Hawkes Bay racing driver Cormac Murphy is confirmed for the new Bridgestone GR86 Championship and in his second season of circuit racing is even more focussed on moving up the grid.

Murphy – currently based in Christchurch - enjoyed a first circuit racing season in the category in Toyota 86, but by his own admission had hoped for better results. He’s keen to make the top step of the podium this coming season with the new GR86 and deliver a solid championship campaign.

“I raced in the Toyota 86 Championship last season as my first season of car racing, and after not quite going as I hoped, I naturally was attracted to the Bridgestone GR86 Championship to come back for a shot at the title,” he said. “Competing and competing well is the objective this season.”

Cormac’s brother Ronan was a competitive force in Toyota 86s and dad Greg is, of course,  a New Zealand motorsport icon with four Bathurst titles to his name. Twenty year old Cormac, however, is aware of the challenge that lies ahead in the country’s most competitive one make, one model championship.

“It’s definitely going to be a very tough season from a competition standpoint, with some returning and a lot of new drivers coming in that I know will be very fast,” he added.  “However, having said that, all the cars are brand new and completely equal and that definitely removes any doubt from my mind about having a car that is capable of winning, which means I can focus solely on myself and what I’m doing in the car.

“This season I’m just wanting to do as best as I possibly can in every single session and not leave anything on the table. Any wins or podiums would be an added bonus and I’m focussing on making the most of the season as the next step.

Murphy’s racing background is on two wheels rather than four and in his first full season racing cars he improved with every weekend and ended up running consistently at the front of mid-field and occasionally in the top ten, no mean feat in a championship that has been a stepping stone for the likes of Ryan Wood, Brock Gilchrist and Marco Giltrap – all of whom are now carving out motorsport careers in Australia.

His new GR86 will be run by RaceLab as part of its multi-car effort in the championship and he has secured the support of Penny Homes, Next Windows & Doors, Repco, FXD Workwear, Ambridge Rose, Castrol New Zealand, Chemz, Moselle Panel and Paint and Hiab Services.

“I’d like to thank John Penny, Shane Helms at RaceLab, Allan Sargeant, Steve Noyer,  Warren Lewis and Peter Sturgeon as well, without their support I wouldn’t be racing this coming season,” he added. 

“I’ll definitely listen to dad a bit more this year as well. If I listened to him more the first time he explained something to me, I could probably be at an even further point than I am now!”

Cormac is currently building up testing miles in the car with track time last week at Taupo Motorsport Park and this week at Hampton Downs. The first round of the six round championship begins at the South Waikato circuit next month. There are weekends in the North and South Island before the championship concludes at Taupo under the watchful gaze of the Supercar teams and bosses.