Karting is recognised as a great nursery for budding race car drivers, and the Nexen Tyre NZ Mazda Racing Series is becoming a very popular destination for karting graduates.
Prebbleton driver Chris White Junior rocked up to his first round in the 2022/2023 South Island Mazda Racing Series and took pole in his first event as a 16-year-old Christchurch Boys High School student.
His dad, Chris, takes up the story. “In two seasons of racing, he has won the South Island title twice, was second in the National Championship in his first year, second in the North Island Series and is now the NZ National Champion.”
“Chris is now moving onto the Toyota 86 Championship and is well prepared after two seasons in the Mazda Series. Chris has two good friends and schoolmates in Will Neale and Blake Knowles who have also been around motorsport all their lives.
“The boys all started karting together as 8-year-olds and competed for eight years until Will and Blake took the Formula Ford route. With advice from my good mate Andy Neale, we opted for the Mazda Racing Series as our stepping stone for Junior’s career.
“As a well-run controlled series and feeder into other forms of motorsport, the Mazda Racing Series ticked all the boxes for us with cost-effective, fast and easy cars to campaign all around New Zealand with a great bunch of guys. I cannot recommend the Mazda Racing Series highly enough for anyone looking at any form of motorsport.”
Andrew Neale, who runs Neale Motorsport in Christchurch, is a former top driver himself. He has worked in F1 and also with a number of drivers in various categories here in New Zealand and has been instrumental in many young drivers coming into the series from karts.
“It really is a good stepping stone for younger blokes to learn saloon cars before they go into a red-hot environment like Toyota 86,” he says.
“There has been growth in the series year on year for the past 4 or 5 years, and they are very nicely prepared cars that are quite cost-effective. Chris White and his dad have been able to run the car mostly by themselves. I advised Chris to go into the series on the heels of Ben Stewart. Since then, Arthur Broughan and Mac Templeton have followed.”
Successful karters Broughan and Templeton joined the series midway through last season and both were constant top ten runners.
Arthur’s father, Matt, says, “It appeared to be a series that was affordable, and car parts were readily available. It is a good stepping stone and a good place to learn how to race cars.
“After success in karts, Arthur joined the series at the age of 14 and learned the trade before going to Toyota 86s, which he will tackle this season. We will keep the Mazda and do the first round in each island. The series has absolutely fulfilled our goals. It was a cheap, entry-level car, and Arthur picked it up pretty fast.”
“Arthur learned about data acquisition and made changes through data. It is good, tight, racing with tough battles. Everyone has smiles on their faces, and everyone is helpful. If you have problems, people jump in. They are a good group of people. We were introduced to the right people early on, and there were no secrets.”
Templeton, a Year 12 student at St Bedes College, entered the series mid-season in January and qualified fourth, later losing three places after causing a red flag. “It looked like a really good series with really close racing. One mistake and you lose several places. It was really good racing and affordable, and it is a really good environment,” he said
“The other competitors are all really supportive and really encouraging. I was really happy with my first season and did better than expected. I plan to do every race weekend this season. I want to take out the title and win as much as I can.” Templeton credits Russell McKenzie and Neale Motorsport for his success.
More karters are expected to line up this season.
New Plymouth-based Phillip Macey’s 16-year-old daughter Paige is stepping from karting to motor racing this season. They purchased a car from Leo Bult and chose the Mazda Racing Series. “We are racing on a budget,” says Phillip, “and this class seems more affordable. Paige was looking for a series where the cars are all very similar. We will do the first two rounds of the North Island Championship before Paige goes to Canada for two months of schooling and possibly the first two national rounds in the South Island on her return.”
Mac Berkett is a 19-year-old karter from Nelson who is now studying Mechanical Engineering at AUT in Auckland. His father, Darren, says, “Mac raced in the BMW Series up north last year and wanted to get into something a bit faster and more agile.”
They have purchased the Chris White championship-winning car. They met the Whites through karting and talked to them and the Broughans before committing, and they couldn’t speak highly enough of the series. “We will do the South Island Championship and the North Island national rounds. That is the plan.”
The benefits are clearly evident – the Nexen Tyre NZ Mazda Racing Series provides an ideal pathway for young karters looking to advance their careers.
Header Image: Geoff Ridder
