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Motorsport
Motorsport
Sport
Andrew van Leeuwen

Toyota Racing Series to loan cars to W Series

As part of a unique chassis share between the two open-wheeler categories, the 18 TRS cars will substitute the regular W Series cars for the undercard appearances at the Spanish and Japanese Grands Prix.

The idea is to streamline the logistics for the W Series and allow more freight to go by sea rather than air during the season.

Both TRS and W Series use the same Tatuus chassis, however the New Zealand version is powered by a Toyota engine and the other an Autotecnica Motori engine.

The Toyota powerplants will be left in the TRS cars for their W Series appearances.

The TRS cars will then return to New Zealand in time for that series organisers hope will be the first normal TRS season since the pandemic.

"We actually started talking about our collaboration in early 2020," said TRS Category & Operations Manager Nicolas Caillol.

"With the pandemic cancelling W Series’ 2020 season and reducing the scale of the 2021 season, the arrangement was put on hold until now.

“The main factors were freight logistics and costs for W Series and, with our cars not being used at that point of the year, it became apparent we would be able to help.

"We are currently in the process of having our 8AR Engine homologated by the FIA to enable our cars to compete in W Series.

“We hope very much that it is a win-win for both championships. We are all in it together as junior formula series around the world and we are delighted to be able to help. Of course, we’d love to see some of the drivers racing in W Series this year carry on their association with the FT60s and head down to NZ to compete in 2023.

“Tatiana Calderon, Michella Cerrutti, and current Toyota 86 Championship drivers Chelsea Herbert and Christina Orr-West have all competed in Castrol TRS in past seasons. As part of the collaboration, we are hoping there will be opportunities in the future for Kiwi women to compete in W Series as well."

TRS generally runs a short southern hemisphere summer series, however border closures due to the pandemic have made it impossible for international drivers to get into the country.

As a result the season was limited to an all-Kiwi New Zealand Grand Prix in 2021 and cancelled altogether in 2022.

The 2022 W Series campaign, meanwhile, kicks off in Miami in May.

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