Teretonga Park's 2026-27 season opened at the weekend with a national title decided on Saturday and a full day of club racing on Sunday.

Steve Brooks of Christchurch and Willie Exton of Renwick won the South Island Endurance Series three-hour race in their Audi R8, a result that also made them the 2026 New Zealand Endurance Champions.

Brooks had won the race in 2024. Exton described the Audi as "super speedy" after a race that finished under the safety car following late contact between Jonny Reid and Allan Dippie.

Sam Fillmore and Reid of Auckland were second in another Audi, with Invercargill's Scott O'Donnell and Canterbury's Chris White third in a Porsche 991.

Fourth place was enough for Invercargill's Glen Brazier and Andrew Waite, in a Lamborghini Huracan, to take the South Island Endurance Series three-hour title and the GT class title. The pair had won the Christchurch round, which became the first round of the championship after the Timaru meeting was cancelled.

Michels makes it three

Jordan Michels gave the home crowd plenty to cheer in the one-hour race for classes one to three. The Invercargill driver led throughout in his Marc Mustang, surrendering the lead only during pit stops, and clinched the Class 1 South Island one-hour title for the third year running.

"The car was a rocket today!" Michels said.

Brooks shared second with Hugo Allan in a Porsche 992, while Aucklanders Wei Zhou and Josh Bethune were third in a McLaren Artura as the first Class 3 car home. Blake Knowles of Prebbleton was first in Class 2.

The race was red-flagged about 15 minutes in when Tasman's Ollie Gibbons went off the road.

In the one-hour race for classes four and five, Oamaru's Warren Black repeated his 2024 win in an Audi RS3 LMS, holding off O'Donnell and White in a Hyundai i30N by just over six seconds. Queenstown's Mike Hall was third in a Volkswagen Golf, Dunedin's Warren Walker took Class 5 in a Honda Civic, and Invercargill's Nieko Scoles was seventh in a Toyota 86.

Sunday's club racing

Sunday's programme, with free admission, featured Pre 78 Classic Saloons, the Noel McIntyre Drainage Club Saloons and a new regularity trial format in which drivers aim for the most consistent lap times rather than outright speed.

  • Pre 78 Classic Saloons: Eric Swinbourn of Central Otago (Suzuki SC100) won the Queenstown Road Race Revival Trophy on points; Max Perkins of Cromwell (Camaro) won two races including the Flying Farewell; Peter Scobie of Dunedin (Mini) won one race
  • Club Saloons Group A: Steve Ross of Dunedin (TraNZam Jaguar) won two of three races and Pierre Neame of Winton (Ford Mustang) the other
  • Club Saloons Group B: Warren Kett of Invercargill (Mazda RX7) won two races, while Ross Jones of Dunedin (Mazda Axela) won the opener and the Flying Farewell

The next race meeting at Teretonga Park is a two-day event on 5 and 6 December.