Welcome to the quiet months in NZ Sim Racing. Enjoy the calm before we hit the new year rush.

NZ Sim Racing

• Charity racers raise money for Movember. George Cooke and Hayden teamed up to race raising over $1,500 for Movember.
  Watch it back.

• AUS/NZ Endurance Series won by two aussies. Jeeesh and Captain Muffin of Brocky Sim Racing pulled off a strategy no one else could in the finale at COTA to beat out rivals ANC Outplayed (Twitchy and Matt McEwen). As winners they take home $200 and the chance to race in an upcoming real Mega endurance race.
  Watch the recording. Highlights to be broadcast on Sky next week.

• Rush Sim Racing business for sale. With 4 full motion simulators at their Auckland location Rush Sim Racing is a popular spot for those looking to race alongside their mates on the best equipment.
  Call for buyers on facebook.

News

• Project Motor Racing released. And it’s not gone well. Presumably it’s not sold well as a result with redundancies already announced at developers Straight 4 Studios.
  Read more.

• Wreckreation released. And I guess it also hasn’t sold as well as expected with the developers now also facing redundancies. It’s tough out there.
  Read more.

• iRacing Arcade delayed until February. In a trend that seems to effect every single video game it has been delayed to polish features the devs weren’t satisfied with ahead of the original December 3 release date.
  Read more.

• F1 26 will be DLC rather than a full game. EA are taking a year away from releasing a full game to spend more time focused on the 2027 edition.
  Read more.

• Gran Turismo Spec III. Not wanting to miss out on headlines with all these other game releases Gran Turismo released Spec III update and DLC.
  Read more.

Extras

• Win hot laps with Liam Lawson. You could also win a Subaru, hot laps in Tony’s Vulcan, and ITM 400 VIP experiences with the Street Smart Lottery. The lottery is a fundraiser for Street Smart, a program teaching driving skills to young adults fronted by Greg Murphy, with tickets costing $100. Buy tickets before December 12th to be in the draw for all prizes.
  Read more. Buy tickets.

• New Lego Speed Champions coming in January. The new sets include Bugatti Vision Gran Turismo, Lightning McQueen, the AXPG F1 car, and F1 Academy car. All (except the F1 Academy car) will be available January 1st.
  More info.

• Hayden Paddon back in the WRC in 2026. 8 years after his last WRC outing (and off the back of winning the European and Australian rally championships) Hayden will be back behind the wheel of a Hyundai Rally1 car for Rally Monte-Carlo in January before an unconfirmed number of WRC outings throughout the season.
  Read more.

• Kalle Rovanpera coming to race in CTFROT. Last time he was in NZ he won Rally New Zealand and the WRC championship. In 2026 he’s coming back to race in the series previously known as CTFROC, and previously previously Toyota Racing Series. CTFROT is NZs premier open wheel series and represents Kalles first major step into open wheelers ahead of competing in Super Formula next year.
  Read more.