The final day of Round 2 of the 2026 CTFROT at Taupo opened with a dramatic Qualifying 2 session, as 19 drivers fought for pole position for the Denny Hulme Memorial Trophy. Damp conditions ensured the outcome remained uncertain until the closing moments.
mtec Motorsport’s Ryan Wood entered the session as the benchmark after securing pole in Qualifying 1 and converting it into victory in Race 1. Nevertheless, Race 2 winner James Wharton of HMD Motorsport with TJ Speed and championship leader Ugo Ugochukwu of M2 Motorsport posed a constant threat, keeping the battle for pole wide open.
Damp conditions and an early interruption mar the opening of Qualifying 2
The 15-minute session began at 9:54 a.m. local time, with all 19 drivers immediately heading out onto the circuit and kicking up spray. Early on, mtec Motorsport’s Zack Scoular set the initial pace, but attention quickly turned to his teammates Louis Sharp and Ryan Wood, both of whom looked strong in the opening laps.
However, the session soon suffered a setback. With just over 11 and a half minutes remaining, Trevor LaTourrette spun at the exit of Turn 1 and became stranded in the run-off area. As a result, race control brought out the red flag, disrupting teams’ plans to build tyre temperature during the early phase of the session.
After a brief delay, LaTourrette returned to the pits and the session resumed. Even so, with a damp and slippery track, further mistakes remained a looming risk.
Order begins to take shape
Once the session restarted, lap times fluctuated rapidly. Nolan Allaer slipped down the order as Jack Taylor, Kalle Rovanperä, Kanato Le, Fionn McLaughlin, Jin Nakamura and Yevan David began to find early rhythm.
Despite the improvements, the earlier interruption meant truly representative lap times were slow to emerge. As the order reshuffled, Taylor, Rovanperä, Wharton, Freddie Slater, Le and Ernesto Rivera all climbed the timesheets, positioning themselves between Wood and Yuanpu Cui.
Soon after, Wood delivered a strong lap to claim provisional pole with a 1:33.338, with just under six and a half minutes remaining. Sharp followed closely in second, while Taylor initially sat third before making significant gains.
Momentum swings in the closing stages
As the session entered its latter stages, Wharton moved into third with a 1:33.762, while Rivera, Slater and David all broke into the top six. Meanwhile, Ugochukwu struggled to make headway and remained outside the top ten despite improving his lap time.
Then, Wood raised the bar further by setting a 1:32.909, consolidating his hold on provisional pole. Sharp responded with a 1:33.144 to retain second, as Le briefly climbed into third.
However, the momentum soon shifted again. With around four and a half minutes remaining, Yevan David produced a standout lap of 1:32.761 to take provisional pole, underlining the rapidly changing conditions.
Final-minute drama sees changes throughout the order
In the final minutes, the timesheets changed almost lap by lap. Sharp briefly reclaimed the top spot with a 1:32.753, only for Taylor to respond moments later with a 1:32.687. Shortly afterwards, Ugochukwu appeared to rescue his session by going fastest with a 1:32.527.
Yet the drama continued. Wood and Sharp both found more pace, with Wood surging to provisional pole on a blistering 1:31.614. Sharp slotted into second, while Le, Taylor and Nakamura all improved to reshuffle the top ten once again.
As the chequered flag approached, further late improvements followed. David vaulted up to second with a 1:31.829, Wharton and Slater improved their positions, and Cui climbed into the top six. Still, one final lap remained decisive.
Taylor secures pole position after intense 2026 CTFROT Qualifying 2 at Taupo
With the chequered flag waving, Jack Taylor delivered a stunning lap of 1:31.340 to secure pole position at Taupo. Ryan Wood settled for second, while Yevan David completed the top three after an impressive late charge.
The frenetic Qualifying 2 session set the stage for an exciting race, with minimal margins separating the front runners under challenging conditions.
Qualifying 2: Standings: 2026 CTFROT: Round 2: Taupo (Provisional)
- Jack Taylor – 1:31.340
- Ryan Wood – 1:31.614
- Yevan David – 1:31.829
- Kanato Le – 1:31.863
- Louis Sharp – 1:31.907
- James Wharton – 1:32.054
- Yuanpu Cui – 1:32.118
- Freddie Slater – 1:32.152
- Ernesto Rivera – 1:32.314
- Jin Nakamura – 1:32.344
- Ugo Ugochukwu – 1:32.356
- Fionn McLaughlin – 1:32.706
- Zack Scoular – 1:32.837
- Nolan Allaer – 1:32. 906
- Kalle Rovanperä – 1:32.957
- Ricardo Baptista – 1:33.599
- Cooper Shipman – 1:33.794
- Sebastian Manson – 1:35.303
- Trevor LaTourrette – 1:35.671
