{"id":53449,"date":"2025-10-01T04:19:21","date_gmt":"2025-10-01T04:19:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/53449\/"},"modified":"2025-10-01T04:19:21","modified_gmt":"2025-10-01T04:19:21","slug":"tony-quinn-grants-100000-to-f1-hopeful-louis-sharp-to-race-in-formula-regional-oceania","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/53449\/","title":{"rendered":"Tony Quinn grants $100,000 to F1 hopeful Louis Sharp to race in Formula Regional Oceania"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"Tony
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tRodin Motorsport’s Louis Sharp.<\/p>\n

Sharp, who this year raced in the FIA Formula 3 Championship with Rodin, has been announced as the latest recipient of a grant from the Tony Quinn Foundation.<\/p>\n

It will be the first time Sharp has raced in New Zealand since 2022 when he competed in Formula Ford.<\/p>\n

The teenager has since gone on to race in Formula 4 and Formula 3, winning both major British titles in 2023 and 2024.<\/p>\n

After winning GB3, Sharp this year stepped up to the FIA Formula 3 Championship where he scored a season-best fourth in Imola in an otherwise tough season.<\/p>\n

Racing in the Formula Regional Oceania Trophy will act as off-season training for the 18-year-old before returning to Europe.<\/p>\n

Tony Quinn Foundation CEO Josie Spillane said Sharp had been on the radar for several years.<\/p>\n

\t\tFull Credit to the Noise – Your light-hearted take on motorsport\u2019s biggest news Click here to listen<\/a> <\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019d just started the Hampton Downs NZ Racing Academy in 2021 and Louis was our very first participant in the Academy and also a Highlands Young Gun,\u201d said Spillane.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe\u2019s remained a proud ambassador for the parks, stayed in touch and is always prepared to give back. He\u2019s got an X-Factor on and off the track.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe are delighted to now announce him as an ambassador for the Tony Quinn Foundation. It\u2019s a rare achievement, and he\u2019s very deserving of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Tony Quinn Foundation features several high-profile trustees, including four-time Bathurst 1000 winner Greg Murphy.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve been watching Louis for some time, and you don\u2019t get to Europe and have the support he\u2019s had without being a special talent,\u201d said Murphy.<\/p>\n

\u201cDavid Dicker (Rodin Cars) has done an immense job supporting him so far, and this is a chance for the Tony Quinn Foundation to also play a part in helping him take the next step.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe see him as a Kiwi with the potential to make Formula One, and that\u2019s exactly the kind of talent the Foundation is here to support.\u201d<\/p>\n

New-look Formula Regional series adds push-to-pass<\/a><\/p>\n

Sharp\u2019s entry in the Formula Regional Oceania Trophy will give him the chance to win his first grand prix.<\/p>\n

Highlands Motorsport Park will host the New Zealand Grand Prix on January 30-February 1, one of only two grands prix outside of Formula 1 recognised by the FIA.<\/p>\n

\u201cTo be competing in my first New Zealand Grand Prix is another dream come true,\u201d said Sharp.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo many great Kiwi drivers have raced in it and gone on to do amazing things, so I am really looking forward to it.<\/p>\n

\u201cHaving the whole off-season spent racing in such a competitive environment with some of the best up-and-coming drivers from around the world is the perfect preparation before heading back to Europe to continue my path towards F1.\u201d<\/p>\n

The 2026 season will begin at Hampton Downs on January 9-11 before heading to Taupo on January 16-18. Teretonga Park hosts the penultimate round on January 23-25 before the season-ending New Zealand Grand Prix at Highlands on January 30-February 1.<\/p>\n

2026 Toyota Formula Regional Oceania Trophy calendar<\/p>\n

Round 1 \u2013 Hampton Downs Motorsport Park \u2013 January 9-11
Round 2 \u2013 Taupo International Motorsport Park \u2013 January 16-18
Round 3 \u2013 Teretonga Park \u2013 January 23-25
Round 4 \u2013 Highlands Motorsport Park \u2013 January 30-February 1<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Rodin Motorsport’s Louis Sharp. Sharp, who this year raced in the FIA Formula 3 Championship with Rodin, has…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":53450,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[45552,111,139,69,1732,213],"class_list":["post-53449","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-sports","tag-louis-sharp","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-slot4","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53449","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=53449"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/53449\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/53450"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=53449"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=53449"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=53449"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}