MOZA backs inaugural New Zealand iRacing Championship
The MOZA New Zealand iRacing Championship launches this week, and with it the hunt for the country's first official national iRacing Champion.
Anyone can have a crack. Forty-eight will make it through to the qualifying races. Twenty-six will make the championship grid. And one driver gets their name in the history books.
Pre-qualifying opens on Monday.
tl;dr
What: The first officially recognised New Zealand iRacing Championship.
Car: Porsche 911 Cup (992.2), fixed setup.
Pre-qualifying: Monday 12th to Friday 16th October, Virginia International Raceway.
Entries close: Thursday 15th October, but don't leave it late.
Finals: Six Wednesday nights, 4th November to 9th December, including a double-points Bathurst enduro.
Broadcast: Live on NZ Sim Racing TV.
The prize: The title, a trophy and a $500 Speednation voucher, with prizes up for grabs every round.
A first, officially
Kiwis have been winning on iRacing for years. Events like the NZ Toyota 86 E-Cup (NZTEC) have crowned worthy winners and even put them in real race cars. But none of those titles carried the national championship tag.
This one does. The MOZA New Zealand iRacing Championship is recognised by NZ Esports and the NZ Sim Racing Collective (NZSRC) as the national championship. Whoever wins it becomes the first official New Zealand iRacing Champion.
It builds on the success of the GT7 New Zealand Championship (GTNZC), the NZSRC's first national title. Run earlier in the year the GTNZC proved the national championships format, crowning Matt McEwen as the GT New Zealand Champion. Now it’s iRacings turn.
“iRacing has long been a global leader in competitive sim racing, and recognising an official New Zealand National Champion on this platform is a natural next step in the continued growth and recognition of Sim Racing Esports in New Zealand.”
“The level of competition is shaping up to be exceptional, and we’re looking forward to bringing all the action to fans across the country through NZ Sim Racing TV when the finals series gets underway in November.” said NZSRC Chairman Matthew Pluck.
MOZA Racing have come to the party as title sponsors for this new series backing the NZ Sim Racing Collective (NZSRC) to host the national title. NZ Esports continue their financial support and backing as the governing body for esports in New Zealand. Regular NZ sim racing supporters Speednation and MRP are backing the prize pool. TrackSpot.TV brings the production and commentary team that will see the full championship broadcast live on NZ Sim Racing TV.
A MOZA Racing spokesperson shared the company's enthusiasm for supporting the championship:
“MOZA is proud to sponsor the iRacing New Zealand Nationals! We’re stoked to support local talent and help grow the Kiwi sim racing community. Good luck to all the drivers—we can’t wait to see some awesome racing!”
The championship runs the Porsche 911 Cup (992.2) on fixed setups. With equal machinery it's down to the drivers to make the difference.
It's a car that will be familiar to racers gunning for the top of the iRacing ladder, being frequently used in top level competition. Two of the biggest are the global Porsche Esports Supercup and the MOZA Racing Porsche Pro Invitational Series across the ditch. Kiwis are already racing at that level too: Hugo Allan has been racing the car in each series this year, with a number of other kiwis racing in the Pro Invitational, no doubt putting a target on their backs as the ones to beat heading into the NZ championship.
Format
The championship runs in three stages, with each stage critical.
Stage 1, Pre-Qualifying (Mon 12 to Fri 16 October): Hot laps at Virginia International Raceway, Full Course. The 48 fastest drivers advance.
Stage 2, Qualifying (Wed 21 October): Circuito de Navarra, Speed Circuit. The 48 qualifiers are split into two groups of 24. Points will be awarded across a sprint and feature race with the top 13 from each group advancing.
Stage 3, Championship (4 November to 9 December): Twenty-six cars, six rounds and one champion.
A race nights follow a standard format: 15 minute qualifying, a 20-minute sprint, and 40-minute feature race. With the top 10 from the sprint reversed for the feature and equal points in each race, it’s format that forces overtaking action and has proven successful across past NZ iRacing events.
Every spot is worth fighting for. Sprint and feature races pay 75 points for a win down to 5 for 26th, while a DNF scores nothing. Round 4, the Enduro at Bathurst is the exception featuring a single 60-minute endurance race worth double points.
Calendar
6 weeks of action across some of the best circuits in world motorsport. From the iconic airfield of Silverstone to the tight streets of Adelaide every round presents a new challenge.
Date | Round | Track |
|---|---|---|
Wed 21 Oct | Qualifying | Circuito de Navarra, Speed Circuit |
Wed 4 Nov | Round 1 | Silverstone, Grand Prix |
Wed 11 Nov | Round 2 | Circuit Gilles Villeneuve |
Wed 18 Nov | Round 3 | Mugello, Grand Prix |
Wed 25 Nov | Round 4, Enduro | Mount Panorama, Bathurst |
Wed 2 Dec | Round 5 | Adelaide Street Circuit |
Wed 9 Dec | Round 6 | Suzuka, Grand Prix |
Prizes
The biggest prize can't be bought. The champion is officially recognised as the New Zealand iRacing Champion, and gets a Champion number board and graphics to carry the title on track.
Champion: The title, the number board and graphics, a 1st place trophy and certificate, and a $500 Speednation voucher
2nd: Trophy, certificate and a $300 Speednation voucher
3rd: Trophy, certificate and a $200 Speednation voucher
Top 10: A commemorative medal for each of the top 10 finalists
There's also something to race for every round, even if you're not in the title fight:
Pole position (Race 1 of each round): $40 MRP voucher
Fastest race lap: $30 MRP voucher
TrackSpot TV Moment of the Round: Chosen by the commentary team, worth $25 in iRacing credit. A big move, a big save or a big mistake. Give them something to talk about.
Who can enter, and how
To enter, you need:
An active iRacing account with the required car and tracks.
New Zealand citizenship or residency, and be currently residing in New Zealand.
A D class Sports Car licence or higher.
Finalists will require a driver cam (a webcam or phone is fine), so the broadcast can show you at work.
Entries close on Thursday 15th October. But with qualifying open on the 12th every day you wait is a day of pre-qualifying runs you've given away. Session passwords go out to entrants by email, so get your entry in early and use the whole week.
Enter here: forms.gle/MKyESr17w725Hamj6
Watch it live: The finals will be broadcast on NZ Sim Racing TV, with the TrackSpot.TV commentary team calling the action. Live from 7:40pm on Wednesdays, with qualifying beginning at 7:50pm.
Who'll be in the mix?
So who'll be lining up? NZ is full of the level of iRacing talent that could see one hell of a series:
Will Cooper Prout swap his Toyota for a Porsche? The 2026 NZTEC champion has already won a national series and brings real-world racecraft from Formula First.
Hugo Allan will be the one to beat. The newest E-Black swept the NZ Global Esports Games qualifier with pole and both race wins. He's off to Los Angeles in December, and he's already racing this car in the Porsche Esports Supercup and MOZA Pro Invitational.
Zach Rattray-White is a question mark. Few Kiwis know this car better. He's on the Supercup grid and second in the MOZA Racing Porsche Pro Invitational Series standings, with three feature race wins this season. The catch is that it’s understood he's based in Australia, and the championship is only open to Kiwis living in New Zealand. If he's back home, he goes straight to the top of the contenders list.
Former E-Black Ewan Baker is a regular at the front of NZ iRacing events. He took a 3rd and a 4th in the Global Esports Games qualifier races, and he's racing the 992 Cup in the Porsche Pro Series this year.
Then there's Matthew McEwen, who's fast in anything. He's the GTNZC champion, a current ACC E-Black and a top-ten finisher in the iRacing Global Esports Games qualifier. Could he become the first driver to hold national titles on two platforms?
That's before you get to Bryce Harding, who chased Allan home in both Global Esports Games qualifier races. The Porsche Pro Series has more Kiwis who could be in the mix: Porsche Carrera Cup Australia racer Tom Bewley, Matchfit Phillip Island 500 winner Stefan McCartain, and 2025 NZTEC champion Antal Sabo.
It'd be fun to see Alex Sprague have a crack too. The young star finished 4th in NZTEC, then won the 2KCup South Island championship in his first full season in a real race car. Add NZ iRacing regular Mitch Sparrow and the field would be stacked.
And if you've been quietly building your iRating, this is your stage.
History's waiting
One day someone will look back at the list of New Zealand iRacing Champions, and one name will be at the top of it.
You've got to be in it to win it.
One grid. One title. One champion. Enter now.