Gearing up for GR86

Gazoo Racing NZ has revealed details of its 2026/27 Bridgestone GR86 Championship and the five-round season looks set to be highly competitive and bristling with top Kiwi talent.

Five championship weekends will be bookmarked with a sixth non-championship round supporting Supercars. That date and venue is to be confirmed but, before that, the best young drivers can look forward to a high-profile summer.

It will start at Taupo from November 13-15 before the usual break for Christmas and then resume at Hampton Downs International circuit from January 8-10.

Teretonga from January 22-24 and Highlands in Cromwell the following week – for the New Zealand Grand Prix weekend – sees the GR86 providing the principal support act for three rounds of the Castrol Toyota FR Oceania Trophy.

The big final weekend will be played out around the classic Hampton Downs National layout from February 25-28, which has been the scene of countless memorable battles over the years.

Registrations are now open for the third season using the GR86 model, which in turn is season 14 for the Toyota 86-based series as New Zealand’s premier tin-top racing class.

The main championship and the Supercars weekend will have separate prize pools, but drivers can look forward to career-changing opportunities if they do well.

“The championship has produced more than its fair share of outstanding talent,” says category manager Amanda Kibble. “That list of talent includes the likes of rising Supercars star and GR ambassador Ryan Wood and drivers of the calibre of Callum Hedge, Brock Gilchrist, Marco Giltrap, Ryan Yardley and many others.

“As ever we are planning a major prize pool that will provide opportunities for the best of the drivers competing to further their careers.”

The championship will once again run as part of the flagship NextGen Championship Series, which features all the country’s top motorsport categories.