Alex Fontana is set to make another debut in the 2024 season. After his victorious experiences in the GT Open and Italian GT series, the Swiss driver is ready to make his first appearance in the GT World Challenge Australia. The Lugano-based driver, who has already landed in Oceania, will take to the track with the Porsche GT3R entered by the Car Collection team with which he has raced throughout the GT Open season and on his return to Nordscheilfe in the NLS. Alex will be be joined by his regular partner Hash, who has spent much of his life in Australia and will therefore have the opportunity to compete in what is effectively a second home race.
This weekend Alex is therefore awaited for his debut at the Mount Panorama circuit in Bathurst. This historic and demanding track has a global reputation created thanks to the 12 Hour race, one of the international GT racing benchmarks, on a par with Le Mans, Spa-Francorchamps and the Nordschleife. This will be the 7th round in the 2024 season of the Australian series that returns to Bathurst for the second time this year after the opening round in February in concomitance with the 12 Hours.
The programme opens on Friday 8 November with two free practice sessions at 8:40 am and 3:35 pm (10:40 pm on Thursday and 5:35 pm on Friday in continental Europe, respectively), while the race is scheduled to get underway on Saturday 9 November at 12:45 pm [2:45 GMT+1], following the morning qualifying session due to start at 8:15am [10:15pm GMT+1] which will establish the starting grid for the two races. The final race of the weekend will start at 4:55 am on Sunday in Europe, 2:55 pm in Bathurst.
Alex Fontana
“I am very happy to be involved in this new adventure. 2024 has been an exciting year all round and I’m delighted that we shall soon be taking on a new challenge. Going to race in Australia is a great privilege for me, especially at a historic track like Bathurst, which until now I have only seen in the simulator and on television. Mount Panorama is the most iconic track in Australia, although perhaps less well known than those that have hosted Formula 1 Grand Prix, but with immense appeal. Along with Spa and the Nordschleife this for me is one of the world’s most magical circuits and I can’t wait to start the engine. The second sector is the one that attracts me the most with the narrow strip of asphalt between the walls, climbing up the mountain, comparable to a street circuit, but on a permanent track. It’s going to be a very important race because Hash has a lot of friends here who will be cheering for him, while for me it’s an opportunity to make my debut in a new championship, with the certainty of having a reliable partner with whom I have been sharing the cockpit for a year, and the technical guarantee of Car Collection Porsche, which allows us to start with a little more confidence in the car. But the track is going to be an unknown factor for us.”
“I am very happy to be involved in this new adventure. 2024 has been an exciting year all round and I’m delighted that we shall soon be taking on a new challenge. Going to race in Australia is a great privilege for me, especially at a historic track like Bathurst, which until now I have only seen in the simulator and on television. Mount Panorama is the most iconic track in Australia, although perhaps less well known than those that have hosted Formula 1 Grand Prix, but with immense appeal. Along with Spa and the Nordschleife this for me is one of the world’s most magical circuits and I can’t wait to start the engine. The second sector is the one that attracts me the most with the narrow strip of asphalt between the walls, climbing up the mountain, comparable to a street circuit, but on a permanent track. It’s going to be a very important race because Hash has a lot of friends here who will be cheering for him, while for me it’s an opportunity to make my debut in a new championship, with the certainty of having a reliable partner with whom I have been sharing the cockpit for a year, and the technical guarantee of Car Collection Porsche, which allows us to start with a little more confidence in the car. But the track is going to be an unknown factor for us.”