24 Hours of Le Mans winning Ferrari team AF Corse will enter the Avon Tyres British GT Championship next season, confirming drivers Aaron Scott and John Dhillon as driver in the first of an intended two Ferrari 458 GT3 in the championship.
Dhillon and Scott, his pro-driver teammate, secured the GT3B class championship on 2011, before moving up to latest generation GT3 spec Ferrari for the 2012 campaign with Scuderia Vittoria, scoring a pair of top six finishes.
The pair reached a deal with the team after a successful test at the Vallelunga circuit.
“The deal came together in the last three weeks and the conversations with the team have been very straightforward,” said Scott. “The plan is to focus on British GT and within the confines of budget do more testing throughout the year; we’ve kicked this off already with a two-day test at Vallelunga last week which went really well. I know John benefited from that test as his times came down progressively and we both felt settled in tour surroundings by the start of the second day.”
“For me to work with AF Corse is a superb opportunity,” added Dhillon. “This year I learnt a lot about the 458 and feel I improved, but with the resource of AF supporting us I think there are more ways for me to progress. I know I need to get as close to Aaron’s lap time as possible for us to improve as a pairing, so that is my aim with the additional testing. The team have shown they work well with drivers of all abilities, so I feel both Aaron and I will get the support we need next year in British GT.”
In 2012 AF Corse won the LMGTE Pro categories at both the 24 Hours of Le Mans and in the FIA World Endurance Championship, as well as the Pro-Am Cup class of the Blancpain Endurance Series in GT3 machinery.
“The British GT Championship is one of the new 2013 plans for AF Corse,” said Amato Ferrari, AF Corse team principal. “We are happy to race in this championship organized by SRO; AF Corse has run from 2006 in its championships. The Avon Tyres British GT Championship is a success in European motorsport and we are glad to race with John Dhillon and Aaron Scott. We are also looking to set-up a second AF Corse Ferrari 458 Italia GT3 for the upcoming British GT season”.
No drivers have been named for a potential second car for the team.
