Former age grade rugby star Ollie Gibbons has gone from driving forward packs to tackling top endurance car racers.
“Sometimes you outgrow one jersey, and you find another one that fits better,” quips the 20-year-old, who is a forestry manager for the family company Gibbons in Nelson.
Two years ago, the halfback looked to be on the rugby fast track having made the Top Four final with Nelson College and then being selected for the New Zealand Schools team with his NC mates Harry Inch and Saumaki Saumaki.
All three attracted league interest but moved to Christchurch last year as part of the Crusaders Academy.
Harry and Saumaki eventually signed with NRL clubs later in 2025.
Ollie juggled commerce studies with academy commitments and played club rugby for Old Boys, with Northland playmaker Rivez Reihana outside him for a few games.
“Rivez is a bloody nice bloke and super genuine, that’s why people love him,” enthuses Ollie.
But while his new clubmate’s career was taking off, Ollie missed out on the Crusaders U20 squad to older halfbacks and found himself at the sporting crossroads.
“I grew up playing rugby and loved every minute of it at Nelson College, but the environment changed and I didn’t see too much of a future for me in rugby.”
Fortunately, the adrenalin junkie had another sporting passion to fuel his competitive instincts – motorsport.
“Since I was eight, I have loved anything with an engine. Cars, motorbikes and boats. I used to do the fun day in Christchurch in my M4 BMW road car.”
Leading Canterbury vehicle dealership Archibalds invited Ollie to attend the Porsche experience in Queensland last year.
“There is a crossover from rugby with persistence, consistency and quick decision making. The difference is, driving is all on you. There is no one else out there, which I really enjoy.”
So, the rugby player became a race driver this year.
“Rugby built me, but I found my lane on the track,” declares Ollie, who moved into motorsport, partnering with Archibalds.
He’s the first driver the company has sponsored since a young Liam Lawson, who has gone on to become a Formula One star.
That must be a hard act follow.
“I am just out there learning for now,” insists the rookie.
OG Motorsport was formed, with Ollie linking with Christchurch-based James Marshall Motorsport to run a Porsche in the South Island Endurance Series.
Ronan Murphy, son of motorsport legend Greg, is his mentor.
“We are mates, so that makes it easier.”
Ollie already has 22 sponsors, headlined by Gibbons, with other local companies, including Splitting Point, along for the ride.
“It is an expensive sport, and I couldn’t do it without people behind me and local business support.”
He knows the importance of keeping his backers involved, with Archibalds putting out weekly newsletters, and sponsorship meetings giving supporters the chance to get in his purple Porsche race car, a colour he chose.
So, everything was good to go in his debut at the Levels circuit in Timaru.
Then a reality check.
“I got out, did one lap and my oil cap flew off, and oil went all over the engine. The team sorted it out, but I had to start last of the 17 drivers,” says Ollie.
The GT class 1 drivers compete in one-hour races, giving Ollie time to work his way up through the field to finish a very creditable third, even though there were only a couple of passing opportunities a lap.
Ollie has hit speeds of 250kmh in his Porsche and gone into corners at 150kmh, confirming he revels in speed.
“I am learning out there, but I am not just going to tootle safely around the track. I am aggressive and out there to race,” he declares.
So, there were high expectations heading to Ruapuna for his second race, where he qualified third but then encountered wet conditions on race day.
Ollie was running behind his JMS teammate Steve Brooks, and when he tried to pass him, the manoeuvre went wrong.
“I came in hot, locked up, couldn’t slow down and hit his car. I broke the steering arm and punctured. Race over.”
Steve carried on but was later forced to retire.
The car was fixed up, and it was off to Teretonga, in Invercargill, for the third and final round of the SIRDC.
After qualifying second, he was making his way through slow traffic when he swerved off the track and lost his front splitter, which controls down force.
He went back on, not knowing the car was damaged, and punctured.
The car went off again, into the gravel and “kissed” the wall.
He was unharmed, the car was “patched up” and 20 minutes later Ollie was back on the track to gain valuable race laps in the Porsche.
After a brief break back in Nelson, it is off to Taupō for the opening round of the Repco NextGen NZ Championships this weekend.
“It is definitely another level up, with drivers from Aussie competing as well. There are four races each weekend, two of 20 minutes and two of 45. I am pretty quick so the shorter races might suit. If you mess up one you still have three more to go. I just have to stay consistent.”
Then it is up to Hampton Downs, a track he knows from time at the Auckland Driver Academy last year, for a rescheduled final race in the North Island Endurance series before returning to the NextGen series early next year.
“The great thing about Porsche racing is it can take you anywhere in the world,” concludes Ollie.
