The ITM Taupō Super400 got off to a rumbling start through the Taupō CBD on Thursday ahead of this weekend's racing. Video / Dan Hutchinson and Milly Fullick
Theinaugural ITM Taupō Super400 officially kicked off today as 24 Supercars took to the track of Taupō International Motorsport Park for the first time.
The Supercars drivers were warmly welcomed to town yesterday with thousands of fans lining the streets for the Track to Townevent that saw all cars and drivers parade into the Taupō CBD.
Two-time Bathurst 1000 winner Chaz Mostert said the vibe of the Track to Town event had been “unbelievable”.
“The amount of people on the street coming into town... I’ve never really seen that probably since doing anything around Bathurst.
“It shows really that we need to get here into New Zealand, do some racing and do some maybe back-to-back weekends as well.”
He said it had been the first time he visited Taupō.
“The lake is absolutely beautiful, you can see why so many people rave about this place.”
Current championship leader Will Brown said he had to resist the encouragement from fans to lay down rubber on the Thursday afternoon drive, but would be looking to change that by adding to his 2024 win tally this weekend.
“It’s hard to explain... how many people actually turned up to support us,” Brown said.
“On the drive, all the way there’s people on the sides of the roads and it made it really fun. It made you want to do a burnout or something for them ‘cause they were all hyping you up. [It was] just a really cool experience.”
Brown leads the championship by 17 points over Red Bull teammate Broc Feeney, with Mostert a further 80 points back in third entering the third round of the championship.
Supercars have descended on Taupō for the third round of the championship. Photo / Supercars
The Track to Town event was also the first time the Supercars were driving on New Zealand public roads: The specialised V8s are not road-legal, so needed temporary permission from NZTA, police and Taupō District Council to avoid potential fines.
Talking to the Waikato Herald after the event, Taupō mayor David Trewavas said it had been a great success.
“It was magnificent. There were thousands of people lining the streets to welcome the drivers into town ... Just fantastic. A couple of drivers said it was as good as Bathurst.
“I’m very happy with how it went, it was a successful day.”
He said the event had been a great opportunity for those who might be unable to get to the track to still get a slice of the action and see the cars up close.
On-track action started today with practice laps for Formula Ford, Toyota 86 Championship NZ, Central Muscle Cars, Porsche Carrera Cup and Supercars. Central Muscle Cars and Formula Ford would also have a qualifying race each today.
The two main 200km Supercars races would take place on Saturday and Sunday.
The driver who scores the most points across the weekend would be awarded the Jason Richards Memorial Trophy, named in honour of the Kiwi Supercars driver who died from cancer in 2011.
All 24 Supercars parked up at Taupō's lakefront yesterday as part of the Track to Town event. Photo / Supercars
Trewavas was at the track today and said the vibe had been “exhilarating”.
“Everyone had a smile on their face ... People have been through a lot in the past couple of years, so it’s great to see everyone was enjoying themselves.”
He said he was most looking forward to the weekend’s Supercars action.
“The competition between the Kiwi and Aussie drivers will be exciting. We’ve got some good performers, so it’s going to get very competitive.”
Live coverage of the event can be found on Sky Sport in New Zealand and Foxtel in Australia. Live streaming is available on Kayo, with highlights in Australia available on the Seven Network and 7plus.
