If you’ve ever driven a Toyota 86 (or Scion FR-S or Subaru BRZ) and thought it had the makings of a potentially great race car, you’re not alone.
It’s been adapted for a number of racing series around the world, including the TMG GT86 Cup in Germany. And now that spec racer is coming to America.
Toyota has announced that the 86 Cup racer is set to mark its North American debut at Utah Motorsports Campus, competing in the TCA class of the Pirelli World Challenge series the weekend of August 11-13.
The GT86 Cup was developed by Toyota Motorsports GmbH, the same German outfit that runs the manufacturer’s LMP1 and WRC programs, and which used to run its F1 team back in the day. The car serves as the backbone for the TMG GT86 Cup series that supports the VLN championship at the Nürburgring, and is now coming to America for the first time.
The car will be fielded by DG-Spec Racing, which previously took the TC class championship in the Pirelli World Challenge with the Scion tC back in 2010, with former Grand-Am class champion Craig Stanton behind the wheel.
“It’s been a while since we won the championship in Pirelli World Challenge, but we’ve been at the track constantly over the last few years, testing, developing and racing in other venues,” said team principal Dan Gardner. “The team is really sharp and Craig is on his game. The Toyota 86 is ready to go and we hope to turn some heads in Utah.”
No further plans are in place for a broader Pirelli series assault beyond the Utah rounds, but those hoping to see the Toyobaru sports car in action can always check out the GT86 Cup in Germany, the Super GT series in Japan, or Formula Drift right here in America.
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