Castrol Toyota Racing Series: The wildcard entries

Five VIP wildcards have now been confirmed to line up alongside the rising race stars for January's New Zealand Grand Prix
 

Shane van Gisbergen
Born 9 May, 1989. 31 years old

TRS history: rising from karting and open-wheeler ‘feeder’ categories, van Gisbergen was second in the championship in the 2006-2007, driving as part of a two car International Motorsport team with Aucklander Daniel Gaunt. He only raced that season, stepping directly out of the Toyotas and into his first V8 Supercar Series, racing with Team Kiwi. He then jumped up to a competitive drive with the Stone Brothers team in 2008 and has been a leading name in the Australian series ever since. This will be his second New Zealand Grand Prix.
“The New Zealand Grand Prix carries so much history. Hampton Downs is an awesome venue for it and will provide great racing.
“Adapting to driving the cars will take a bit of getting used to, it is going to be a lot of fun and I will give it my best. It will be amazing to race alongside Kenny Smith again. That guy is an absolute legend, and it will be neat to say I was there for his 50th Grand Prix.”


Daniel Gaunt
Born 27 February 1985, 35 years old

A two-time Toyota Racing Series winner, Gaunt is one of the finest drivers TRS has produced in its 16 year history.
He won the NZ Grand Prix in 2007 when it was held at Teretonga near Invercargill, racing from pole and setting fastest lap. The following year (2008) the GP shifted north to Manfeild, and in 2009 Gaunt become a dual GP winner, winning from pole ahead of Earl Bamber, who set fastest lap.
Gaunt now works as a driving instructor with premium auto brands and races endurance events in New Zealand and overseas.
“It’s great to see the Grand Prix come to Hampton Downs which is a true driver’s circuit. I’m looking forward to driving a modern open wheeler race car here and to using the full international circuit for the first time.”


Ken Smith
Born 11 August 1941, 79 years old

Kiwi motor racing legend Kenny Smith is a three-time winner of the New Zealand Grand Prix and lines up for his 50th time in our premier race.Smith was the first confirmed entry into the 2021 New Zealand Grand Prix.
“It is exciting. I don’t do things for numbers but people relate to that number. I just love motor racing. It was like when I got to 30 years of driving and I thought I would carry on and get to 35 and then when I got there I thought I would get to 40. I just keep going because of a love of the sport.”


Chris van der Drift
Born 8 March 1986, 34 years old

Single seater and GT racer Chris van der Drift  lines up for the 66th running of the New Zealand Grand Prix at Hampton Downs in January as a potential winner.
The entry will be underpinned by the Tasman Motorsports Group team of former Indy Lights and CART team owners Steve and Christine Horne, and the car is in a 'tribute' colour scheme that recognises the linkage.
Van der Drift has an impressive international racing resume with three European championships to his name - in Formula BMW, Formula Renault 2.0 and International Formula Masters as well as race starts in categories such as A1GP, Superleague Formula and World Series by Renault. He is also a three-time Porsche Carrera Cup Asia champion and won the most recent Lamborghini Super Trofeo Championship.


Greg Murphy
Born 23 August 1972, 48 years old

Kiwi motorsport legend and television personality Greg Murphy will step back into the cockpit for the 2021 New Zealand Grand Prix, 27 years after winning it.
Murphy, a four-time Bathurst winner, took the chequered flag and etched his name onto the famous New Zealand Grand Prix trophy as a 21-year-old before going on to a successful V8 Supercars career.
He followed in the footsteps of legendary world-renowned Formula 1 drivers like Sir Stirling Moss, Sir Jack Brabham and Sir Jackie Stewart. Kiwi icons Bruce McLaren and Chris Amon also featured as winners of the race before Murphy’s 1994 victory helped launch his international career.
“It was obviously the most significant thing that I had achieved in my career,” said Murphy. “I had won a few things but nothing that really announced myself as someone that could be a professional race car driver.
“The big thing – I can recall the feeling around it – is that it was like I had put a stake in the ground. It meant a lot. It was a progression and a key contributor with where I went next – at that point it was still a hobby I did as an amateur but that allowed me to chase a career.”

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