Ryan Wood (racing driver)

Ryan Ian Thomas Wood (born 4 December 2003) is a New Zealand racing driver from Wellington, New Zealand. He is currently competing in the Supercars Championship with Walkinshaw TWG Racing, driving the No. 2 Toyota GR Supra.

Ryan Ian Thomas Wood was born on 4 December 2003 in Wellington, New Zealand.^[1][2] Wood came from a racing family, albeit in a different discipline to the one in which Ryan would begin his career. His father, Shane, raced jetsprint boats and quadbikes, but pushed his son to compete in karting from a young age.^[3] The majority of family funds were committed to Wood's karting endeavors, and Wood recalls that the family forewent new furniture and family holidays in the name of funding his racing.^[3]

Wood counts his father, as well as former racing driver Greg Murphy, as his greatest mentors.^[3]

Wood began his pro racing career in sports car racing, taking part in the Toyota Finance 86 Championship before graduating to Porsche Sprint Challenge Australia in 2022. In his lone season in the competition, supported by Team Porsche New Zealand and Earl Bamber Motorsport, he scored a double victory in the opening round at Sydney^[4] before taking victories at The Bend^[5] and Bathurst.^[6] The championship fight between himself and Tom Sargent came down to the final round at Phillip Island, where Wood would ultimately finish second in the championship despite sweeping the weekend.^[7] Wood had secured Porsche New Zealand's scholarship to compete in the Porsche Carrera Cup Australia, but forfeited the offer to compete in Super2 full-time in 2023.^[8]

Wood returned to sports car racing in 2025, taking part in the GT World Challenge Australia alongside fellow Kiwi Steve Brooks.^[9] The duo scored five podium finishes over the course of the season and were classified fourth in the Pro-Am championship.

After a strong season in the Porsche Sprint Challenge the year prior, Wood was offered a seat with Walkinshaw Andretti United for the 2023 Super2 Series. He would be racing in the No. 2 Holden Commodore ZB.^[10]

The season started in Newcastle with Wood finishing in eighth place. For Race 2 of the weekend, he qualified the No. 2 WAU Holden on pole position.^[11] However, he was caught out in an incident during the race. The next round was held at Wanneroo Raceway in Perth. Wood won both races that weekend, solidifying his challenge for the title. The next few rounds were a bit up and down, which meant he was on the backfoot going into the season final in Adelaide. He dominated the weekend, winning both races from Pole, but that was insufficient to secure the title. Wood eventually finishing the season in third.^[12]

Following his strong 2023 Super2 Series Campaign, Walkinshaw Andretti United confirmed that they had signed Wood to race for the team full time in 2024, replacing Nick Percat in the No. 2 Mustang.^[13][14] Upon his debut at Bathurst, he was the only driver on the grid who had never taken part in a Supercars race.^[15] Wood's arrival was cited early on as a 'big culture shift' within the organization, rectifying a soured relationship held between WAU and Percat at the conclusion of the 2023 season.^[16] Wood endured a quiet rookie season, finishing a season-best fourth at Taupo before a repeat performance followed at Wanneroo.^[17] He concluded the season 16th in the drivers' championship.

Over the offseason, Wood embarked on a fitness plan which saw him lose 25 kilograms before the start of the 2025 season. Wood cited his disappointing rookie season as a catalyst to change his mindset off the track, stating that he would "leave no stone unturned" in his effort to climb to the top of the Supercars grid.^[3] During round three of the season, Wood claimed his first Supercars podium finish, bettering his best result at Taupo from 2024 with a third-place finish in race one. He referred to the moment as "a monkey off the back," and was spurred on by the race being in his home country, with compatriot Matt Payne taking the race victory.^[18] Upon the series' return to Perth in June, Wood claimed his first series victory, a moment he described as the achievement of "[a] lifelong dream."^[19] Wood added another pair of podiums at Queensland to conclude the Sprint Cup,^[20] before an electrical failure stymied his chance at winning the Bathurst 1000 alongside Jayden Ojeda.^[21] Wood also qualified for the first ever Supercars Finals Series by securing a top-ten finish in the regular season standings.^[22]

Wood scored pole for the opening round of the Gold Coast 500, but was eliminated from contention before Sandown.^[23] He would score three more podiums in the final five races, taking tenth in the championship. The Supercars website ranked Wood as No. 4 in its top ten Supercars drivers of the season, highlighting his relationship with teammate and season champion Chaz Mostert as well as his qualifying prowess as key contributors to his ranking.^[24]

For 2026, Wood was confirmed to compete in the 2026 Formula Regional Oceania Trophy.^[25] Wood's primary goal was to develop a new set of skills through the open-wheel discipline, with the aim of taking them back to Supercars to "better himself as a driver."^[26]

* Season still in progress

(key) (Race results only)

(key) (Races in bold indicate pole position) (Races in italics indicate fastest lap)

• "Ryan Wood Biography". Supercars.com. Retrieved 5 January 2024.
• "Ryan Wood - Racing career profile - Driver Database". driverdb.com. Retrieved 5 January 2024.