In total, 12 GT3 cars took to the track on Tuesday but the grid for the first round on April 4-6 is expected to feature upwards of 20 cars.
Not every team tested at Phillip Island and more announcements are expected to come in the days leading up to the event.
Among the absentees from the test were last year’s champions Chaz Mostert and Liam Talbot.
The two-time Bathurst 1000 winner flagged last year that he would not return to GT World Challenge Australia in 2025 to focus on his fledgling GT4 team and his Supercars commitments.
Talbot’s racing plans for this year are expected to be announced soon.
Last year’s teams’ championship winners Arise Racing turned up to Phillip Island with two cars, one driven by Jaxon Evans and Ellitot Schutte and the other with a previously unseen line-up.
Although not confirmed, Jordan Love looks set to be joined by former Ferrari Challenge driver Steve Wyatt.
His Ferrari 296 features a kangaroo blended with the Australian flag on the door.
Arise Racing’s third car, which won the championship with Mostert and Talbot, is currently idle.
One surprise at the Phillip Island test was a green Mercedes-AMG GT3 driven by Bathurst 1000 starter Ant Pedersen.
Pedersen made three starts in the Great Race, most recently alongside Andre Heimgartner at the Prodrive Racing surrogate Super Black Racing Team.
Pedersen was a regular in the V8 SuperTourers in its heyday before switching to local endurance racing.
He is set to enter the Pro-Am class with his father Paul Pedersen, a former NZV8 racer of the 2000s.
Another entry that caught the eye of interested onlookers was a Bentley Continental driven by Mike Bailey and Valentino Astuti.
Although not a confirmed entry, Astuti teased an entry on social media.
“Such an amazing car to drive,” he wrote.
“It was a good day learning down here at Phillip Island. Hopefully some good news coming soon.”
In a surprise move, Sergio Pires has opted not to return to his Tigani Motorsport-run Audi R8 LMS. Instead, he’ll pilot a Mercedes-AMG.
Pires will be joined by British driver George King. The pair will race under the Geyer Valmont Racing banner in what will be King’s first season racing in Australia.
He heads Down Under with experience in GT3, GT4, and LMP3 racing.
“I’m super excited to be racing in Australia,” said King.
“To be driving with Sergio, and in a team like Tigani Motorsport, is a great opportunity. My first full season in a GT3 car, racing against some of the best drivers in the game, will be a chance to learn and progress my knowledge to become a better overall driver.
“My four years, predominantly in prototypes, have given me a whole toolbox to use in adapting my style to new cars whenever needed.
“I’ve raced in the Dubai 24 Hour four times, in both GT4 and GT3, so I’m no stranger to the category.”
As far as times go, Jayden Ojeda topped the morning’s first practice in cool conditions, clocking a 1:25.4927s for Tigani Motorsport in its new-look Mercedes-AMG GT3. That time stood unchallenged for the rest of the day.
Evans topped the second session before series newcomer Doran Boccollacci went fastest in the third outing in the Porsche 911 GT3 R he’ll share with GT4 regular Shane Smollen.
Monochrome GT4 Australia could feature upwards of 30 cars at Phillip Island. The burgeoning class continues to grow, attracting some high-profile attention.
Triple Eight Race Engineering’s Jarrod Hughes/Summer Rintoule Mercedes-AMG was quickest on combined times.
The series has drawn a swathe of new cars to the country with Toyota, Ford, BMW, Mercedes, Audi, and Porsche all represented.
Keen eyes would have noticed a former Supercars driver hanging around one garage, that being Fabian Coulthard.
Walkinshaw Andretti United co-driver recently tested a Mercedes-AMG and rumours persist that he could start at Phillip Island.
Coulthard was on-hand to coach several drivers but it’s understood he did not cut any laps at the test.
