David Tuaty’s TLM Racing team is back with two of their customer driven Aston Martins as Jim Hamman, JP Southern and Tom Herb power the red #172 car whilst Pippa Mann, Zang O’Shaunessy and Troy Ermish driver the newly sponsored #888 together for the first time.

Whilst we believe the older, normally aspirated #909 Automatic Racing AMR Vantage GT4 is there with presumably familiar Stoner Car Care driven faces, the main attention does swing over to the #89 entry from the Team 89X Motorsport team who have taken delivery of two familiar cars.

Whilst one is the familiar AMR yellow and the other plain black, we understand that both have been purchased from New Zealand where both were driven within the New Zealand GT Series up until the end of last season with the yellow one being the Vantage GT8R car of Stephen Harrison. The other is a Vantage GT4 variant that is believed to be that of Shane Helms where both drivers drove with the RaceLab team within the NZ GT Series back in 2022/23 seasons.

We don’t presently know of all their names – other than Mike Fitzpatrick runs alongside both Sebastian and Jeff within whichever one they elect to run.

As usual for the WRL Series, it’s a long a hard eight-hour race on Saturday before they do it all again on Sunday before shipping out to the Circuit of the Americas for the final round of the season in early December.

Photo credits - Tom Beers Photo / CSJ / Racelab

Details of the listing:-

$295,000 INCLUSIVE OF GST, WHEELS & EXTENSIVE SPARES PACKAGE.

Introducing the Aston Martin Vantage GT4/GT8R - a race-ready, reliable, and competitive car that has been successfully campaigned in New Zealand for the last few years. This stunning car is complete in AMR lime essence paint and boasts a full GT8R specification bodywork, which is lightweight and offers more downforce, as well as the full GT4 specification bodywork, making it ideal for the new GTNZ regulations coming into force later this year.

The car has been extensively prepared, run, and maintained at Race Lab NZ since it was first imported into New Zealand, and is now ready for its next owner to take it to the track. This car comes with a complete history, including an NZ Log Book, and is equipped with a range of features to ensure maximum performance and reliability.

Some of the car's notable features include Bosch Motorsport ABS, a 2020 Hot climate kit, an adjustable sliding pedal box with driver adjustable bias, and a coil cooling kit. It also comes with all Aston Martin engine maps, a Gen 2 exhaust, and a long-life rod end-bearing kit, among other things.

In addition, this car includes a full GT8R kit (54K UKP option), which features Carbon Gt3 doors, Carbon Tailgate with a bigger rear wing, and an improved front splitter. It also has a full GT4 kit with four sets of wheels, a rearview camera system, and a Vbox video data system.

To ensure a comfortable driving experience, the car comes equipped with air conditioning, a heated polycarbonate windscreen, and an electronically operated drinks system. Additionally, it includes an auxiliary light module to indicate brake locking/TC activity and a data logging expansion kit (Option 1), which features a DDU10 7" HD dash, auxiliary sensors, and a loom.

This car comes with a centre lock wheel kit with three sets of wheels and a set-up kit, which includes a full range of homologated springs (three sets) and adjustment plates. Furthermore, it includes a car cover kit (indoor, outdoor, and sun cover) by Aston Martin and an extensive spares package.

If you're interested in purchasing this car, it is located in Auckland on the North Shore and available for viewing by appointment. Full support is available if required, and the car is ready to take on any Endurance or GTNZ (Gt4) racing challenge. Don't miss out on this incredible opportunity to own a race-ready Aston Martin Vantage GT4/GT8R - contact us today to make this car yours.

Source material - Racelab

Photo Credits - GT NZ / Team

Closer to home, the locally based Prosport Racing team fielded two crews, one within the SP9 Pro-Am Class with drivers Christoph Breuer, Maxime Dumarey and Mike David-Ortmann and the being their #175 SP10 entry for Guido Dumarey and Hugo Sasse. The third was the #150 Doer Motorsport SP8T entry with a revised driver line up of Ben Dorr, Stefan Kenntemich and Rudi Adams.

At the end of another gruelling four-hour race, the #17 came home second in class out of an entry of five cars, the #175 finishing eighth in class one lap down alongside others in their eleven strong class and a successful solo SP8T run for the #150 car.

Whilst these were three good results for three crews preparing for the twenty-four-hour race later this year, the same could not be said for the #78 RaceLab AMR Vantage GT8R entry of Stephen Harrison competing in the final round of the GT New Zealand Series.

Positioned third in class going into this final triple header this weekend, Harrison needed a faultless display and rely upon misfortune for his two Championship rivals ahead of him if he were to stand any chance by the end of Sundays final race.

Unfortunately for him, a DNF in race 1 for himself and another race win for the championship leader finally removed any chance of him being in further contention.

Photo credits – Teams / GT NZ

Having scored only a P2 finish during race 2 at Hampton Downs before a class win in race 1 at Taupo, Harrison finds himself 101 points off the leading car of #22 Jono McFarland and just 51 points behind last season’s class winner #24 Nigel Cromie.

Statistically, Harrison can still win but he will need good consistent results from himself whilst also hoping for track misfortune with his closest rivals as seventeen GT4 entries are expect for this event.

Photo credits – GT New Zealand.

Having raced as a pair of RaceLab prepared AMR’s last season alongside that of Shaun Helms, Harrison was leading the class for most of the three races per four round season only to fall foul of a post-race five second penalty for a pit lane speed infringement saw his original championship win reversed to finish ultimately second in class behind the McLaren 570s of Nigel Cromie.

The bright yellow #78 car of Harrison was then also put up for sale by the Aston Martin Racing ANZ partner outfit down under at the end of the season so this news marks either a reversal of that decision or that Harrison has secured another platform to compete in this time around.

With still nearly ten weeks before the opening round of the season at Hampton Downs in mid-January, we believe it will be some time before the complete entry list is confirmed and to see if this second Aston Martin is either another GT4 or a GT3!

Photo credits – Super GT NZ / Team

A class win for Cromie in the weekends opening sprint race on Saturday was then countered by Harrison with a class win of his own in Sunday’s second sprint race leaving a ‘winner takes all’ prospect for Sunday’s one hour endurance race with now just eight points separating the drivers.

“Game on – there was a fair bit of pressure out there, looks like with the points it’s back to where we started at the start of the weekend, so it’s all on for the final race,” said Harrison.

After another thrilling multi-class race, it came to Harrison needing the racing assistance of his Race Lab teammate Allan Sergeant aboard his Ginetta to finish in between himself and Cromie for the #78 AMR driver to take P2 in class in the final race and take the GT4 Class Championship win by the slightest of margins (still yet to be confirmed by the Series).

If this Championship win is ratified by the Super GT NZ Series, it will be the second for Harrison aboard his bright yellow AMR Vantage GT8R after his class win in the New Zealand South Island Endurance Series last year.

Congratulations

Photo credits – Super GT NZ

Then for Sunday - the weather changed.

Increasingly long bouts of torrential rain and a stiffening wind made for the grid to take to the track for their formation lap had all on slicks only for the Hampton Downs racetrack to become almost flooded within minutes meaning for a late call from Race Control to allow all to pit for wets.

Unfortunately for Harrison, a reoccurring brake issue with his car forced him to retire into the pit lane without crossing the line to take the start of Sundays second half hour race. For Shaun Helms and his #77 Aston Martin, that delayed start allowed him to reach pit lane in time for the restart having been delayed on the public roads into the circuit due to the weather closing a nearby bridge.

That piece of luck was later transformed into a P3 overall finish – P2 in GT4 after being passed for position just meters ahead of the chequered flag by the #24 McLaren.

That left Sundays afternoon’s closing one hour race to see things out at the North Island racetrack as Harrison had qualified sixth overall with Helms down in twelfth. Fortunately, the rains had passed and the track had almost dried although the wind remained extremely strong.

An early and unfortunate contact with his RaceLab team Ginetta entry had Helms on the back foot as the grid cycled through the laps and into the pitstop window. With the GT3 cars electing to pit early for longer had the GT4 cars rise to the top of the timing screen again as the race approached half distance.

The previous races double race winning Porsche came to an untimely halt on track but that allowed for the pack to rebunch for a five-minute dash to the flag allowing for a charging Harrison to scythe past four cars to have a four-car battle for position going into the final lap.

Eventually finishing eighth overall and fourth in class, the nature of the entries allowed Harrison to claim another podium finish to that of Saturday with a P2 finish in class in Race 3.

The Series now has a two week break before its final round at Taupo at the end of February.

Photo credits – Teams / Series.

Last time out in Ruapuna, the #77 of Shaun Helms so nearly scored the team’s first overall race win of the season/series after rain and a favourable compulsory (BoP adjusted timed) pit stop left the black and gold Aston out in the lead with just one lap to go.

Unfortunately, a spin at the hairpin negotiating back markers put paid to that but a Class win for Helms and with Harrison coming home a close third was enough for Harrison to obtain the class lead and for Helms to move up to P4 going into the Hampton Downs event.

After the balmy weather of Highlands Park back in mid-January, Ruapuna was affected by a mix of hot sunshine and persistent rainfall and that has been the case today as early testing was again affected with heavy rainfall before drying out towards the end of the day.

Qualifying will take place tomorrow ahead of the afternoon’s half hour opener before getting straight back into in on Sunday morning with another half hour race before the hour-long race to end the day.