A NEW trophy that commemorates a late New Zealand racing great will become a new must-win addition to the NextGen NZ Championship tour this summer.
The Tim Miles Memorial Trophy will be awarded to the winner of the Formula Atlantic event that serves as a key support highlight at the 70th running of the New Zealand Grand Prix, to be held at Highlands Motorsport Park on 30 January – 1 February next year.
The trophy commemorates the life of the late Tim Miles, a longstanding supporter of New Zealand motorsport and a proud South Island representative on the global stage of both business and motorsport.
The winner of the Sunday feature race at Highlands will claim the inaugural Tim Miles Memorial Trophy, which is set to become an iconic, ‘must-win’ part of the NextGen Championship each summer.
The Tim Miles Memorial Trophy will be the culmination of the two-event Formula Atlantic New Zealand Grand Prix double header, which will see the field of classic ‘wings and slicks’ racers return to also feature at the Taupo Historic Grand Prix two weeks prior to the Grand Prix.
Miles was a key supporter of the inaugural Formula Atlantic revival races that were a highlight of the Taupo Historic GP earlier this year and was a podium finisher in his ex-Jos Verstappen Swift.
“Tim was a much-loved member of the New Zealand motorsport family, and the tributes to him since his passing have been both appropriate and an incredible nod to the legacy he has left our sport,” said Josie Spillane, CEO of the NextGen NZ Championship
“We wanted to honour that and naming a trophy in his honour to a class of racing that he absolutely loved is our way of showing our respect to Tim and his family. We also wanted it centred around a weekend that Tim would have loved – friends, yarns, racing and several ‘lemonades’, all of which we will have in spades.”
More than 25 cars contested the inaugural event at Taupo this year, won by Kaleb Ngatoa and featuring a broad array of cars and stars, highlighting a remarkable period of international motorsport between the mid-1970s and mid-1990s.
“It’s an incredible addition to the summer of Motorsport in New Zealand and couldn’t be more appropriate,” said Greg Murphy
“Atlantic cars at Highlands are going to be a great sight, and the competition will be fantastic; it will really add another element to the 70th New Zealand Grand Prix.
“Tim was passionate about the cars and the competition, and for his first time in the car, drove superbly. It’s great he will be remembered through something he truly loved and by something that will put on an incredible show for fans at the New Zealand Grand Prix early next year.”
Under the guise of Formula Pacific / Mondial and Atlantic, the cars featuring in the double-header contested the New Zealand Grand Prix between 1977 and 1993, with star drivers including Keke Rosberg, Roberto Moreno, Paul Radisich, Craig Baird and a host of others featuring in the period.
“It’s appropriate to have the trophy named after Tim, given that he had so much fun at Taupo earlier this year – he even beat Murph!” said Andy McElrea, a long-time best friend of Miles.
“He had waited a long time to get into that car, and he drove brilliantly and loved the experience. It’s very fitting and his family are absolutely thrilled to have the trophy named in his honour.
“There will be a lot of people very keen to win a trophy named after Tim, I can assure you!”
Another international grid of cars spanning that incredible era is expected to compete next January across the two-event format, with invitations to compete for all competitors now open.
International travel subsidies are available for cars travelling from overseas, while internal freight options are also available for transporting cars and equipment from the North Island to the South.
Interested parties should contact the Repco NextGen NZ Championship team via the event website for more details.
Formula Atlantic New Zealand Grand Prix Double header:
Round 1 – Taupo Historic GP Trophy
Taupo Historic Grand Prix, Taupo Motorsport Park (16-18 January 2026)
Round 2 – Tim Miles Memorial Trophy
70th NAPA New Zealand Grand Prix, Highlands Motorsport Park (31 January-1 February 2026)
The second Repco NextGen NZ Championship will be held across six incredible events commencing in November this year and culminating in March 2026.
Following an opening event at Hampton Downs that includes the GT World Challenge Australia and GT4 Australia Championship, the championship commences a four-event swing in January that includes back-to-back rounds at Hampton Downs, Taupo, Teretonga (Invercargill) and the 70th running of the New Zealand Grand Prix at Highlands Motorsport Park. The finale will be held at Manfield, near Palmerston, in early March 2026.
As well as the two events outlined here for Formula Atlantic, the championship is headlined by the return of the Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Trophy, Toyota GR86 Championship, New Zealand GT Championship and TA2 New Zealand Championship, along with the New Zealand Porsche Championship, GTR NZ, Central Muscle Cars, and Formula Ford.
For more information head to www.nextgennz.co.nz
Header Image: Tayler Burke
