CTFROT | 2026 | Round 1 | Hampton Downs | Practice | Wood fastest on opening day - Motorsport

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Ryan Wood emerged as the standout performer across the combined practice sessions at Hampton Downs as the 2026 Castrol Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Trophy (CTFROT) season got underway. The Supercars driver topped Practice 2 and Practice 3 and set the outright fastest lap of the day with a 1:29.764, the only time to dip under the 1m30s mark.

Wood tackled his first CTFROT campaign as a single-seater rookie but showed rapid progression throughout the day. After placing third in Practice 1, he produced a sequence of quick laps to lead Practice 2 before going even faster for mtec in the afternoon. His final-session effort edged British young gun Freddie Slater and sent a clear message ahead of racing on Saturday.

Early pace from Ugochukwu and Hitech duo

Ugo Ugochukwu laid down the initial marker in Practice 1 with a 1:30.047 and remained a consistent front-runner throughout the day. Hitech drivers Jin Nakamura and Kanato Le also impressed with strong pace in all three sessions, regularly featuring inside the top four.

Slater recovered from a quieter morning to take second in Practice 3, while James Wharton delivered a solid and competitive day for TJ Speed with HMD Motorsports. The field showed exceptional depth, with the top 15 drivers covered by around a second across the sessions.

Red Bull Juniors recover strongly as Kiwi drivers look to build momentum

Red Bull Juniors Ernesto Rivera and Fionn McLaughlin experienced mixed sessions but demonstrated clear speed. McLaughlin bounced back from a Practice 1 accident to finish sixth in Practice 2, while Rivera matched that position in Practice 3 after a difficult middle session.

New Zealand race winners Zack Scoular and Sebastian Manson ran in midfield positions and will target gains when qualifying begins. Louis Sharp impressed as the next-best Kiwi behind Wood and secured fourth fastest in Practice 3 to complete a positive opening day.

Rovanperä edges closer in tight field

Two-time world rally champion Kalle Rovanperä continued his steady improvement and reduced the gap to the front by three tenths compared with Thursday. He ended the day 13th fastest overall and just seven tenths behind Ugochukwu. With the top 15 tightly bunched, the Finn will aim to climb further up the order when CTFROT 2026 action begins in earnest on Saturday morning.