Gilchrist and Gray want more after promising GT4 debut

Toyota 86 Champion Brock Gilchrist and top rookie Rylan Gray are both keen to do more GT4 racing in Europe following their impressive prize weekend performance at the ADAC GT4 Germany event at the Nürburgring.

The boys finished off their week with a tour of the world class TOYOTA GAZOO Racing Europe facility in Cologne getting a close-up look at Toyota’s Formula One cars, their iconic endurance racers, their Le Mans winners, their current Hypercars and the facility’s wind tunnel and simulator facilities.

The whole experience left a lasting impression on both Gilchrist and Gray, and the two young racers want more.

“The weekend was mega. Our goal was top ten, and we did that,” said Brock. “I was happy with that. Working with KCMG was outstanding and seeing their level of professionalism, well, I have never seen anything like that in NZ or Australia so that was a big eye opener. TGR Europe was a great experience too.

“For the rest of 2023 I have nothing fixed and am working on a few things but there is nothing set in stone, so we’ll see what happens.

“I would be interested in coming back to GT4 next season. There is a high level of professionalism over here and I haven’t seen motorsport at that level before so for sure one of the European GT4 championships would be an amazing series to take part in.

“In the meantime, I’m also heading off to Barcelona for a quick visit to the Emirates Team New Zealand base to see how that operation works, just to complete a fantastic experience.”

Gray too was blown away with the whole experience and felt he had learned a lot and opened a few doors. “It was a very cool experience overall,” he added. “The car and track combination were great, we got used to the car very quickly and for me I was trying to absorb as much as I possibly could from working with a big professional outfit like KCMG.

“On the track we showed some strong speed and I do think we could have had better results had the weather conditions been a bit different.

“For the rest of the year it’s back to the Toyota 86 in Australia and that’s going to be a big difference from the GR Supra GT4 EVO.

“I feel overall I crossed a big stepping stone in the process of beginning a motorsport career in Europe and after the 86 Championship in Australia is done this year I’d love to try and find a way back into the European racing scene.”

TOYOTA GAZOO Racing New Zealand Motorsport Manager Nicolas Caillol was full of praise for the effort that went in behind the scenes from KCMG and TOYOTA GAZOO Europe for making the experience such a memorable one.

“We would like to thank KCMG for their hard work and professionalism, it was an important part of the success of our two champions for their first weekend in a European Championship,” he said.

“KCMG and TOYOTA GAZOO Racing New Zealand are sharing the same purpose of nurturing and developing young talents. It was therefore the perfect match for offering that opportunity to our drivers. I would also like to thank TGR Europe for their support in putting this amazing prize together and their hospitality at their facility which gave Brock and Rylan an overview of TGR Europe’s involvement in motorsport.”

“Finally, I would like to congratulate Brock and Rylan for the performance they displayed during the weekend. It was great to see them at the top end of the competitive field and it is a nice endorsement of the quality of our Toyota 86 Championship here in New Zealand.”