Castrol Toyota Racing Series celebrates FIA changes to Super Licence system

The Castrol Toyota Racing Series (TRS) and Toyota GAZOO Racing New Zealand have welcomed a change to the FIA Super Licence system which means drivers can now collect points towards a Formula 1 drive from two different categories per year, given that the two do not overlap.

The FIA World Motor Sport Council’s June press release read:

“The results from a maximum of two championships can be accumulated from a single calendar year, provided that the start of the second championship falls after the end date of the first championship during the year in question.”

Category manager Nico Caillol explained the significance of the change for the TRS. “It's really fantastic news for us as a category trying to attract international competitors," said Caillol. "The FIA now allows drivers to include two non-overlapping championships when calculating their Super Licence points total.”

“We are already attractive to those drivers, and evidence of that is 15 of our graduates have taken part in Formula One Grand Prix weekends. This news will put us in the sights of even more up and coming single seater drivers."

The change makes the TRS one of the few ‘winter’ series that do not overlap with European competitions, meaning eager junior drivers could compete in New Zealand before a European stint - such as Liam Lawson and Marcus Armstrong’s campaigns this year.

The news comes after the launch of the new Toyota GAZOO Racing FT-60, which drivers will use to contest the TRS from the 2020 season onwards. The new, more powerful, car positions the TRS as an equivalent to regional F3 series such as Formula Regional European or F3 Asia.

Image: Bruce Jenkins