Reigning Avon Tyres British GT Championship title winners Bradley Ellis and Alex Mortimer are to make a return to the series for the next round of the season at Snetterton next weekend.

Fresh from a double win at Monza in their debut together in the Matech Racing Ford GT during the second meeting of the FIA GT3 Championship, the pair will now compete on British soil together for the first time since winning the 2007 British title as the Ford GT makes it debut in the series.

Developed and prepared by the Swiss Matech GT Racing team, with technical support from Ford Racing, the Ford GT will run at Snetterton in partnership with Team RPM, with team principal Robin Mortimer taking on the role of acting team manager for the weekend.

Ellis and Mortimer's double 'A' grade driver status means that the Ford GT will be subject to a 30-second pit penalty at Snetterton, increasing the compulsory pitstop window from 45 to 75 seconds in total for each race but Ellis said the focus for the weekend would still be to get the best result possible for the car.

“It's going to be great fun at Snetterton,” he said. “It will be a privilege to showcase the awesome Ford GT on home ground. We aren't expecting to stroll out there and win, especially with the pitstop penalty, so we won't be getting in the way of anyone's championship fight. It will just be great to return to race in what is an excellent championship and to show the crowd what the Ford GT can do.”

Matech's Martin Bartek said he was pleased to have the chance to race the car in the British series and said he was confident that the two drivers would get the job done.

“We are very keen on showcasing the Matech Ford GT on British soil and we could not think of being represented any better than by last year's British GT Champions, Bradley Ellis and Alex Mortimer,” he said. “It will of course not be easy to fight for the first rankings, since Brad and Alex will have the burden of a 30-second pit penalty, which will be added to the regulatory pitstop time. Nevertheless, we remain confident and look forward to being a part of the prestigious British motorsport arena at Snetterton.”