The 2023 Toyota Gazoo Racing (TGR) Festival held at the Quirino Grandstand in the City of Manila attracted more than 6,000 people and garnered around 2.6 million livestream viewers, according to Toyota Motor Philippines (TMP).
Toyota Gazoo racers together with TMC Chairman Akio Toyoda (center)
The two-day event was held as a part of TMP’s 35th Anniversary celebrations. It was attended by Toyota Motor Corporation Chairman Akio “Morizo” Toyoda who showed off his driving and drifting skills using a Toyota GR Yaris WRC rally car. He performed donuts, and he likewise took passengers for a ride-along on the event’s Gymkhana challenge track.
Other famous racers got to showcase their driving skills to the crowd as well. Norihiko Katsuta and Masahiro Sasaki from the TGR Racing team highlighted their driving skills onboard the Toyota WRC Yaris and the Red Bull GR Corolla rally cars.
Morizo piloting the GR Yaris WRC car
Local drivers such as Alex Perez, Luis Gono, Marlon Stockinger, and celebrity racer Ryan Agoncillo also joined the show using several Gazoo Racing performance cars. This includes the GR Supra, GR Yaris, and GR 86.
Toyota then held a multi-day Gymkhana Time Attack competition which tested participants’ driving skills as they went through a track marked by traffic cones while racing against the clock. On the first day, the event was won by Angelo Magtoto in first place, Jason Chuang in second place, and Christopher Co in third place.
The second day meanwhile, saw John Erik Barrera in first place, Mickey Carbonell in second place, and Matt Frederic See in third. The second batch victors for day two in turn are Andre Tan in first place, Russel Cabrera in second place, and Makol Pasumbal in third place.
The Red Bull GR Corolla at the TGR Festival
Besides that, the TGR Festival also saw the commencement of a drifting competition. The winners for this are Hans Jimenez in first place, Paolo Agregado in second place, and Bryan Revilla in third place.
The two-day 2023 TGR Festival also entertained event-goers with live performances from notable local bands and artists such as Parokya Ni Edgar, Kamikazee, Ben&Ben, Ely Buendia, and BGYO.
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