Words by Jeric Jaleco
Every driver loves to feel like a hero. It’s why weekend warriors evolve into zealous disciples of the sport: so that they, too, can channel their inner Keiichi Tsuchiya or Ben Collins.
For fans of Subaru’s BRZ and its Toyota-branded variants, the 86Cup Presented by GT Radial time attack league grants that extra competitive edge to miserly racers. Think of it as a chance to let working-class drivers go at it like pros, even for a single Saturday, while giving attendees a spectacle worth watching.
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“The appeal and allure of 86Cup is to foster a community surrounding the FT86 platform,” 86Cup SoCal’s admin and social media manager, Adam Johnston, explains. “We aim to provide beginners and veterans with a perfect environment for not only developing their cars but also their driving skills with the 86 platform.”
Builds can range from mild to wild, with the Stock class running rubber from series sponsor GT Radial. Faster classes, though, can run 200tw tires from the current crop of available options. Off-track camaraderie draws people to the series, competitors state.
A no-cost extra atop several standard track days, the California-based 86Cup latches onto HPDE weekends nationwide alongside similar leagues, such as Wilwood Corvette Challenge, GR Movement and CSF Bimmer Challenge. Highlights are viewed through 86Cup’s Instagram accounts across numerous regional chapters, with SoCal and NorCal consistently being the most active with the longest seasons.
Races can embed themselves into several different track days, including Speed Ventures events at Spring Mountain Motorsports Ranch, The Streets of Willow Springs and WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. Although the series originated in the Golden State, it has since bled across the country, seeing venues like High Plains Raceway in Colorado, VIR in Virginia and Lime Rock Park in Connecticut.
86Cup is divided into four classes to cater to all budgets, with the main overarching rule being to field a Toyobaru. Stock is the starter class, although “stock” is partially a slight stretch. Powertrains are largely untouched, but minimal reliability and adjustability mods like oil coolers and camber bolts/plates are permitted. Stock is required to run that season’s current spec GT Radial summer tire.
The densely packed Street class features more involved builds with more…
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