Brabham is set to race at Phillip Island for the first time in more than a decade when he joins the Fanatec GT World Challenge Australia Powered by AWS grid on August 16-18.
The ex-Formula 1 driver and 24 Hours of Le Mans winner will race the Volante Rosso-run Harrolds Racing Mercedes-AMG GT3 alongside Chris Batzios.
The Brabham family will be out in force at Phillip Island with David’s son Sam racing in Monochrome GT4 Australia too.
Ahead of his racing return Down Under, Brabham said he would be looking at opportunities in Australia for the family’s name.
Curiously, the comments come seven months after Brabham Group Limited (UK) terminated its six-year partnership with Brabham Automotive Holdings Pty Ltd (Australia).
“Australian motorsport continues to grow and we believe it’s time for Brabham to return to its roots and establish a motorsport presence in the country,” he said.
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“How this looks is still being discussed and while I’m in town I will be assessing our options and catching up with leading teams, professionals, and influencers in the Australian motorsport landscape.”
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Brabham’s return to racing in Australia has been a long time coming, according to his co-driver.
Batzios had an existing relationship with Sam, who raced the team’s Mercedes-AMG GT3 in 2022.
Batzios said the opportunity to race with an ex-Formula 1 driver was surreal.
“Having David as a co-driver has been a work in progress for some time,” said Batzios.
“I’ve got a close, personal connection with David and Sam. I’ve had Sam with me before and now to have the ‘big man’ himself is just absolutely ridiculous to be honest.
“It’s like living out a boyhood dream, I’ve watched David on TV racing in various categories, but mainly in Formula 1 and at Le Mans as a fan.
“By sheer fluke I got to meet him many years down the track and we struck up a close friendship with the Brabham family.
“I got on the phone to David only a few days ago and said ‘Listen, when are we going to do this? When are we going to share a car?’ It’s a bucket list thing.
“He said ‘What if we do Phillip Island? I think I can make it work’. Within the space of 24 to 48 hours we were able to piece it all together.
“To be back at the Island, I did my first GT3 race there last year and it was a lot to come to terms with you moving from GT4.
“To go to a high-speed circuit like Phillip Island was pretty daunting, but I got better as the weekend progressed as I shared the car with Sam.
“To go back there now with more GT3 experience under my belt and coming off a good showing at Queensland Raceway, plus with David driver coaching me, it’s pretty surreal.”
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