Another big season of motor racing action will kick off at Teretonga Park in Invercargill on Saturday with the annual visit of the South Island Endurance Series.

Saturday’s action will feature a 3 Hour race along with two separate 1 Hour races.

The 3 Hour race is the feature on Saturday’s programme and will take place in the afternoon with a small but quality field featuring Lamborghini’s, Audi’s, Porsche’s, a Marc Mustang and a Volkswagen Golf Gti.

Last year’s race winners Steve Brooks and Bill Riding of Christchurch in their Audi R8 return along with the two teams they shared the podium with here last year, Paul Rickerby/Graeme Rhodes in a Marc Mustang and Otago based brothers Allan and Martin Dippie.

Brooks and Riding started their 2025 campaign with a win in Christchurch recently ahead of a Lamborghini Huracan GT3 driven by Christchurch trio, Kane Lawson, Hayden Knighton and Ronan Murphy which will also line up this weekend.

Current Lamborghini Pro-Am World Champion Brendon Leitch will team up with 16-year-old Matt Day of Auckland in another Lamborghini while fellow Southlander Glen Brazier will share a similar car with Andrew Waite of Auckland.

At the opening round at Christchurch recently Brazier and Waite failed to finish so will be desperate for points this weekend.

One dangerous opponent for them all this weekend will be the formidable combination of Aucklanders, Sam Fillmore and Jonny Reid in an Audi R8, both winners of the 3 Hour race at Teretonga in the past, Fillmore three times and Reid on four occasions.

Add in Paul Kelly of Christchurch and Kaleb Ngatoa of Marton in a Porsche 992, Luke Manson of Auckland and James Penrose of Kaiapoi in another of the Audi’s and the podium positions are wide open.

Max Vidau of Australia from Porsche Carrera Cup and Super 2 racing across the Tasman will join Sam Cotterill in another Porsche 992. There are several others in the field capable of being prominent also.

Earlier on Saturday morning two 1 Hour races will be held, the first for Class 4 & 5 cars.

Dan Kelly of Prebbleton in a BMW M3 will be a favourite for Class 4 honours along with Duncan Cundall-Curry of Gisborne in a BMW M1 while in Class 5 Honda Civic’s should be to the fore with last year’s winner Chris Wall of Lower Hutt, Donovan Isted of Mosgiel and James Mitchell of Dunedin the main contenders.

The other 1 Hour race for Class 1,2 and 3 cars will see a resumption of the Round 1 battle between Hugh Gardiner of Auckland in a Porsche 991.2 and local driver Jordan Michels in his Marc Mustang.

Auckland driver Hugh Gardiner, the winner of the Class 2 and 3, 1 Hour race during Round 1 of the South Island Endurance Series at Teretonga Park last season. Photo: Supplied

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They will each be gunning for overall and Class 1 honours while Jaden Ransley of Christchurch in a Falcon and Marco/Vin Schelp of Christchurch in a Porsche 997 will start favourites in Class 2 and Steve Scoles of Cromwell in a Ginetta G55 and Pel Arnott of Auckland in a Hyundai i30N will be frontrunners in Class 3.

There are however plenty of others throughout the field that will keep them honest. One special highlight of the 1 Hour races is the fact that Scoles will also have his grandson, Nieko Scoles on the grid in the other 1 Hour race for Class 4/5 cars in a Mazda MX5.

Tickets for Saturday’s Endurance races are on sale now at E Hayes & Sons at a cost of $15 plus any applicable charges while gate sales are just $20. Children 14 & under accompanied by an adult are free.

On track action commences on Saturday with qualifying at 9.00am.

The following day, Sunday 5 October, a day of racing for the Noel McIntyre Drainage Club Saloons takes place at the circuit. Admission for the public will be free on Sunday with on track action from 10.30am.

Races include a marble draw grid start contest and a team’s race.