Zagazeta takes feature pole with best lap of Teretonga weekend

Peruvian Matias Zagazeta proved quicker once again than championship leader Arvid Lindblad in qualifying for the Spirit of a Nation feature race at Teretonga this morning.

Fresh from his impressive win in Saturday’s shortened race, the Peruvian was top dog in a four car M2 Competition lock out of the front two rows of the grid. Zagazeta’s best lap was the fastest ever recorded for the Toyota FT60 around the fast 2.62km track.

“The car just got better and better throughout the session, we have tried few things over the last few days but the team have done an incredible job with the car,” he said afterwards.

A cool morning air, dry conditions and a lack of any breeze to speak of meant fast times for the session and within four or five laps of the start of the session the fast times began to appear on the timing screen.

Lindblad’s first effort was a very quick 53.947 but that was quickly eclipsed by Johnson, then Zagazeta as M2 Competition’s even lower downforce settings than Saturday gave them what appeared to be a straight line speed advantage down Teretonga’s long 800m front straight.

Lindblad then released a superb 53.293 second lap which was the fastest of the weekend so far, two tenths up on Johnson’s best effort at that stage.

Tommy Smith for Giles Motorsport had clearly found speed from Saturday but so too did several others and at the ten minute mark  in the 15 minute session there were no fewer than seven drivers who had clocked sub 54 second laps around the 2.62km track.

With three minutes to go Saturday winner Matias Zagazeta clocked a 53.447 lap, but that was still shy of Lindblad’s best. Arvid wound himself up for a final effort in the last three minutes, first clocking a 53.309 but that was beaten by a flying Zagazeta who put in his best after 11 laps with a 53.274.  That proved to be unbeatable in the time remaining and it would be Zagazeta on pole position for the main race of the weekend.

Lindblad was a disappointed second, while the consistent Nikita Johnson did his fastest lap of the weekend for third on the grid. Michael Shin was on the pace in fourth having made the most of a great tow up the long straight from team mate Johnson, while Heuzenroeder was best of the rest for mtec Motorsport with another top five starting spot.

Fellow Australian Tommy Smith clocked the sixth fastest time for Giles Motorsport with Manson in seventh. Josh Pierson and Zack Scoular for mtec took eighth and ninth while Nicholas Monteiro was a good tenth in his mtec entry.

2025 Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Championship – Round 4 – Race 3 Qualifying