Since winning the British GT Championship GT4 Championship back in 2015 with Jamie Chadwick, Gunn has of course grown in status from his humble silver grade GT beginnings to now claim a platinum grade seat within one of the Heart of Racing’s Aston Martin Valkyrie cars competing in both the IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship and FIA World Endurance Championship at the 24Hours of Le Mans to very much earn his AMR factory driver status.

“I’m so excited to be back in the British GT Championship for 2026 and to have the opportunity, as part of the Aston Martin Racing family, to race again with Beechdean AMR and with Andrew,” said Gunn. “From watching my dad race Beechdean Minis when I was little, to the support Andrew’s given me through my career, there’s always been a strong link between myself and the team and it’s brilliant to be back.

“Andrew’s coming into the season as the reigning Silver-Am champion and finished 2025 on such strong form, so my target is to pick up where we left off and be fighting to finish at the sharp end.”

“Having Ross back is brilliant. He’s been a regular in the garage since he was a child, and it’s been awesome to watch his career go from strength to strength since he first raced with Beechdean AMR in 2015. I’m looking forward to the coming season more than I have done for a long time” added Howard.

This news is now the fifth Aston Martin Racing powered team to commit to the new British GT Championship season after both GBR Stratton Motorsport and Full Send Racing each confirmed a dual AMR Vantage GT4 car entry for the new season.

Official track action will begin for all entries at the Media Day test at Silverstone at the end of March before revisiting the Northamptonshire circuit for the first round of the new season and its Silverstone 500 blue ribband event just a month later.

2026 is looking rather healthy already!

“Aston Martin entered Hypercar in 2025 to compete on the world stage in endurance racing and at the highest level of competition,’ said Adam Carter, Aston Martin Head of Endurance Motorsport. “In WEC, and the IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship in North America, we have found that level of competition to be extremely high, full of great talent with some well-established and deservedly respected programmes to race against.

“This is a worthy testament to the sanctioning bodies, the ACO, FIA and IMSA, who jointly created a set of regulations to allow cars of different architectures to compete against each other on the world stage. They took on a noble challenge and it is one they should be complimented on achieving.”

Valkyrie’s sporting momentum continues to grow after a highly promising September in which it fought for a podium position in the 6 Hours of Fuji (JPN) before recording its best WEC finish with fifth position overall. This, after the unique 6.5 litre V12-powered British hypercar ran as high as fourth position in the rain-affected race in Austin, earlier in the same month. Then in the IMSA finale – the 10-hour Motul Petit Le Mans at Road Atlanta – in mid-October, Valkyrie clinched its first podium in global competition, coming home within five seconds of a famous maiden victory.

This all follows an encouraging 24 Hours of Le Mans (in June) where both Valkyrie hypercars completed their maiden twice-around-the-clock event without issue to finish 12th and 14th, and the Aston Martin THOR Team registered the cars’ – and Aston Martin’s – first Manufacturers’ World Championship points in the Hypercar class.

The three works drivers responsible for the podium in Atlanta, Roman De Angelis, Ross Gunn and Alex Riberas, all return to action in Bahrain as the eight-hour race length requires that each car is shared by three racers.

Gunn will re-join his British compatriots Harry Tincknell and Tom Gamble in the #007 Valkyrie, having shared the car with them in Qatar and again at Le Mans. The same goes for De Angelis, who will drive the #009 entry alongside Riberas and three-time WEC GT champion Marco Sørensen.

After the event, the 2024 Spa 24 Hours winner and Aston Martin works driver Mattia Drudi will get his first chance to sample WEC-specification Hypercar class machinery when he drives the Aston Martin THOR Team Valkyrie in the official Rookie Test in Bahrain on Sunday 9 November – the day after the 2025 season concludes.

Drudi, who shares the #27 Aston Martin Vantage GT3 with The Heart of Racing Team Principal Ian James and Zacharie Robichon, has been given the opportunity after consistently delivering world-class performances in LMGT3; notably his breathtaking class pole position for this year’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

“Of course, I’m super excited to drive a car that is already iconic in the Hypercar Class, even though it is only its first season racing in WEC,” said Drudi. “I’ve been closely following the progress of Valkyrie throughout the championship and it was fantastic to see it record a strong result at Fuji.

“It will be interesting for me to drive straight after a race weekend so I can compare my data with what’s been collected during the event. It will also be a challenge to get used to a car that will be completely new for me. I must thank The Heart of Racing team for giving me the chance to drive the Valkyrie in the Rookie Test. It will be the perfect way to end my first WEC season with Aston Martin.”

James added: “Mattia thoroughly deserves this opportunity. Having raced alongside him all season, I’ve been able to witness his exceptional talent and I’m really interested to see what he makes of Valkyrie.”

Meanwhile, Aston Martin’s most successful sportscar of all time, Vantage, also heads into the final round of the FIA World Endurance Championship – the Bapco Energies 8 Hours of Bahrain – hunting for a victorious conclusion to an exciting season within its LMGT3 class.

Through five iterations spanning 13 seasons Vantage has claimed 53 GT class victories – the second highest of any manufacturer. Responsible for 11 world championship titles, and five 24 Hours of Le Mans class wins in the WEC era, Vantage has also claimed 68 class pole positions. The most successful GTE Am (2012-2022) car of all-time, Vantage recorded 33 wins and 29 pole positions before the class was retired to make way for the current LMGT3 category, which embarks on its 16th race this weekend.

Vantage’s record at Bahrain is also exceptional with seven class victories derived from 13 podium appearances as well as nine class pole positions.

Again, Aston Martin partner team The Heart of Racing heads into the Bahrain finale fighting for a place in the top three of the FIA Endurance Trophy for LMGT3 Drivers’ and Teams’ standings; building on fifth place in its first full WEC season in 2024. Currently fifth in the championship again this season, THOR has amassed 63 points - 18 behind third place with 38 points available for victory and another one for pole position. Team principal Ian James will race the #27 Vantage alongside Zach Robichon and AMR works driver Mattia Drudi.

Racing Spirit of Léman once again calls upon Anthony McIntosh, who starred on his WEC debut at July’s 6 Hours of Sao Paulo. With the American driving alongside Eduardo Barrichello and Aston Martin works driver Valentin Hasse Clot in the #10 Vantage GT3, the trio achieved the team’s first WEC podium finish in LMGT3.

The Heart of Racing’s GT World Challenge America podium finisher Gray Newell will be given the chance to experience WEC’s LMGT3 class for the first time when he makes his series debut in the Rookie Test, on Sunday, following the season finale in Bahrain.

The 28-year-old American has earned the opportunity after an impressive debut season in the Aston Martin Vantage GT3, where he finished on the GT World Challenge America Pro-Am podium three times alongside works driver Darren Turner in 2025.

“After a successful first year with the Vantage GT3 it’s a massive honour for me to be selected for the Rookie Test in Bahrain,” said Newell. “The Heart of Racing has done an incredible job of creating a vertical pipeline for its drivers, moving everyone forward and upwards as a team. I look forward to getting a feel for the Vantage GT3 in WEC trim as well as my first time on track with hypercar traffic. I could not ask for a more exciting way to end the 2025 season.”

Team Principal Ian James added: “Gray’s performances in 2025 have been outstanding. Since he joined THOR in 2021, he’s improved every season and is now blossoming into a driver that can look to achieve a great deal in endurance racing in the future. Giving him the chance to drive in the WEC team, in an LMGT3-spec Vantage, will be a hugely valuable experience for his continued development and is a just reward for a very strong season.”

Source material and photo credits – Aston Martin

WEC rookie McIntosh, who finished second in the Silver Am class of the CrowdStrike 24 Hours of Spa last month, started the race and led initially before holding his own in second place until the first pitstops. Emerging sixth for the second part of his double stint, he stayed in contention near the front of the pack until a small mistake dropped the car out of the top ten before the American handed the car over to Barrichello.

The 23-year-old then put on an outstanding double-stint, racing the car back into the fight for the podium. Another strong double-stint from Hasse Clot followed, meaning that Barrichello found himself in fifth in the final hour of the race. Once again, he went on the attack, passing two cars in the final 15 minutes and claiming third position with just three laps to go.

“It was crazy,” said Barrichello. “I had to put all my faith in the engineers who were telling me how hard to push the tyres at the end of the race because I couldn’t drive them too hard or I would have gone to zero very quickly. But we were able to manage it and thankfully everything worked out and we had enough in the car to take third position at the end.

“It’s an amazing feeling to have finished on the podium in my home race, and it was so incredible to experience that special reception from the fans. I’m not sure I deserved it, but I enjoyed it anyway! It is an honour to race an Aston Martin here at Interlagos, and it has been such an incredible weekend – one of the best of my life.”

The podium marked the first for all three drivers, as well as the best result for RSL in only its fifth WEC start. In the five occasions that Interlagos has appeared on the WEC schedule since 2012, Vantage has now taken three class wins and five further podiums. This was the second time the latest iteration of the Vantage GT3, which was introduced in 2024, has finished on the podium. The Heart of Racing (THOR) finished second in last year’s event. RSL’s pole position was also the second consecutive one for Vantage in WEC, with THOR having claimed the accolade in June’s 24 Hours of Le Mans.

Aston Martin Head of Endurance Motorsport Adam Carter said: “We congratulate Racing Spirit of Léman on an outstanding performance throughout the weekend. The team maximised the potential of Vantage in qualifying at Interlagos and then delivered with an exceptional podium in the race. Eduardo Barrichello’s performance was highly encouraging in only his fifth WEC start, while Ian McIntosh enjoyed an excellent debut and Valentin Hasse Clot, just like the team, thoroughly enjoyed this podium. The result once again emphasises the versality and competitiveness of Vantage GT3, key components to success in customer racing. The Heart of Racing ran strongly once again in IMSA at CTMP, and, once again is in contention for the title as we move into the final third of the season.”

WEC now takes a summer break before reconvening at the Circuit of the Americas (COTA) for 6-hour Lone Star Le Mans on 5-7 September. 

Source material - AMR

For the only GTP entry within the field being non-Hybrid, this circuit in theory should have been the worst of all situations for the V12 normally aspirated Aston Martin powered car but in fact, it was the reverse with the car being more than capable of maintaining position with their hybrid-based peers in race form.

Roman De Angelis qualified the #23 car earlier on Friday where at the halfway stage he was running as high as midway within the eleven-car entry before inevitably being pushed back to the bottom by the end of session.

Also starting the hundred-minute sprint race, De Angelis made up early ground before the first of what was only to be two FCY periods during the race (both for debris on track) slowed the proceedings.

Like any street circuit, catching is one thing whilst passing is something completely different and whilst a few others in both GTP and GTD Pro elected to risk significant damage with a last-minute muscle their way through approach, De Angelis ran his short stint before pitting for full service and driver change to Ross Gunn after just thirty minutes on the clock.

Getting up to P9 in class, the race was then interrupted with its second but surprisingly quick FCY despite the class split leaving just under half an hour top the end. Pushing the #40 Wayne Taylor Racing GTP hard, Gunn’s reward finally came after they missed their braking point and had to take to the escape road allowing the #23 car to move up to eighth in class.

Then circulating thirteen seconds behind P7 but over thirty seconds in front of P9, Gunn comfortably brought the #23 car home for its best finish of the IMSA season to date as he and the team now move across to Watkins Glen for some more testing before flying back to France for the Le Mans 24hour Test Day this Sunday.

Photo credits – Team / AMR / social media / Michelin Tyre

“The Aston Martin Racing Driver Academy is now well proven and established, but it remains unique in its intense focus on driver development and is vital for assessing talent within our partner network. Such is the standard of the programme, former winners such as Ross Gunn, Roman De Angelis and Valentin Hasse Clot all play integral roles in our works driver roster, and we are proud to watch the progress they continue to make year on year” said Adam Carter, Head of Aston Martin Endurance.

2025 ASTON MARTIN RACING DRIVER ACADEMY CANDIDATES


Nicolas Baert (BEL)
Comtoyou Racing
GT World Europe
GT3


Eduardo Barrichello (BRA)
Racing Spirit of Léman
FIA WEC
GT3

Erwan Bastard (FRA)
Racing Spirit of Léman
European Le Mans
GT3

Archie Clark (GBR)
Feathers Motorsport
GT Cup
GT4

Baudouin Detout (FRA)
Racing Spirit of Léman
GT4 European Series
GT4

Niklas Eker Abrahamsen (NOR)
Walkenhorst Motorsport
NLS GT4
GT4

Roberto Faria (BRA)
Mirage Racing
GT4 European Series
GT4

Declan Fraser (AUS)
Volante Rosso
GT World Australia
GT3

Max Hewitt (USA)
Van der Steur Racing
GT4 America
GT4

David Kullmann (CHE)
Racing Spirit of Léman
GT4 European Series
GT4

Mathieu Martins (FRA)
Racar Motorsport
Iberian GT4
GT4

Henrique Oliveira (POR)
Racar Motorsport
Iberian GT4
GT4

Will Orton (GBR)
Racing Spirit of Léman
GT4 European Series
GT4

Kobe Pauwels (BEL)
Comtoyou Racing
GT World Europe
GT3

Antoine Potty (BEL)
Comtoyou Racing
GT World Europe
GT3

Ruben del Sarte (FRA)
Mirage Racing
GT4 European Series
GT4

Luca Savu (ROM)
Racar Motorsport
Iberian GT4
GT4

Clément Seyler (LUX)
Racing Spirit of Léman
GT4 European Series
GT4

Jodie Sloss (GBR)
Mirage Racing
FFSA GT4
GT4

Oliver Söderström (SWE)
Walkenhorst Motorsport
GT World Europe
GT3

Rory van der Steur (USA)
Van der Steur Racing
IMSA
GT3

Matteo Villagomez (VEN)
Walkenhorst Motorsport
GT World Europe
GT3

Jesse Webb (CAN)
JMF Motorsport
GT4 America
GT4

Having skipped the Daytona 24 in favour of additional test and development time ahead of the cars debut in Qatar, that round saw the #009 car of Marco Sorensen, Alex Riberas and Roman De Angelis take eventually take the chequered flag whilst their #007 car of Harry Tincknell, Tom Gamble and Ross Gunn was blighted by the inevitable first round technical issues.

With Qatar being an extended ten-hour affair, this six-hour round from Imola will take both the #007 and #009 cars down to just two drivers as the two IMSA based GTP drivers of De Angelis and Gunn step aside this time having raced their IMSA equivalent together last weekend in the first IMSA sprint race around the street circuit of Long Beach, California to gain the cars best finish to date. 

Since Qatar, the Valkyrie has raced at both the 12Hours of Sebring and at Long Beach in addition to a twenty-four-hour test in Florida after the Sebring event with the car now also benefitting from improved Balance of Performance parameters ahead of this weekend’s event.

Joining them on track will also be the two Aston Martin Racing Vantage LMGT3’s from both the Heart of Racing and Spirit of Leman Partner team stables as both the #27 and #10 crews look to quickly improve upon their mid class finishes from Qatar.

The entry list shows no changes within either car as Ian James returns to his #27 car alongside Zacharie Robichon and Mattia Drudi who both enjoyed a positive WEC racing debut togther to bring the familiar blue liveried Vantage LMGT3 home P6 in class.

That is the same for the #10 Racing Spirit of Leman entry for both Derek DeBoer and Eduardo Barrichello who also debuted within the championship alongside AMR factory driver Valentin Hasse-Clot from their step up from the GT3 based European Le Mans Series for a P9 result from Losail.

Excluding success handicaps, the Vantage LMGT3 platform also benefits from an enhanced BoP with power benefits available below 200kph plus reduced base weight and additional energy being available to the drivers.

Free Practice around the 4.9km circuit will begin on Friday before the final Free Practice and Qualifying later on Saturday with a green flag wave off to the race at 13:00hrs local on Sunday.

Photo credits – Teams / Series / social media

Aston Martin The Heart of Racing Team and its drivers Ross Gunn – an IMSA GTD Pro class winner at Long Beach – and Roman De Angelis, the 2022 IMSA GTD champion, made gains in Friday practice and then achieved a best-ever 11th place in qualifying, just a tenth of a second shy of the top 10, on what was only Valkyrie’s third start and its second in IMSA’s GTP division, but a faultless and reliable run through the 100-minute race (the shortest on the IMSA calendar) was rewarded with an eighth-place finish.

The first ‘Le Mans Hypercar’ to be produced by Aston Martin, Valkyrie is the only car in IMSA’s premier GTP category derived from a road-legal hypercar. The British contender is also the first LMH car of any kind to compete in IMSA, and the only one contesting both IMSA and the FIA World Endurance Championship simultaneously, having made its debut in the Qatar 1812km in February.

Valkyrie’s US debut season, masterminded by the works Aston Martin THOR team at Sebring, has already produced an encouraging pair of top-10 finishes on circuits recognised as some of the world’s most demanding.

Source material – Aston Martin