As drivers in the Toyota Racing Series (TRS) head to Hampton Downs this weekend for the third round of the season there is one consistent driver who has set the benchmark for others to beat.
International driver Sten Pentus is currently racing in New Zealand in the Toyota Racing Series (TRS) in order to gain racing mileage and experience to prepare himself for the 2010 World Series by Renault. Pentus (379 points) currently leads the series from locals Mitch Evans (374) and Earl Bamber (352).
Like many single seater drivers Pentus started in go-karts moving to F4, a similar car to F3 but slower. Pentus says that before the fall of the Soviet Union it was a very popular class of racing in Scandinavian. His first European debut was in Formula BMW but found it difficult without the knowledge, experience and team around him.
Growing up in Estonia, a country of 1.3 million people, and developing a motor racing career was not straight forward. “It is not good for racing, only having one circuit which is in bad shape. I had to go to Latvia, Lithuania and Finland to compete in the Nordic European championship,” comments Pentus.
Estonia is a country with Finland and Russia as neighbours. The most famous Estonian racing driver is world rally championship driver Markko Martin who competed in the WRC between 2000 and 2005. They have also produced a British F3 champion with Marko Asmer winning in 2007. He went onto become a F1 junior test driver for BMW Sauber in 2008.
Well known to Pentus are Kiwi international drivers Chris van der Drift and Brendon Hartley. All three competed in the 2009 World Series by Renault. Run in a similar way to the TRS, this is a controlled single seater class. The chassis is larger than the Toyota with a more powerful V6 Renault engine. The cars are much faster and have more aerodynamic downforce.
Pentus is aiming to compete this year in the same series because of the great benefits that this championship has for drivers. “The World series budget is lower than GP2 (feeder series to F1) and has much more driving – more races and practice than GP2.”
“I got to know more about the Toyota Racing Series through both Brendan and Chris (who also have competed in TRS). They are both good drivers and friends of mine.”
Currently enjoying his experience with TRS in NZ, he comments, “The series is very tough and good competition. There is no time to relax.”
This weekend will have some fantastic racing for spectators. As the fastest class in the country the TRS will be like a duck to water on the new Hampton Downs track. They are the first tier one class to compete at the circuit.
