As the title suggests. What I’ve seen these free-riders did include jumping off a cliff willingly right after the start (if the track had one), driving backwards if it’s a circuit race, or not driving at all. Because some of us actually played, stayed ahead of the AI and thus won the event, these non-contributing players were essentially handed their car prizes, forzathon points, and an item off their playlist without having to do anything at all.
So, I propose that those who were DNF in the Trial would not be allowed to progress to the next race.