The 2026 New Zealand Formula Ford Championship, supported by Ford, roared into action at the opening round at Teretonga Park in Invercargill, with a 12-year-old Australian making a splash over the rain-soaked weekend.
Rookie Seb Eskandari-Marandi from the Gold Coast won the first two races at the Teretonga Park International and placed fifth in the feature race to now lead the championship. He has an 18-point gap to second-placed Dylan Petch, with Southland’s Jacob Begg in third.
“I was a bit shocked by the first race,” commented Seb Eskandari-Marandi, who qualified second fastest.
It was Marco Manson who picked up the fastest qualifier’s $1,010.10 cheque presented by the Hampton Downs NZ Racing Academy. In a wet qualifying session, the Aucklander was 1.316 seconds ahead of Eskandari-Marandi, with Dylan Petch third quickest.
Constant rain affected the weekend, including the first race on Saturday afternoon, which saw Eskandari-Marandi lead from start to finish. As with many other races over the weekend, safety-car interruptions were continuous, with drivers slipping off the track.
Pole sitter Marco Manson had a slow getaway, dropping back to fourth, paving the way for Eskandari-Marandi to set up a lights-to-flag victory. Dylan Petch crossed the line in second ahead of Campbell Owens, Jacob Begg and Isaac Fletcher.
Sunday morning’s Race 2 was held in similar wet conditions, with Eskandari-Marandi winning his second race.
“For the second race, it was about carrying on from the first,” said Eskandari-Marandi.
“The start was the most important thing. I got it off the line well and just tried to manage it through the race. Marco (Manson) got passed as he is very quick, but unfortunately for him, he made a mistake and went off, so I got the lead back. “
Second across the line was Campbell Owens, followed by Jacob Begg and Dylan Petch. Unfortunately, Owens received a time penalty for an altercation with another driver, dropping him down to eighth and promoting Begg to second and Petch to his second podium of the weekend.
For the final 18-lap feature race run on a dry track, it was Manson who immediately took the lead, defending it from relentless pressure from both Owens and Petch through to the chequered flag.
“It’s good to have the win,” said Manson, who sits fifth on the leader board.
“I’ll probably be a bit behind, but it’s good to get the points. I got a good launch off the line,” said Owens.
“That was all I needed; however, I got passed by a few after I had a go at Manson, then after that, it was a matter of trying to get back into second and see what I could do from there. I didn’t quite have the pace.”
Behind Manson, it was a classic and entertaining display of Formula Ford racing, with positions from second to ninth constantly changing. In the end, it was Owens who took second ahead of Toby Musico, who had moved up from ninth on the first lap.
“Feels really good,” said a very happy Musico, having retired out of the first two races.
“I would have liked to have finished the other two races. We debated on the setup for the final race and went for the dry, and it felt great, and I found myself catching the others one by one.”
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 the Tony Quinn Foundation this season, with a $ 60,000 Travel Fund to be shared among entrants who compete in all four rounds. Included in this is the Hampton Downs NZ Racing Academy Pole Award of $1010.10 for fastest qualifier at each round.
The Foundation will offer, for the first time, a $10,000 in cash for the overall champion.
Also making a significant contribution to the championship is Steve Horne of Tasman Motorsports Group, who provided $ 5,000.00 to help with the cost of competing in Invercargill.
NAPA is again offering prizes for Driver of the Day at rounds 2-4, while Yokohama return to the series as the tyre of choice for Formula Ford Racing in NZ.
This coming weekend, the second of four rounds takes place at the Timaru International Raceway, 31 Jan-1 Feb (four races). The final two rounds take place in the North Island, with four races at Hampton Downs Motorsport Park, including the Ron Frost Trophy race, 14-15 March, and four races at Taupo International Raceway, including the Morrie Smith Memorial Trophy race, 27-29 March 2026.
Header Image: Geoff Ridder
