Rookie Seb Eskandari-Marandi made a sensational start to his single-seater career last weekend at the opening round of the 2026 New Zealand Formula Ford Championship supported by Ford.
The Australian won the first two races and heads to Timaru International Raceway this weekend with an 18-point gap to second-placed Dylan Petch, with Southland’s Jacob Begg third equal with Campbell Owens. The fine weather forecast for this round will be in stark contrast to last weekend’s very wet racing in Invercargill.
“The competition is tough, and I think Marco (Manson), Dylan (Petch) and Campbell (Owens) will be hard to beat,” said Eskandari-Marandi.
Campbell Owens and Jacob Begg are just four points ahead of Auckland’s Marco Manson, who has this season been a standout performer in the South Island Formula Ford Championship (SIFF).
Coming off a less-than-ideal meeting in the race at Teretonga, Manson heads to Timaru fifth overall, knowing he will be very competitive at the South Canterbury circuit.
“It’s good to have the win in the third race (at Invercargill),” said Manson.
“I’ll probably be a bit behind, but it’s good to get the points. It can only go better from here.”
Begg comes off one of his best weekends, while Owens is proving very quick on circuits he has not raced at.
“I’m looking forward to Timaru,” commented Owens.
“I’m very happy with the car, thanks to Dad and Phil.”
Also expected in the mix are Izaak Fletcher, Maxim Kirwan, Mathew Basso, William Beck and Toby Musico, such was the close racing and battles in the wet last weekend.
While Musico suffered two retirements in Invercargill, his drive through the field to third in the final feature race showed that he will be competitive throughout the championship. Unfortunately for Toby McCormack, his nightmare weekend with technical issues leaves him at the bottom of the leaderboard.
Having made her Formula Ford debut in the North Island series, Olivia Lorenzen has made the jump to the national competition and will be on the grid this weekend.
Friday sees practice plus a 20-minute qualifying session with a $1,010.10 Hampton Downs NZ Racing Academy cash prize for pole position. Saturday’s program includes two ten-lap races and two 12-lap races on Sunday.
Rodin Cars is supporting the championship by giving the overall winner of the Championship, plus a wildcard, a three-day free test at their facility at Mt Lyford, with the opportunity for further testing in a Formula 4 car in the UK as part of their Formula Ford to F1 programme.
The championship continues to be supported by Yokohama, the tyre of choice for Formula Ford Racing in NZ. The Tony Quinn Foundation provides a $60,000.00 Travel Fund to be shared between each entrant who competes in all four rounds of the championship. Included in this is the Hampton Downs NZ Racing Academy Pole Award.
The Foundation will also, for the first time, offer $10,000 in cash to the overall champion.
The final two rounds take place in the North Island with four races at Hampton Downs Motorsport Park, which includes the Ron Frost Trophy race, 14-15 March and four races at the Taupo International Raceway, which includes the Morrie Smith Memorial Trophy race, 27-29 March 2026.
NAPA NZ Formula Ford Championship Points after 1/4 rounds:
- Sebastian Eskandari-Marandi 199
- Dylan Petch 181
- Jacob Begg 166
- Campbell Owens 166
- Marco Manson 162
- Izaak Fletcher 142
- Mathew Basso 129
- Maxim Kirwan 114
- William Beck 111
- Olivia Lorenzen 102
- Toby Musico 60
- Toby McCormack 0
Header Image: Geoff Ridder
