Brown captures New Zealand Grand Prix victory

Will Brown became the seventh Australian winner of the New Zealand Grand Prix in its 69th edition at Highlands Motorsport Park, the first Aussie since Warwick Brown to win the race since 1975.

It was his first open wheel win in the Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship, with the 2024 Supercars champ starting on the front row with Triple Eight teammate Broc Feeney, who’s troubles throughout saw him finish in sixth from pole, a fair effort having not had any open wheel experience.

As the laps wound down in the longest open wheel race (27 laps) he’d ever participated in, Brown protected his lead to come home over Kiwi youngster Zac Scoular (series Rookie winner) and Red Bull junior formulae star and series champion (and anticipated future F1 driver) Arvid Lindblad.

Brown became the first Aussie since 1975 to lift the NZ GP cup

“I was nervous about the start and I knew if I could beat Broc away off the line I had a chance to get ahead and control the race,” an exhausted Brown said on the podium, who also had an awkward moment with the trophy when the top fell off when he hoisted it.

“I was rooted. The first ten laps were really hard and I was quite stressed in the car trying not to make mistakes. I had a few loose moments and I had to calm down, breath and get it back together. After that I pushed on and we started to set some really fast laps.

“Zack was super-fast and always there. But it was a cool race. When I saw the Safety Car come out I knew I had to build a bigger gap. I’ve loved racing in the open wheelers and the NZ fans have been great.”

Fellow Aussie Patrick Heuzenroeder and Nicolas Stati finished in sixteenth and eleventh respectively, with a pre-race penalty dropping the former from third to sixth by the race start.

Brown hoists the trophy for the second time after his aborted first attempt

As it happened…

Brown, in the #87, jumped Feeney off the line who fell behind into third, losing further places with some wide placement to be fourth after the first lap. With that, Feeney then had to spend the rest of the race more concerned than not with tyre degradation and dirty air.

Heuzenroeder was holding well early, starting in sixth and keeping it after a penalty from Race 2 relegated him from his earned P3 grid position.

Brown held well after the early restart, holding off the 17-year old Scoular and keeping a consistent half-second gap, whilst Lindblad worked Feeney’s rear closely from P4, but the Supercars Aussie was also in reach of the third placed Rashid, with little separating the top five.

Issues for Heuzenroeder saw him drop off before pulling into the pits after tapping a wall – an unfortunate end to a promising weekend – as Brown started to eke some tenths onto his slender lead.

Feeney moved into third but a bad lock-up (his third of the race) then dropped him back into sixth, making a podium run a tough prospect, with 16 of 27 laps run.

Red Bull young gun and 2025 series champion Lindblad took third and had ten laps to close on Scoular, with Brown keeping his gap out front, with the threat of pulling one second clear, which he had by lap 19.

With three laps remaining, Scoular was coming at Brown with his fastest efforts of the race and holding off Lindblad, but not counting on Brown keeping his pace to the extent he did, reacting well to solidify the gap.

Despite a lock up with two to go, Brown managed to hold, emulating Shane Van Gisbergen as another Supercars driver to jump the ditch and take an NZ GP.

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