MOTORSPORT: Toyota 86 championship race wide open

Consistency will be the vital element separating the contenders from pretenders in this year’s Toyota 86 Racing Series.

So says Tim Brook, the 30-year-old driver already being tipped as one of the key title chances for 2017.

With last year’s two front-runners, eventual championship winner Will Brown and ever-present driver David Sieders, not returning to the series in 2017, the door has opened for a new crop of drivers.

Brook, along with several other names from within the 40-strong field including Cameron Hill, Aaron Seton, Luke King, Jake Klein, Trent Grubel and Damon Strongman, are now eyeing off the major prize, which commences with this weekend’s opening round at the Phillip Island SuperSprint.

“Last year’s first and second in the championship aren’t returning, so that opens up the door for quite a few drivers,” Brook said.

Brook, who hails from Oran Park in Sydney’s south-west, finished fourth overall in the inaugural title after 11 top-five finishes in 14 races.

A DNF at Sandown ultimately cruelled the Ultimate Karting Sydney-backed driver’s championship aspirations – and crucially, relegated him outside of the $125,000 prize pool. He now acknowledges that consistent podiums are the only way to stay inside the top-runners across the relatively short five-stop championship.

“It’s by no means an all or nothing, but to try and take the thing out is the major goal for us,” Brook  said.

“The biggest downside from last year: I was the only guy in the top five to have a DNF, at Sandown. It put a dampener on our chances by putting us at the back of the grid for the next race and effectively for the championship. You can’t afford to have that happen.”

Key to Brook’s title chances are a new team, which sees him reunite with his Formula Vee title-winning crew in David and Jason Cutts, and a renewed emphasis in making the series fun and enjoyable.

“I work well together with [David and Jason], they know my idiosyncrasies and how I operate, and how to manage me on race weekend. That’s sometimes half the battle,” Brook said.

“You’ve got your mates around and the whole idea is to have fun, if you’re not having fun there’s no point being out there. It makes it all a lot easier.”

This year’s 86 title will again coincide with the Supercars championship. Races will be held at the Phillip Island SuperSprint (April 21–23), Townsville 400 (July 7–9), Sydney SuperSprint (August 18–20), Bathurst 1000 (October 5–8) and Newcastle 500 (November, date TBC).

Brook lauded championship organisers for their role in creating the series, and said the format and exposure would continue help springboard the careers of many up-and-coming drivers.

“From everything I’ve done in the past, Toyota did a really good job of managing and running the series,” he said.

“Prior to last year I wasn’t mainstream, no one really knew who I was. We popped up at Winton, and all of a sudden we were qualified on the front row and fighting for podiums.

“Everything I’ve done prior to 86 series didn’t get TV coverage and exposure, people didn’t think much of Formula Vee.

“It filled the void between Formula Vee and the next step – the V8 Utes or Porsche Carrera Cup - which is just astronomical money. The 86 Racing Series gave us the chance to put our name on the map.”