Marlborough Express - Weekend Express
Go-kart veteran’s flying start to career
Getting behind the wheel of a race car is quite a change of gear from go-karting for a young Marlburian racer.
Having grown up racing around Blenheim’s go-kart track, William Exton has proved himself as one the country’s best in the sport rising star of New Zealand motorsport the 20-year is now showing he’s more than capable of handling a whole lot more horsepower.
Exton has been competing in the 2023/24 Toyota 86 Championship, a premier one-make racing series, and is currently sitting in second place after the first five rounds, having won two of them back-to-back.
Feeling confident going into the final showdown in Taupō this weekend, sitting only 10 points behind the series leader, Exton is now one step away from bringing home the big trophy.
“I want to win it, obviously. The last round, all the pressure is on him, so let’s see what we can do,” Exton said.
The championship was popular with drivers looking to make a name for themselves, including those seeking a change of pace from go-karting, he said.
“Pretty much everyone from go-karts that I’ve raced that was in the top tier with me have gone through, or are in the 86 championship at the moment.
“It’s probably the best thing to have on your resume to come out of New Zealand, especially at my age.”
Although the Toyota 86 was not the fastest car in motorsport, Exton was still topping out at just under 200kph in most of the series rounds.
“And you’ve got 20 other people right behind you doing the same speed,” Exton said.
“There’s the odd race that someone pulls away because there’s a battle and some guy’s just out in front … but a lot of races are very, very, very close, especially at the front.”
Last season was Exton’s first in sports car, so he was feeling “pretty good” about placing on the podium in nearly every race over the 2023/24 series.
Even so, going from go-kart to Toyota 86 was “a lot more different” than he expected: “As soon as you drive a go-kart, you’re thinking about going fast in a car, but it’s quite a bit different, there’s a lot more aspects to it. It was definitely a good thing to learn, especially as I want to go further in my car racing.”
But the world of motorsport isn’t cheap, and Exton is hoping to step it up another gear in 2025, competing across the ditch in a Porsche – a car that will cost at least double the Toyota 86’s cost to run, “so you’re looking at quite an expensive year.”
Sponsors such as Tractor Repairs and Spares, te Pā Wines and Liquid Action had helped him get this far, but he was looking for more support as his career took off.
“You always want to try and do it as early as possible, that’s what everyone’s doing. The age of a professional driver has dropped drastically in the last five to 10 years, so you’ve got to keep up with the momentum and keep moving forwards as fast as possible.”