One of the early bird series in 2022 will be the new Rodin Cars Super GT Series down in New Zealand as they kick off a four round series starting the weekend of the 15/16th January at Highlands Park.

Back in early September, it was reported that all thirty slots within the new series had been sold to prospective entrants including two Aston Martins entered by the Auckland based Space Lab team.

Today saw the second of their indicated three car entry for the series confirmed and the first of an expected two AMR Vantage GT8R entry (alongside their Ginetta G55 GT4 entry already confirmed) for local driver Shane Helms.

Having only recently acquired the GT8R, Helms is yet to drive the car but is hopeful of some track time before Christmas. Coming with a huge amount of race experience from both the North and South Island Endurance Series, Helms said that “the GT4 platform is great, they’re fast and reliable cars, and they’re cool. But also for me, it’s about racing against similar machinery that are similar in speed.”

“Sometimes you enter an endurance race and for the first couple of laps it’s all go, then you just settle into a groove and get to the end. I expect the actual racing in this series to be pretty close.”

Having seen photo’s recently on-line of both the #111 and #77 cars testing at Highlands Park, we still await confirmation of the driver line up in the yellow GT8R – the car that secured the GTB Class Championship win in the North Island Series back in June.

Photo credits – Super GT NZ, Space Lab / NIESC

 

With the available thirty entries apparently all being snapped up within twenty-four hours of going out to offer, a new multi-class GT series has been confirmed for New Zealand starting later this year that will harness the growing number of GT race cars that are now located within the country.

Featuring a heavily time penalty BoP system for the faster cars to serve during their mandatory pit stops, the new “Super Gt Series” (they may be required to change that title) will feature a four round season consisting of three races per round – two at thirty minutes and another hour-long race.

Featuring a GT4 class, a Ferrari Challenge and Porsche Classes, we understand that two Aston Martin Racing GT4’s have been entered and accepted into this series that starts at the Highland Park circuit in mid-January 2022.

 

Great news out of North America today as the Heart of Racing team announce a second Aston Martin Racing Vantage GTD effort in the remaining IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship for drivers Alex Riberas and Ian James.

Having started the 2020 season with the team at the opening round of the IMSA season at the Rolex 24 at Daytona, Riberas soon found himself literally isolated in New Zealand as the COVID pandemic spread across the world and utilising that opportunity, he and Darren Kelly established the HoRT effort that went onto secure both the New Zealand’s North and South Islands Endurance Series over this year and last.

 

Coming first in class within the New Zealand South Island Endurance Series pays well apparently and we all know that the overall winners of that Series, the Heart of Racing team of Darren Kelly and Alex Riberas raced their Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 in aid of the country’s Starship Foundation.

 

Their New Zealand GT Endurance adventure started with a race win for the Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 of Darren Kelly and Alex Riberas in September and it shall end with a Championship race winning performance earlier this morning.

Not the first 2019 specification AMR Vantage GT3 to hit the race track in the Australasia racing theatre but certainly the first to grace the best race tracks that New Zealand’s North and South Island have to offer, the Starship Foundation supporting race effort went onto to secure the South Island Series title with a trio of podium finishes.

Having competed in both the North and South Island Endurance Series down in New Zealand over the last couple of months, one last joint Series meeting at the Hampton Downs racetrack beckons the Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 of Darren Kelly and Alex Riberas. 

 

 

Starting this post with some more good news from New Zealands South Island Endurance Series as the #52 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 of Darren Kelly and Alex Riberas secured their second race win in the series after this mornings 3 hour race at Mike Pero Motorsport Park.

That win goes with their first P1 of the year down at Invercargill last month and a P3 finish at the first round of the North Island Endurance Series at Hampton Downs two weeks ago.

Originally slated to compete at the first round of the series, the #111 AMR Vantage GT8R entry from AMR Australasia made its racing debut in the southern hemisphere were drivers Aaron Slight and Shane Helms securing a P2 X2 Class podium at the end of the three hour race.

With Pacific Racing D'Station Racing's 2020 substitute driver Kei Cozzolini still serving his two week period of self isolation following his return back to Japan after his exploits at the 24 Hours of Le Mans with the CarGuy team, D'Station Racing have announced that Shinohara Takura will take his place alongside team regular Tomonobu Fujii.

No stranger to the team, Shinohara tested the teams AMR Vantage GT4 at the Fuji Speedway ahead of this years Pirelli Super Taikyu 24hr.

Weather conditions will start becoming an issue for many series still competing in Northern Europe as many would have normally been wrapped up and completed by now. Terrible circuit conditions at Paul Ricard yesterday during private testing ahead of this weekends FFSA GT4 Series have thankfully been replaced this morning with clear skies and sunshine.

 

After their pair of podium finishes on both the north and South Island of New Zealand, the #52 Heart of Racing Team are back on the south Island this weekend for the second round of the South Island Endurance Series.

Having already taken a race win and then a P3 last time out at Hampton Downs, drivers Darren Kelly and Alex Riberas will have equally new GT3 race machinery to contend with at Mike Pero Motorsport Park for this weekends three hour race.

With fans again welcome at the circuit over the weekend, for those of us further afield a limited live stream will be available via the South Island Endurance Series Facebook page.

Photo credits - HoRT

 

As their sister car gets ready for action at the next round of the IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship over at Mid-Ohio this weekend, take a look back at their racing from last weekends first round of the Golden Homes North Island Endurance Racing Series from Hampton Park.

With racers Darren Kelly and Alex Riberas again behind the wheel of the #52. Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 after their debut win at the opening round of the South Island Endurance Racing Series only the week before, early technical issues within the car hampered their efforts at Hampton Park where they eventually finished P3 overall.

In New Zealand, the #52 car runs in aid of the Starlight Foundation raising vital funds for children's medical facilities in the country.

Photo credits - HoRT

Whilst we all continue to endure some difficult times during this ongoing pandemic saga, its great to appreciate the efforts of many to bring some new cars to our race tracks this weekend.

The Heart of Racing team debuted their Aston Martin Arcing V8 Vantage GT3 in the preliminary sessions of the New Zealand South Island Endurance Series from Teretonga overnight with drivers Alex Riberas and Darren Kelly featuring prominently at the top of the timing board in those early sessions.


With both Qualifying and the three hour race starting tomorrow (Saturday) the event now holds the added bonus of spectators now being allowed into the circuit under a now familiar social distancing and restricted access format.


Over at Magney-Cours in France, the AGS Events Racing Team are also running with a four car Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT4 effort at the second round of the FFSA GT4 Series.

A late notification of another Am Class entry from the team confirmed that their reigning Am Champion Julien Lambert would finally get to return to the team having found a new co-driver in GT World Challenge Europe racer Romano Ricci.


After private testing yesterday and Free Practice today, the thirty three car entry goes into tomorrow with Qualifying and the first of two - one hour races.


Finally we saw the first sights yesterday of Newbridge Motorsports AMR Vantage GT4 entry into this weekends third round of the the GT Cup Championship from Donington Park. No stranger to an Aston Martin having raced one in last years British GT Championship see Alex Toth Jones join up with Matt Topham to run the distinctive purple and white GT4 in support of the Bluebell Wood Childrens Hospice.


Whilst we only know of certainly the Heart of Racing car being a full season entry in their North and South Island Endurance Series, all new cars and new drivers are certainly more than welcome and we thank all of them for their efforts in getting the cars onto the grid.

We wish them all for the weekend.

Photo credits - Heart Of Racing / SIEC / FFSA GT4 / ATJ

#####UPDATED#####

It turns out that this weekends opening round of New Zealands North and South Island Endurance Series from Teretonga Park may well now feature not just the new Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing V8 Vantage GT3 but also a V8 Vantage GT4 from the AMR Australasia organisation.

We have already heard about the Heart of Racing's charitable tie up with the Starship Foundation over in New Zealand with their new #52 car which will operate in a way similar to that of the teams connection with the Seattle Children's Hospital and their #23 car that races in the IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship in the United States.


Former National Drift Champion Darren Kelly joins the Heart of Racing IMSA driver Alex Riberas for the five round North and South Island Endurance Series that starts this weekend in Invercargil on the far southern tip of New Zealand's South Island.


####UPDATE###

The revised entry lists available today sadly show just the #52 Heart of Racing AMR Vantage GT3 in attendance this weekend amongst a now reduced entry of just 17 cars

Potentially joining these guys on the entry list for this three hour opening round amongst an expected grid of about 21 cars will be a 2019 AMR Vantage GT4 driven by the Managing Director of Aston Martin Racings new Australasia arm in New Zealand, Greg Brinck. He will be joined aboard the #111 car by Stephen Harrison.

Driving one of only three new AMR Vantage GT4's and the only new AMR Vantage GT3 that are available in the country, this event will mark a significant moment for the AMR factory concern having not had any recent marque activity within that arena of motorsport since George and Andrew Miedecke raced in the Australia GT and GT Asia Series with their V12 Vantage GT3 and with Jeremy Gray in the GT4 class of 2018.


Brinck and Harrison reunite in the series having raced an Audi tintop in it last year, winning the Class 2 title at the final round of the season.

Competing against the two Astons will be a mixed bag of GT and saloon cars ranging from a McLaren 650S and Audi R8 LMS to a Ford Mustang GT4 and Honda Integra.

Sadly, a now familiar upturn in COVID -19 infections in the country has this week meant that the event will now be held behind closed doors and with limited team personnel.

Photo credits - HoRT / AMR