Arise Racing GT kick starts GT3 season with Dual Podium at Phillip Island

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Arise Racing GT had a successful opening round of the 2025 GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS, taking out the win in the opening race of the season at Phillip Island, and coming away with the overall Teams and Drivers championship leads.

In a tightly contested Qualifying 1 session, Jaxon Evans and Jordan Love showed strong pace for Arise GT, securing fourth and sixth on the grid respectively. Both drivers were in the mix throughout the session, with the top six cars covered by mere tenths of a second as the field battled it out in ideal track conditions.

Qualifying 2 was fiercely contested and saw Elliott Schutte deliver a standout performance in the #26 Arise Racing Ferrari, initially securing P2. However, following a post-session penalty for the provisional pole-sitter, Schutte was promoted to pole position for race 1.

Steve Wyatt also adapted well to the cooler conditions, as he improved over the weekend, taking out 10th place for his first qualifying session in 8 years.

Race 1 was action packed. Evans and Schutte delivered a commanding performance, steering the #26 Arise Racing Ferrari to victory. Controlling the 34-lap contest from the outset, Schutte’s strong opening stint laid the foundation, despite multiple safety cars deployed, before Evans held off a late-race charge from Jayden Ojeda to secure the win by just 0.2593s. Evans kept his cool under pressure to take out race 1 of the season in a very tense finish.

Also putting in an impressive drive on the weekend were Love and Wyatt. After crossing the line 14th at the end of the opening lap, the pair stormed through the field to finish sixth. It marked a successful return for Wyatt and highlighted some huge positives as they learn how to master the 296 GT3.

Race 2 on Sunday brought out more action, with the Pro drivers starting the race in their qualifying positions respectively. Evans and Love raced hard in the opening laps before the top 6 spread out in the windy conditions. The drivers came into pit at the half-way point with Evans holding his ground in 3rd position, and Love on the back of the train in 6th.

The pitstops made for interesting on track action, with Wyatt running in 4th position after the pitstop. Schutte was down in 10th after the 15 second success penalty from Race 1. With 4 minutes to go in the race, rain on the track heightened the pressure, and tensions on the track went up a notch. The drivers had to navigate 4 laps on the slick race tyres in full wet conditions, putting on a show and making it an exciting end to the race. Schutte put his experience to the pedal, making the most gains to finish in 3rd place. This resulted in giving car #26 dual podium finishes for the race weekend and leaving with the lead in the championship.

Wyatt delivered an impressive 8th place finish, maintaining his composure in treacherous conditions for his first competition in the 296 GT3. It was a strong start for his debut with Arise Racing GT.

Team Principal Jordan Oon expressed his satisfaction with the team's performance over the weekend, stating:

"It couldn’t have been better this weekend. Elliott and Jaxon came out with an amazing win in Race 1 and managed the conditions very well for Race 2. The points gained from the weekend are really good for the championship, and that gives us the confidence to keep the momentum going into the next round."

Jordan also commended the efforts of Steve and Jordan in the #77 car:

"They performed really well, finishing both races and gaining great positions relative to where they started. Importantly, the car came back in great condition every time. Overall, it was a fantastic weekend, and we’re excited to see their performance at the next round."

Arise Racing GT thanks its valued team partners; Lance East Exotics, Barbagallo, Iveco Australia, Car Expert, VGW, ORAFOL, Anthem Workwear, Lift Off, OMP, Beta Tools Australia, and VCM Coffee, for their ongoing support throughout the season.

The next round of the GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS is scheduled to take place at Sydney Motorsport Park from May 2 to May 4.