Wurz, Hedge, Abel top testing at Teretonga

Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship front runners Charlie Wurz, Callum Hedge and Jacob Abel showed their form once again during testing for the second round of the 2023 championship.

New Zealand’s weather gods came to the party in style on Friday at the Teretonga circuit, with forecasted rain arriving much earlier and more intensely than predicted. It meant the first two of three sessions were in wet and challenging conditions, with only the final run late in the day dry.

For many in the field the first two sessions were also their first experience in the wet in the Toyota FT-60 and that meant the first two sessions were peppered with red flags as cars were retrieved from the gravel traps after failing to find the ideal wet weather lap around the world’s most southerly race track.

Championship leader Charlie Wurz took it all in his stride to take fastest time in the first session, heading Australia’s Ryder Quinn who again settled in very well given his relative lack of car racing experience relative to the other drivers in the field.

Highlands race winner James Penrose looked confident in the session on his way to third overall, while Jacob Abel again impressed. With former Indycar racer Spencer Pigot alongside him as a driver coach for the first time, Abel also looked smooth and confident in the challenging conditions. Brit Josh Mason clocked the fifth fastest time while Highlands race winners David Morales and Callum Hedge were sixth and eighth respectively.

The second session saw a similar session with the red lights on and off and the track conditions consistently wet. Hedge topped that session with Morales in second and Wurz looking ominous again in third place. Quinn and Abel were again consistently at the sharp end of the timesheets throughout the session and ended up fourth and fifth respectively.

The third session – held in windy but thankfully dry conditions – saw Abel top the timesheets after a solid session where he was visibly pushing hard through the infield section. Penrose bolted on a new set of tyres late on to go second quickest while Charlie Wurz made it into the top three in yet another session, once again proving he’s consistent as well as fast. Hedge and Quinn rounded out the top five.

Action at the track begins with qualifying on Saturday morning and the first of three races over the weekend on Saturday afternoon.

2023 Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship – Round 2 Teretonga testing:

Practice 1:

Practice 2:

Practice 3:

_{Main image: Bruce Jenkins | Words: Supplied}