After months of planning and preparation, Zagame Autosport has officially confirmed its entry in GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS, with the team set to compete at GT Festival Hampton Downs.
As previously announced, the Victorian squad will campaign its brand-new Ferrari 296 GT3, with dual TCR Australia Series winner Josh Buchan and Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Australasia driver Cameron Campbell confirmed to share driving duties.
The visit to Hampton Downs, part of the category’s 2025 season finale, will serve as a valuable test weekend for the team as they prepare to mount a full Pro-Am title challenge in 2026.
While Hampton Downs marks Zagame Autosport’s official debut in Australia’s premier GT racing category, the team is no stranger to SRO Motorsports Australia, having contested multiple Monochrome GT4 Australia rounds over the past two years.
With Buchan at the helm of Zagame Autosport’s McLaren Artura GT4 alongside Am driver Jason Yu during its successful Monochrome GT4 Australia campaign, the New South Welshman was a natural choice to join Campbell in the Ferrari for the team’s step up into GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS, bringing valuable familiarity and experience.
Buchan is already a familiar name to Australian motorsport fans, having guided Zagame Autosport to multiple class victories and podiums in Monochrome GT4 Australia, while also claiming back-to-back TCR Australia titles in 2023 and 2024.
As for Campbell, while he doesn’t yet boast the same depth of motorsport experience as his teammate, his entry into the category forms part of a progression that has been building over the past several years.
Starting out with old BMWs at local track days, Campbell went on to earn his racing licence and complete a series of Ferrari driver courses. His natural talent soon caught the eye of Ferrari representatives, who encouraged him to channel his skills into competitive racing.
From there, Campbell made his official debut into Ferrari Challenge Trofeo Pirelli Australasia this year, finishing third in the Trofeo Pirelli class standings after scoring seven podiums across the five-round season.
Zagame Autosport, Josh Buchan and Cameron Campbell will make their GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS debuts at GT Festival Hampton Downs on 31 October – 2 November.
Purchase tickets to the 2025 season finale at Hampton Downs via speedseries.com.au/tickets.
QUOTES
Josh Buchan
Zagame Autosport driver
“I’m very excited to finally get the chance to make my GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS debut – it’s been a long time in the making, as the plan has always been to get myself into a GT car,” Buchan said.
“With my TCR journey finishing at the end of this year, this opportunity has come at the perfect time. I get to step into the category and join an amazing team with some really good people who are super motivated – I can’t wait.
“Although Cameron is relatively new to the game, he’s an awesome guy and a super-talented Am driver with a really strong work ethic. For someone who hasn’t raced much before, he’s extremely motivated to pull his weight, and the least I can do is reciprocate that.
“We’re really going there to find out what we’re lacking and what we’re doing well so we can prepare properly for next year. That said, both Cam and I will give it our best and hopefully come away with some decent results.
“All in all, Hampton Downs is a fantastic opportunity for us to get behind the Ferrari, give it a proper shakedown before next season, and we’re super excited about what lies ahead.”
Cameron Campbell
Zagame Autosport driver
“I’ve always loved motorsport, but I never had a licence or even sat in a race car. Eventually, I got into an old BMW to get some track time and work towards my licence. When I took part in the Ferrari programs, it was there – during one of their racing courses – that I was told I was good enough to actually do something with it,” Campbell said.
“It’s been a steep learning curve – not for the faint-hearted – and a huge undertaking. These cars are incredibly serious machines, and I didn’t expect the level to be quite this high. But with the support of Josh, the team, and everyone around the program, I’ve been able to make it happen.
“To be honest, I am absolutely terrified but the adrenaline is incredible. More than anything, I don’t want to let the team down and I want to put my best foot forward – especially for Josh.
“During the Ferrari Challenge program, I feel I made the majority of the mistakes I needed to make – including crashing into the wall on an out lap and spinning while leading. Hopefully those are out of my system now, because I had to make them in order to learn.
“Looking at the GT World Challenge Australia field, it’s stacked with talent. Just being on the grid is humbling, but to be in the fight – even mid-pack – would be a tremendous outcome.
“There’s always ambition to succeed. We’re not here just to make up the numbers. Running this last round at Hampton Downs allows us to prepare properly, make mistakes without a championship on the line, and put ourselves in the best position for next season.”
Rod Wilson
Zagame Autosport Team Manager
“The first part of the plan was to give Cam a season in Ferrari Challenge so he could learn the circuits and get race-fit. The second part is stepping into GT3 and being ready for 2026,” Wilson said.
“GT Festival Hampton Downs will essentially serve as a shakedown for us as it puts us in a real-world situation where we can understand what we need in terms of tooling, infrastructure, people, and engineering support.
“Hampton Downs will tick a lot of boxes for Cam. It will be the first race he’s done with pit stops, so we wanted to use this last round to learn as much as we can and prepare for a full-season campaign next year.
“Motorsport isn’t usually the kind of sport where you get to plan everything in detail – things just evolve. That’s why it’s so good to work with someone like Cam, who approaches it with a business mindset. We set out a long-term plan, and we’re really just executing it step by step.
“You can test all you like, but at some point you need to throw yourself into real-life race situations. That’s exactly what we’re doing with him, and it’s particularly satisfying to see it come together.”