Photo: Toyota Gazoo Racing NZ
The Formula Regional Oceania Championship has revealed its first drivers for the 2025 season.
The highest-profile name so far is Indy Nxt regular Josh Pierson, who will race for MTEC Motorsport. Pierson finished 14th in the Indy Nxt standings in 2024, which was his first full campaign in the series after missing five races in 2023 due to sportscar commitments.
He came fourth in USF2000 in 2021 before switching focus to sportscars, winning a race in the LMP2 class of the World Endurance Championship in both 2022 and 2023 with United Autosports. He will contest a third year of Indy Nxt with HMD Motorsports next year.
Two Australian drivers have also signed up to make their debut in the New Zealand-based FROC. Patrick Heuzenroeder, who finished 12th in GB3 this year after stepping up from British Formula 4, will join Pierson at MTEC.
Nicolas Stati, who finished a close runner-up to compatriot Daniel Quimby in United States F4 and holds the same position in the Australian series, will drive for Kiwi Motorsport, the same team he has raced with in North America.
Another of Kiwi Motorsport’s US F4 drivers will line up for Giles Motorsport. A double Formula Ford champion of New Zealand, Alex Crosbie contested the full FROC for Giles at the start of this year and finished fifth in the points before going on to take fourth in US F4.
Sebastian Manson is the first driver announced for M2 Competition. Manson joined the 2024 series for its final two rounds with Giles Motorsport after turning 16 years old at the start of February, and has gone on to finish runner-up in this year’s Japanese Formula Regional championship behind Michael Sauter and a close second in the New Zealand Formula Ford championship, just two points behind Blake Knowles, having also claimed the South Island title.