Young Gun Giddy Aiming To Add Consistency To Speed

Silverdale’s Ajay Giddy will be aiming to add consistency to the impressive speed he showed last season when he takes on the country’s best young rising stars in the forthcoming Bridgestone GR86 Championship.

A strong season beckons for the 14 year old – who will remain the youngest racer in the highly competitive national competition. Despite his age, he has already impressed in his rookie season and during the winter in the Toyota 86 Trophy Series.

“I want to be consistently making the top five in each race if I can, that’s what it takes to build a championship challenge,” he said this week on confirmation of his season plans. “Race podiums and wins are also obviously an objective for myself and the team.”

Giddy will remain with Mackenzie Motorsport for his second season in the Bridgestone GR86 Championship and will be aiming to build consistency into his season. He showed prodigious speed on occasion during his first campaign with the team, regularly humbling drivers with a lot more experience.

Ajay’s first season in the main championship demonstrated his potential with one pole position, a podium finish and numerous occasions when he caught the eye with his one lap pace. Seven podiums and a win in the winter series suggests Ajay has made even further progress during the winter months.

“The winter series was a good stepping stone and good preparation for the GR86 racing to come,” he added. “Hopefully when we hit the track in a competitive environment for the first time this season, it will all come together and we will be able to bring consistency as well as speed to the campaign.”

Ajay will once again carry the colours of Opie Contractors and a promising first season has also helped secure some new sponsorship from Hynds and Anytime Fitness Silverdale. The new livery will get a first run out at the championship’s media day this week before the first race weekend at Hampton Downs at the end of October.

2025-2026 Bridgestone GR86 Championship

Round 1 - 31 October - 2 November 2025, Hampton Downs Motorsport Park

Round 2 - 9 - 11 January 2026, Hampton Downs Motorsport Park

Round 3 - 23 - 25 January 2026, Teretonga Park, Invercargill

Round 4 - 30 January - 1 February 2026 70th New Zealand GP - Highlands Motorsport Park

Round 5 - 27 February - 1 March 2026, Manfeild - Circuit Chris Amon

Round 6 – 10-12 April 2026 - Taupo International Motorsport Park - Supercars

About the Repco NextGen NZ Championship

The Repco NextGen NZ Championship is Motorsport New Zealand’s premier Race Championship. It is focused on celebrating talent, developing drivers, captivating fans and being sustainable, successful and surprising.

The championship is headlined by the Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Trophy, Bridgestone GR86 Championship, GT World Challenge Australia powered by AWS, Monochrome GT4 Australia Championship, Summerset GT New Zealand Championship, TA2 New Zealand Championship, New Zealand Porsche Championship, GTRNZ, NAPA Central Muscle Cars, the NAPA Auto Parts NZ Formula Ford Championship and Formula Atlantic.

The second season of the Repco NextGen NZ Championship will span six spectacular events from November 2025 through March 2026.

After the opener at Hampton Downs, the championship commences a four-event swing in January that includes back-to-back rounds at Hampton Downs, Taupo, Teretonga (Invercargill) and the 70th running of the New Zealand Grand Prix at Highlands Motorsport Park. The finale will be held at Manfeild, near Palmerston North.

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