CareVets Scholarship winner Taylor Mitchell and rising star Toby Elmiger are the ones to beat for titles this weekend at the final round of the Toyota 86 Trophy Series at Manfeild – Circuit Chris Amon.
The four-round series has back-to-back rounds at Manfeild as its second half, and after the penultimate round it is Mitchell who leads the Trophy Series – for Toyota 86 rookies, and Elmiger who leads the Winter Series points for more experienced drivers.
With three winners from three races at that last Manfeild round, calling any winners is particularly difficult, as most will have made improvements to their set-up and the results this weekend could be very different from the previous round.
Mitchell sits just 12 points ahead of Nieko Scoles – both huge ‘finds’ in the New Zealand talent pool, while Riley Boswell has impressed massively in a family-run team and sits 39 points behind Scoles.
One thing Riley doesn’t have yet in this campaign is a race win – perhaps the final weekend will see that statistic change.
Watch out too for Josh Hill and Marcel Bartley. Both started the season chasing the leaders and by the last round were at the other end of the field, with Hill turning his season around with a strong race win under the guidance of the talented Josh Bethune. Either could win this weekend.
Overall, Elmiger is a scant 20 points ahead of Scoles, with Mitchell only four points further back. Grammer and Boswell are a little further back, but well within striking distance if they have great weekends.
Last season’s champion Lee Zeltwanger proved the winter campaign was a great springboard into the summer season and went on to win the Rookie title in the 2025-2026 Bridgestone GR86 Championship.
Another career-changing prize is on offer this season too. The Trophy Series winner will secure a ride in the CareVets Scholarship GR86 for the 2026-2027 Bridgestone GR86 Championship, with the car, engineer and mechanic costs all taken care of.
The runner-up will secure a lease car for the championship, and third place this weekend will secure a GR86 entry fee and tyres for the season. For the Winter Series runners, the top three will all secure tyres for Bridgestone GR86 Championship campaigns with three sets to the winner, two for the runner-up and a set for third place.
Action this weekend gets underway on a busy Saturday with two 20-minute practice sessions, qualifying and a ten-lapper around the iconic Feilding track, with the final two races of the season on Sunday.
Header Image: Joel Hanks
