Toyota GT86 Cup Car Set for North American Debut at Utah

Photo: Toyota

TMG’s GT86 Cup car is set to make its North American debut, with Toyota confirming Wednesday that the popular single-make series car will compete in next weekend’s Pirelli World Challenge double-header at Utah Motorsports Campus.

Sports car veteran Craig Stanton will drive the Dan Gardner Spec-entered car in the TCA class, in a planned one-off event, supported by TRD Parts and Accessories.

“Bringing the TMG 86 Cup Car to Pirelli World Challenge presents an opportunity to test and showcase the ability of our Toyota 86 in a competitive racing series,” said Keith Dahl, General Manager, Motorsports for Toyota Motor North America.

“The seasoned DG-Spec team won the PWC title for Scion in 2010 and we’re hopeful they can perform well with the 86.

“We have a great combination of team and driver with Craig Stanton to showcase the ability of this TMG-built 86, so we’re cautiously optimistic for solid results in the Utah double-header.”

Longtime Toyota entrant Gardner, who won the PWC TC class championship with a Scion tC in 2010, said he’s looking forward to the challenge.

His DG-Spec team recently won the One Lap of America in a Toyota Sienna R-Tuned and has provided support for programs such as the Land Speed Cruiser and Rally RAV4.

“It’s been a while since we raced in Pirelli World Challenge with our championship-winning Scion, but we’ve been at the track constantly over the last few years, testing, developing and racing in other venues,” he said.

“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.”

Built by TMG in Cologne, the GT86 Cup cars regularly compete in VLN competition as its own class and is supported through cash prizes and other trackside incentives and finance options.

John Dagys

John Dagys is the founder and Editor-in-Chief of Sportscar365. Dagys spent eight years as a motorsports correspondent for FOXSports.com and SPEED Channel and has contributed to numerous other motorsports publications worldwide. Contact John