GT World Challenge Australia Phillip Island: Wolfbrook Motorsport sets the pace in Friday Practice

GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS kicked off its 2026 season at Phillip Island Grand Prix Circuit on Friday, with teams immediately showcasing both speed and close competition. Wolfbrook Motorsport set the early benchmark by topping both practice sessions, setting the stage for a compelling battle between Audi, Mercedes-AMG and Ferrari ahead of qualifying.

Free Practice 1

The opening session of the 2026 GT World Challenge Australia season got underway at Phillip Island with a tightly packed field at the front. The #88 Wolfbrook Motorsport Audi R8 LMS GT3 Evo II of Ryan Wood and Steve Brooks set the fastest time of 1:26.1549 during the one-hour session, a benchmark laid down early and never beaten.

Their closest challengers were the #66 Move My Wheels by Tigani Mercedes-AMG GT3 EVO, with Jayden Ojeda and Paul Lucchitti clocking a 1:26.5487 lap—0.3938 seconds adrift. The #268 Castrol Team BRM Audi of Thomas Randle and Mark Rosser secured third with a 1:26.6690, just over a tenth behind the Mercedes-AMG.

German manufacturers completed the top five, with the #44 Geyer Valmont Racing by Tigani Mercedes-AMG of Brendon Leitch and Sergio Pires in fourth and the #56 Kollosche AMG by Tigani entry of Oscar Targett and Shane Smollen in fifth.

Ferrari also showed early promise, with #23 Zagame Autosport placing sixth courtesy of Josh Buchan and Cameron Campbell, followed by #26 ARGT of Jaxon Evans and Elliott Schutte. The #1 Kelso Electrical MPC Audi of Broc Feeney and Brad Schumacher finished eighth with a 1:27.2892 lap.

In the Trophy class, the #71 AED Consulting by Tigani Porsche 911 GT3 R of Luke Youlden and Nathan Halstead was fastest, placing ninth overall with a 1:27.4258.

With the top ten covered by less than two seconds, the session highlighted how competitive the Phillip Island weekend is set to be.

Free Practice 2

Wolfbrook Motorsport continued its strong start in Free Practice 2, as Wood and Brooks once again topped the timesheets with a 1:26.0696 — an improvement on their earlier benchmark.

The #1 Kelso Electrical MPC Audi moved up to second, with Broc Feeney and Brad Schumacher setting a 1:26.2630 lap to sit 0.1934 seconds behind. The #66 Move My Wheels by Tigani Mercedes-AMG followed in third with a 1:26.3849, while the #268 Castrol Team BRM Audi placed fourth just two hundredths further back.

Ferrari’s #26 ARGT of Jaxon Evans and Elliott Schutte completed the top five with a 1:26.6959, ahead of the Mercedes-AMG entries from #44 Geyer Valmont Racing by Tigani and #56 Kollosche AMG by Tigani, which finished sixth and ninth respectively.

The #2 Team MPC Audi and #93 Wall Racing Lamborghini slotted into seventh and eighth, with the #23 Zagame Autosport Ferrari rounding out the top ten.

Just outside the top ten, #181 OnlyFans Racing finished eleventh. In the Trophy class, the #71 AED Consulting by Tigani Porsche once again led the way, finishing twelfth overall with a 1:28.1928, narrowly ahead of the #24 KFC Team MPC Audi.

As in the opening session, the margins remained extremely tight, with just over 1.2 seconds covering the top ten—setting up an intriguing fight for qualifying.

Race 1 ahead

After Friday’s running, Wolfbrook Motorsport heads into Saturday as the early benchmark, although a tightly packed field — led by a resurgent #1 Kelso Electrical MPC Audi — suggests qualifying could be decided by the smallest of margins.

Qualifying takes place on Saturday morning at 11:15 AEDT (01:15 CET), followed by Race 1 later in the day at 15:55 AEDT (05:55 CET).