Antares Au

Antares Au is a Hong Kong racing driver. He is the Asian Le Mans Series GT champion and the 2024 Intercontinental GT Challenge Independent Cup champion.

Business career

Au is a graduate of Columbia University and a financial investor by training. He is a founding member of, a pan-Asian private credit investor and subsidiary of Los-Angeles based alternative asset manager Ares Management, and headed its investment activities in Greater China since its establishment in 2009. He retired from finance in 2023 to pursue endurance racing.

Racing career

Porsche Carrera Cup beginnings

Au began his racing career by competing Porsche Carrera Cup Asia in 2017. His debut in GT3 competition came in 2019, when he finished fourth in-class at the Dubai 24 Hours with Hong Kong drivers Frank Yu, Jonathan Hui and Kevin Tse.

Early GT3 success (2021–2022)

Au's first successes in GT3 started in 2021, when he won the inaugural 6 Hours of Abu Dhabi with co-driver Chris Froggatt. Au also made his full-season debut in the GT class of Asian Le Mans, racing for Herberth Motorsport alongside Porsche factory driver Klaus Bachler. He would continue to race for Herberth that same year at the 24 Hours of Spa with co-drivers Robert Renauer and Alfred Renauer.
In 2022, Au returned to Asian Le Mans and Herberth Motorsport, teaming up with Bachler for the second year running and with the addition of Ye Yifei. The trio finished second in the season finale at Yas Marina Circuit. Au also returned to the 24 Hours of Spa, joining Jaxon Evans, Dylan Pereira and Kevin Tse at Herberth Motorsport.

Notable wins in major endurance races (2023–present)

Au began to achieve more prominent results in 2023, when he won the Spa round of the International GT Open championship co-driving with Matteo Cairoli in Pro-Am class. Au returned to the top step of the podium at the 2023 24 Hours of Spa, when he started from overall pole position and won the Bronze class with Cairoli, Tim Heinemann and Jannes Fittje, becoming the first driver from Hong Kong to win this historic race. Later the same year, Au debuted at the 2023 Indianapolis 8 Hours with Porsche factory driver Laurin Heinrich and Alfred Renauer from pole position and finished second in Pro-Am classs. In the last race of 2023, he finished third in-class at the Gulf 12 Hours with Cairoli and Heinemann.
In 2024, Au debuted at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring with Lionspeed GP, winning the SP9 Pro-Am class with Patric Niederhauser, Indy Dontje and Patrick Kolb, becoming the first driver from Hong Kong to win the GT category at Nurburgring 24H. Later in the Intercontinental GT Challenge series, Au returned to the Indianapolis 8 Hour with Niederhauser and Loek Hartog, starting again from overall pole position and winning the Pro-Am class, securing the IGTC Independent Cup Championship title for 2024.
In December, Au returned to the Asian Le Mans Series, joining Manthey Racing alongside Joel Sturm and Klaus Bachler. In the first round at Sepang, the trio retired in race one but rebounded in race two to take their first podium by finishing in second. In early 2025, the team ran into troubles in the Dubai double-header, but saw their fortunes turn around at Yas Marina, scoring second in race one and winning the final race, thus crowning Au and his co-drivers 2024–2025 season champions and earning them an invite to the 2025 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he finished sixth on debut.
For the rest of 2025, Au joined Rutronik Racing to race in GT World Challenge Europe Endurance Cup, in which he scored Bronze class wins at Monza and Barcelona alongside Loek Hartog to secure runner-up honors in class. In Asia, Au won the Suzuka 1000km with Richard Lietz and Hartog in the Bronze class, finishing fourth overall, three tenths off the overall podium. Elsewhere, Au finished second in-class at the 24 Hours of Dubai and the Indianapolis 8 Hour.
The following year, Au joined Garage 59 to make his debut in the LMGT3 class of the FIA World Endurance Championship alongside Marvin Kirchhöfer and Tom Fleming.