Shahaan Engineer - Photo Credit: Toyota Racing Series
Shahaan Engineer enjoyed a hugely successful debut weekend in the Toyota Racing Series in New Zealand, the 16 year old taking sixth place in the 'Spirit of a Nation' feature race.
Engineer headed into the series with just a handful of Formula Renault races under his belt, but overcame this to enjoy two strong races in his ETEC Motorsport run car, despite being the youngest driver in the series.
The opening race saw Shahaan finish eleventh after a throttle problem robbed him off a top six finish, which was exactly where he finished in race two in tricky conditions, the race having to be declared after fifteen of the twenty laps due to severe rain and hail.
Shahaan said: “The track was damp and drying so everyone chose slicks. After it dried there were several Safety Car periods, tricky restarts and halfway through the race it began to rain – with hail stones on one side of the track, while the other side was completely dry! From that point on the Safety Car remained on track until the officials decided to end the race early.
“I'm really pleased so far, this series has given me so much experience already in extreme conditions with wet starts and Safety Car periods and the tracks have really challenged us all. I had great support from my engineer Michael and mechanic Murray, they were vital in prepping me for the races. I can't wait to be back in the car.”
ETEC Motorsport team principal Trevor Sheumack aded: “Despite being the youngest and least experienced driver on the grid of this, the most concentrated racing series in the world, Shahaan remained focused and brought the car home under severe weather conditions.”
