Elite Motorsport regulars Tom Emson and Tom Lebbon will fly the flag for the team in its maiden International GT Open season. The British duo steps up from GT4 to race Elite’s brand new Ferrari 296 GT3 in the eight-event series which gets underway in Portugal at the end of April.
Emson ( 22) raced in a variety of Ginetta championships (2017-22) with Elite before moving into GT4, contesting the GT4 European Series for the past two years. Lebbon (aged 19), meanwhile, joined Elite in 2019 and graduated to GB3 single-seaters after winning the 2020 Ginetta Junior title. He has raced in the GT4 European Series since 2023, winning the Driver’s title last year.
Apart from participation in various Ginetta categories which brought the Norfolk-based team numerous titles since its formation at the end of 2011, Elite Motorsport has competed in the GB3 (from 2021) and GB4 (from 2022) single-seater Championships plus the GT4 European (from 2023) and GT4 Winter (from 2024) Series, winning races in each.
Elite, who took delivery of its brand new Ferrari yesterday, will be present at an official series Winter Test in Barcelona staged in late March.
Tom Emson remarked: “I am really excited to be racing the Ferrari 296 GT3 with Elite Motorsport in the GT Open this year. I have been racing with Elite since my time in Ginetta Juniors back in the winter of 2017. So it’s an amazing journey progressing with them all the way up to their first season in the GT3 category. It is testament to the dedication and commitment of all involved. I am feeling very positive about the season ahead and can’t wait to get testing started with Tom and then the season itself.”
Tom Lebbon added: “I’m super excited to be racing Elite Motorsport’s new Ferrari 296 GT3 car in the GT Open series in 2025 – it’s the start of an awesome era for everyone involved. Elite and I have shared great success in recent years and so it made complete sense for me to make the step-up with them to GT3. It’ll be fantastic racing alongside Tom this year and I’m hoping for some strong results in the Ferrari.”
Eddie Ives, Team Owner & Manager, stated: “I am extremely pleased that my idea 12 months ago of stepping up to the ultra-competitive GT3 category is becoming a reality – especially now that we have our Ferrari 296 at our facility in Norfolk. There is no question it’s going to be a massive challenge for us a team to adapt and it’s going to take a lot of hard work from everyone involved in the programme. couldn’t be more pleased with our driver line-up, both are super-fast and talented. Taking two of our long-standing Elite drivers from Ginetta Juniors all the way into International GT3 racing, in a new Ferrari 296, shows the progression I’ve always wanted to achieve with our drivers, creating a ‘ladder’ for them and the next batch of professional racing drivers. I keep having to pinch myself that Elite Motorsport, which I only founded at the end of 2011, will this year be racing one of the most iconic brands in motorsport, the legendary Prancing Horse of Ferrari.”