Factory-backed Ferraris join GT World Challenge Australia

Lance East group, owned by gaming entrepreneur Lawrence Escalante, has teamed up with renowned Radical squad Arise Racing to form a brand new alliance.

Arise Racing GT will be run by former international open-wheel driver Jordan Oon with the team to be based in Perth along with the wider Lance East and Arise businesses.

The team will start with two brand new Ferrari 296 GT3s for the 2024 season, a partnership forged by Escalante’s close ties to Maranello.

Escalante is a well-known Ferrari customer thanks to his collection of road-going supercars known as the LEE Collection, while another one of his companies, VGW, is one of the top sponsors of the Ferrari Formula 1 team.

Lance East also sponsors a number of young drivers on the international scene, including McLaren junior Bianca Bustamante, and has had a long association with Arise, including backing Arise founder Adam Lisle’s son Noah in British F4.

This will, however, be the group’s biggest presence so far in Australian motorsport.

As well as running Ferraris in GTWCA, Arise Racing GT will also be a distributor for Ferrari GT cars and parts to other competitors in Australia.

“We couldn’t be more excited,” said Oon. “The GTWCA is a growing championship with a lot of upsides in Australia, and to compete in the Ferrari 296 GT3 with a backer like LEE gives us a great platform to perform and hopefully deliver some strong results in 2024.”

Escalante said he is looking forward to the challenge of team ownership in top-level motorsport.

“Having admired GT racing from afar, it’s a real thrill and unique opportunity to be launching a new team out of my home base of Perth racing Ferraris,” he said.

“Just like in business, motor racing – and all elite sports for that matter – is highly competitive, performance-driven and requires teamwork, which is a super exciting challenge to be a part of with this team.

“I can’t wait to see what the team and our partners can achieve.”

Further details, including drivers, will be announced in due course.

The 2024 GTWCA season kicks off at the Bathurst 12 Hour on February 16-18, however the Arise Ferraris won’t debut until the first sprint round at Phillip Island in early April.