathurst 12 Hour, entering the 2016 race with John Curran, Nick Foster, and Craig Smith in a Class B Porsche 911 GT3 Cup car.