Jones aims for WRC title
New Zealand-born Japanese national Zeal Jones could become a worldwide name in motorsport after securing a place in the factory rally programme run by Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR).
He has won one of two places given by TGR-WRT from an original pool of 100 drivers who competed in the 2025 TGR WRC Challenge Programme Generation 5 search.
Jones, pictured, is moving to Europe for 2026 to live and train. For now he will race Rally 4 cars, predominantly in Finland.
He secured support for his efforts in making the programme from TGR’s New Zealand arm in 2024 and that support remained in place for 2025 when he was also the last recipient of support from the Kiwi Driver Fund.
Jones’ success in securing a factory seat has been welcomed by TGRNZ’s motorsport manager. Nicolas Caillol. He says: “We are proud to see Zeal take the next step in his rally journey as part of the TGR-WRT team.
“His selection is a testament to his talent, determination and the spirit of Kiwi motorsport. Our mission has always been to find and nurture New Zealand’s next world champion and Zeal’s achievement is a shining example of that vision in action.
“We are honoured to have been part of Zeal’s development and proud Toyota can provide a pathway for talented drivers to reach their full potential. We have succeeded in circuit racing and have now added rallying to our portfolio.
“Everything we do here is about creating opportunities for our drivers to shine on the world stage. We believe where talent meets opportunity, success follows. Zeal’s journey inspires us all and reinforces our commitment to supporting the next generation of champions.”
It was Jones’ second attempt at making the programme and, having narrowly missed out in 2024, he’s delighted to secure a factory place for this year.
He says: “None of this would’ve been possible without the help of everyone involved in this journey so far. It is difficult to explain how grateful I am. It’s an honour to have everyone supporting me and giving me reason to keep pushing.
“This is a huge opportunity for me and a goal ticked off. We can now make the next step and I can begin a part of the journey which will hopefully develop into my goal of becoming WRC champion. I will move to Finland at the start of February and start the next chapter from there.”
In 2025, Jones competed in the Morizo Challenge Cup (MCC) where he earned a win to end the season in front of the TGR WRC Challenge Programme instructors.
“The MCC was a huge learning curve and a great base to use the skills I developed, skills the GR Yaris teaches you to perform. I lacked consistency in 2024, but the series taught me how to maximise the car and my driving consistently.”
