Just fifty-points covers the top five drivers as the 2025 Napa Auto Parts New Zealand Formula Ford Championship heads to Highlands Motorsport Park in Cromwell this weekend for their second South Island round. Supporting the New Zealand Grand Prix event, Blake Dowdall (Spectrum 015) currently leads the championship after two race victories at the opening round in Timaru a fortnight ago.
“I’ve never been to Highlands,” commented Dowdall. “It (the track) will take a massive amount of confidence and commitment as it has a mix of everything. I’ve raced it on the sim. I remember the first time I loaded it up on the sim to do a few laps and then have dinner. I think I missed dinner that night.”
With a maximum of 75-points available for the race winner and two extra for the fastest qualifier, finishing each of the three x 20 minute races will be vital for championship points.
Second in the championship is Auckland’s Dylan Grant (Van Diemen RF03) who won the opening race of the season. Grant's top five results in four races at Timaru has him 24-points behind Dowdall with Christchurch's Will Neal (Van Diemen RF94) just three-points further back.
Neale currently leads the South Island Formula Ford Championship and hasn't previously raced at Highlands.
“I’ve never driven Highlands so will figure it out quickly in testing on Thursday and go from there,” said Neale.
Fourth on the table is Australian Formula Ford rookie Lincoln Taylor (Mygale SJ08A who was the surprise talent at Timaru picking up the Napa Auto Parts Driver of the Day following a break-through win in Race 3.
Fifth overall is former national champion James Penrose (Ray GR21) who has raced and won at Highlands in January 2023. That time it was the second race of the Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship in January 2023.
Also looking forward to Highlands is Dylan Petch (Van Diemen RF93) from Rolleston. Petch will be keen to make up for lost points after his car was excluded from Races 2,3 and 4 after technical inspections post Round 1.
“Looking forward to Highlands,” said Petch. “It can be rough on the car with the kerbs where you can make a lot of gains although it is hard on the car. It will be important to be reliable.”
Fighting to break into the top five are Toby McCormack (Spectrum 015) from Auckland, Winton's Jacob Begg (Mygale SJ08A), Tai Tapu's Izaak Fletcher (Ray GR20) and Jacob Cunniffe (Mygale SJ08A) from Geraldine. Rookie Ryan Denize will sit out this round with Australia rookie Diesel Thomas taking over driving his Mygale SJ08A. It’s the first time in a single seater for Thomas who is after as much racing experience before competing in the Australian TA2 Series that starts later in the month.
This round, part of the NextGen Championship, will be broadcast live on the Stuff.co.nz/motoring/speedhub website page. Nineteen cars will take to the grid with testing on Thursday for the first time.
On the line for fastest qualifier is a $1,010.10 cash prize from the Hampton Downs NZ Racing Academy. The prize is in addition to the $51,000 travel fund made available by the Tony Quinn Foundation. NAPA Auto Parts will again offer prizes for Driver of the Day while Yokohama return to the series as the tyre of choice for Formula Ford Racing in NZ.
This summer sees a collaboration between Rodin Cars and MotorSport NZ to create a new pathway to Formula 1 with the NZFF champion and selected Formula Ford drivers invited to an all-expenses-paid, three-day testing and evaluation program with Rodin Cars in New Zealand. From there a driver who exhibits exceptional talent has the possibility to test with Rodin Motorsport in the UK with the possibility of securing a seat in one of Rodin’s F4 teams.