The preliminary testing sessions of the GT New Zealand Series have already taken place as the series embarks upon its second round of their four-round season around the picturesque Hampton Downs racetrack, just south of Auckland on the North Island.

What’s better for us this time is that we now have TWO Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT8R’s to support as dirt track racer Joel Giddy and his Mach 1 Engineering team joins that of the full season Race Lab supported Stephen Harrison entry this time around.Whilst on the subject of New Zealand’s GT racing scene, it appears that we will not be seeing this former Tony Quinn owned Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 compete again any time soon as its present owner has listed it ‘for sale’ on Racecarsdirect.com.

Having been raced in last season’s North Island Endurance Series with drivers John Penny and Ronan Murphy, it appears that that relationship is now at an end and Penny is seeking to off-load his racing investment.

Full details can be found here at https://www.racecarsdirect.com/Advert/Details/134768/2019-aston-martin-vantage-gt3

 

This weekend also sees the running of the second round of New Zealand’s North Island Endurance Series from the Taupo International Motorsport Park.

Again featuring the Race Lab prepared bright yellow former Tony Quinn Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 of Pro-Am driver pairing of John Penny and Ronan Murphy, the #91 crew will be hoping that their P3 Qualifying and P5 result after their debur race with the car at round one of the series from Pukekohe earlier this month will give them a better footing ahead of this weekend’s three-hour race.

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.

 

Congratulations to the Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing team down under in New Zealand last weekend for doing what was necessary for their #52 AMR Vantage GT3 to secure the North Island Endurance Series crown for the first time.

Arriving at Pukekohe Park for the weekend’s final three-hour race, Alex Riberas and Darren Kelly were in points arrears to the #22 Audi R8 of Neil Foster and Jonny Reid but with the #22 car not competing at the final round, a race win was still essential for the team on count back if they didn’t!

 

The penultimate round of the 2021 New Zealand North Island Endurance Series from the Bruce McLaren Motorsport Part in Taupo earlier has left the #52 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing Vantage GT3 crew of Darren Kelly and Alex Riberas with an “all or nothing” scenario as the Series heads to Pukekohe’s finale in two week’s time.

After having to settle for second place behind the #22 Audi last time out at Hampton Downs, hopes were again high for today’s race as the #52 car claimed pole position, five places ahead of the #22 car going into today’s three-hour race with both cars tied for the Championship lead on 185 points each.

Also in the race again was the AMR Australasia Vantage GT8R of Steve Harrison and Shane Murland after their unopposed class B win at Hampton Downs two weeks ago.

A highly entertaining second round of New Zealand’s North Island Endurance Series left the #52 Heart of Racing Aston Martin Racing team having to be satisfied with a second-place finish at the end of today’s three hour race from the Hampton Downs circuit.

There’s no better way in starting the day with news of another Aston Martin Racing Customer/Partner team win, this time for the Heart of Racing AMR Vantage GT3 crew down under at the opening round of the New Zealand North Island Endurance Series.

With the #52 crew of Darren Kelly and Alex Riberas having missed out on pole position by the smallest of margins from Jonny Reid/Neil Foster Audi at Pukekohe Park earlier this weekend, the HoRT car came back to win an exciting opening three-hour round by a massive two lap margin from the Reid/Foster Audi despite some very changeable track conditions.

 

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. 

With Cozzolino having stepped into the green liveried AMR Vantage GT3 at the start of the much delayed Series after it became apparent that AMR WEC Factory driver Nicki Thiim would be permitted to enter and exit the country at will because of their national immigration restrictions, the domiciled Italian has quickly become the stronger driver of the pair and was much missed by the team last time out at Fuji when he was replaced with Takuro Shinohara because he was still serving his two week period of self-isolation after his return to the country from Le Mans.

 

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

#####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