Supercars stars Broc Feeney and Will Brown competing in NZ Grand Prix at Highlands

Broc Feeney has little single-seater experience but is racing in the New Zealand Grand Prix at Highlands Motorsport Park this weekend. Photo / Bruce Jenkins, Toyota Gazoo Racing

Supercars Triple Eight teammates Broc Feeney and Will Brown are going head-to-head this weekend at the 69th New Zealand Grand Prix at Highlands Motorsport Park.

Brown has some form, having raced in the Australian Formula Ford and F4 championships before moving into tin tops and most recently winning the 2024 Supercars title.

Feeney has virtually no single-seater experience, the closest being kart racing as a junior. Despite that, the Australian is looking forward to getting to grips with the FT60 and giving it his best shot.

“This is pretty much my first time in one of these [single-seaters],” Feeney said.

“It’s been interesting, that’s for sure. On my first out lap in practice, I was asking myself what the heck I was doing.

“It is so different. There’s not much that relates to what I normally do [racing Supercars and GTs] other than it [the FT60] has four wheels.

“It’s full-on and I’ve got so much to learn but I’ve got a huge smile on my face. It’s such a cool opportunity to do this and race in the Grand Prix.

“It’s a huge race for New Zealand and Australia, so why not come and have a try? It’s at Highlands Motorsport Park [in Cromwell] and Tony Quinn [owner] is a shareholder in Triple Eight, so it just works.

“I’ve been to this track before and if it [the Grand Prix] wasn’t here, it probably wouldn’t have been an easy decision.”

While the FT60 single-seater may not have the power of his Supercar, driving a single-seater is a world away from hustling a big, heavy saloon car around a racetrack.

Feeney is not in New Zealand to make up the numbers and is confident he will be up to speed come the first race of the weekend on Saturday before the Grand Prix on Sunday.

“One of the biggest differences is that I’m braking with my left foot, which I’ve never done except in karting. I feel I’m okay with that but it’s the seating position that’s just so opposite.

“I feel like a vampire hanging upside down. It’s so limited in what you can do in the car. I’m so close to the steering wheel, my legs are higher than my head – it’s just so odd and I keep trying to sit up.

“I’m okay at slow speed, as the car feels pretty much like anything else. It’s at high speed where I’m having to learn the most. I can’t quite feel the aero yet. In my Supercar, I can feel when I’m about to slide or have a snap and haven’t worked that out yet. I need to push a bit harder to find the limits of this car.

“It’s been really fun and that’s why I wanted to come and do it. It’s a cool thing to learn and I want to learn new things and test myself against some of the best young drivers in the world, including potentially a future Formula 1 driver [Arvid Lindblad].”

This is the final round of the five-weekend series and Feeney has replaced American Josh Pierson, who has returned to the US for an Indy NXT test in preparation for his second season in the IndyCar feeder series.

Eighteen-year-old Pierson had a good championship, finishing on the podium three times to sit fifth overall on 219 points behind Australian Patrick Heuzenroeder (229), best of the Kiwi drivers Zack Scoular (247), American Nikita Johnson (253) and series leader and Red Bull Racing Junior Academy driver Lindblad (312) from Britain.

There have been some illustrious winners of the NZGP, including Stirling Moss, Jack Brabham, John Surtees, Bruce McLaren, Graham Hill, Jackie Stewart, Chris Amon, Denny Hulme and Keke Rosberg.

The first NZGP was held at Ōhakea Air Force Base in 1950 and gained an international following in 1954 when the event moved to Ardmore, where crowds of 70,000 would turn up to see young Kiwis such as Ross Jensen, McLaren and Johnny Mansel challenge international drivers such as Prince Bira, Moss, Brabham, Carroll Shelby, Lorenzo Bandini, Joakim Bonnier and Roy Salvadori.

In 1963, the race moved to Pukekohe and fans flocked to watch future world champion Surtees win by fending off Brabham, McLaren and Hill.

After the successful debut of the Toyota Racing Series (now the Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship) in 2004, the NZGP title was awarded to the series in 2005 and has remained so since.