Sprint car up-and-comer Ayrton Hodson is in for a busy 2023 as he adds the Toyota 86 Championship to his CV.
Hodson is a familiar face at Bay Park having worked his way through the ranks from Ministocks, to Six Shooters then on to the ferocious Sprint Cars.
The youngster will be in action at Bay Park tonight with the “Bay International Superstars” event where he’ll face off against the likes of Supercars champion Shane van Gisbergen, NZ speedway icon Michael Pickens and American star Jonathan Allard.
Katikati-based Hodson is excited for the cross-category switch come 2023 but realises the change will present a challenge.
“Yep, it’s certainly something new but I’ve had my eye on it for a while and it appeals because of how competitive it is,” he explained as he got to grips with his Action Motorsport run TR86 during the recent Hampton Downs test days. “We’re under no illusions as to how tough this will be with most of the competitors having run Karts or other forms of circuit racing already.”
“Of course the Toyota 86 is a complete contrast to the oval cars I have driven and particularly the Sprint Cars. Those cars have absolutely loads of power (800bhp+) and limited grip but the Toyota has limited power and absolutely heaps of grip. That’s a new process for me and I’m really enjoying learning it.
“The Sprint Car is almost instinctive in terms of lines but there’s definitely a fast way and a slow way around the circuit in the 86. The engineering side is also very different because of course we cannot really get any track data out of the sprint car and an in-car camera is as far as you can go when it comes to collecting any information.
“Everyone has been really helpful getting me up to speed on that side of things and it’s exciting knowing exactly where you can be quicker in the 86 and whether you have the right braking points, throttle level and things like that. It’s really interesting for me and I can’t wait for the season to get underway.
“I’m really aiming to get up to speed as quickly as possible, aim for the occasional good result and have one eye on being the top Rookie but that’s a long way down the road.”
Hodson, who also represented New Zealand in age-group Ultimate Frisbee in Poland for the World Youth Ultimate Championships, will carry sponsors from his speedway backing into Toyota 86.
He’ll first be in action in Round 1 at Highlands Motorsport Park in Cromwell over the weekend of January 13-15.
