Motorsport eNews Issue 203 - May 3-9, 2011 by V8 Sleuth

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Issue No. 203 May 03 - May 09 2011

V8 SUPERCARS:

COMING TO A TELEVISION NEAR YOU HUGE NEW TV DEAL FOR V8 SUPERCARS – AND IT’S GOT NOTHING TO DO WITH RACE BROADCASTING RIGHTS! DETAILS INSIDE PLUS: KARL REINDLER SPEAKS EXCLUSIVELY ABOUT HIS FRIGHTENING CRASH

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Editorial Editor: Andrew van Leeuwen Executive Editor: Phil Branagan National Editor: Mitchell Adam Publisher: Chris Lambden

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Issue No. 203 | May 3 – 9 2011

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Fried Chicken Wings – Reality V8 Supercars TV 6 Burnt Chicken Wings BJR’s post-fire plans 9 Chicken Wings Vindaloo V8’s Indian push 10 BYO Chicken Wings Lowndes, Luff and Audi

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comment 28 Branagan on them Joneses 29 van Leeuwen loses Control

race 30 Barbagallo V8s 42 Fujitsu V8s 46 Carrera Cup 50 V8 Utes 52 Touring Car Masters 58 Richmond NASCAR

trade 66 Classifieds 3

eNEWS EXCLUSIVE

Reality TV show set to g driver their Bathurst deb V8 SUPERCARS

8 SUPERCARS appears set to break through into the world of prime time, reality television in the next few weeks, through an innovative series that is designed to give a young driver the chance to race in the Bathurst 1000. eNews has learned that an indevelopment TV series, currently under the working title of ‘Supercar Showdown’, will give 10 young drivers the chance to compete – in front of the cameras – for a seat at Phillip Island and Bathurst this year. The 10 drivers will undergo a Master Chef-style elimination process, which will revolve around different themes in each episode to reduce the number of candidates one-by-one. In the final stages of the competitive, the final three drivers will undergo a ‘Shootout’, out of which one winner will emerge. That man (or woman) will earn their seat alongside an experienced V8 Supercar driver, with previous Bathurst experience. We believe that the man likely to fill that role is current ‘Sunrise’ weatherman, host of ‘Australia’s Got Talent’ and part4

time racer, Grant Denyer. eNews understands that Denyer and the competition winner will share a VE Commodore as a wildcard entry, sourced from Kelly Racing. Backing for the car, (and major sponsorship of the series) will, our sources suggest, come from fast food giant KFC. A Kelly/KFC link already exists through Pepsi Cola, which backs Greg Murphy’s #11 Commodore, and which has long links with the food chain as a supplier. And KFC previously sponsored Denyer ... Given the links between V8 Supercars, Denyer and Seven, the series appears likely to be aired locally on that network (possibly on digital Channel 7mate), starting in June. Interest in the program is certain to be high among aspiring V8 Supercar drivers, and not only in Australia. We believe that drivers in other countries have been approached, and are being assessed for their suitability for the competition, both from a driving skills and media point of view, so that the winning driver will be capable of not only looking good on TV but of doing a professional job in the endurance races. Sounds like a rating winner to us ...

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BJR LOOKS TO SPARE SHELL FOR WINTON V8 SUPERCARS

give a young ebut Finger-licking good: Denyer has raced with KFC backing in the past.

BRAD Jones Racing will work overtime to prepare a car for the next round of the V8 Supercar Championship at Winton. The team will wheel out a fresh bodyshell to prepare for the next races, in the wake of Karl Reindler’s accident in Race 8 on Sunday. Reindler’s Fair Dinkum Sheds Commodore was struck from behind by an unsighted Steve Owen when the West Aussie stalled on the grid. Both Holdens ended up on the infield grass, with Reindler leaping out of the fireball with minor injuries. “It’s the spare shell, the one that Karl raced last year,” Brad Jones said on Monday. “Karl moved into the car that Brighty drove last year, so it is not something we are not familiar with.” Jones said that the team “would evaluate the driver situation the week prior to the race”. Should Reindler not be fit enough to drive, it is likely that one of the team’s endurance drivers, who would be present for the weekend anyway, could deputise, so it is possible that Andrew Jones would return to action. Jones raced the team’s BOC entry at the end of last season after Jason Richards was diagnosed with cancer.

Phil Williams

For more on the Reindler crash, see across the page for a spectacular image and exclusive insight.

CONGRATULATES JASON BARGWANNA ON A SUPERB BARBAGALLO RESULT! Dirk Klynsmith

Ph: (03)5622 0800 or 0400 526 257 CLICK HERE: www.janaliving.com.au www.mnews.com.au

THE CRASH: IN “I KARL’S OWN WORDS

T was pretty scary. I mean, I’ve had accidents before– they are part and parcel of the sport – but that was a big hit. “I realised it was a big hit straight away, but I wasn’t really fazed by the hit. It was when I realised that there were flames on the inside of the car that it got scary. I could feel a big heatwave come through, and I could see the flames. I wanted to close my eyes, but I had to

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IMAGE: SCOTT WENSLEY

look to see what I was doing. “I tried to get out of the car as methodically as possible, but I panicked. I never even considered hitting the fire bomb in the car to set off the extinguishers, I just made the appropriate steps to get out of the car as quickly as possible. I didn’t bother undoing my cool suit, or my helmet fan, or my radio, or the water. I just undid the belts, and then tried to remove the net on the window, which proved to be quite difficult. www.mnews.com.au

“As I was trying to get out, the suede seat had already melted to my suit, and my suit had already melted to the seat belts. Eventually I got out, with everything still connected, and I just ran. It all just ripped and tore apart. “Sam, my Number 1 mechanic, was first on the scene. He was there so fast. He threw me on the ground, and made me do the stop, drop roll thing that we all learned as kids.

My gloves had melted to my hands by that stage, and that’s why I was shaking my hands. It was incredibly painful. I just needed to get those gloves off. “By the time I got my helmet off, I could taste the petrol in my mouth. The fumes were burning my throat and mouth. I was getting sprayed in the face with water to get the petrol away.” Karl Reindler spoke to Andrew van Leeuwen 7

V8 SUPERCARS DRIVERS doing burnouts as part of their post-race celebration will now be penalised, V8 Supercar officials have warned. The issue has been thrust under the spotlight recently, with Jamie Whincup (Albert Park) and Shane van Gisbergen (Hamilton) both using burnouts as part of their winning celebrations. But despite an excellent

TDR codriver close

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No mad skids, boys response by the drivers, fans and viewers (including eNews readers), drivers were told in Perth that from on, penalties will be handed down if burnouts are performed. The reasoning given to the drivers was that burnouts add to the time it takes for the winner to return to the pits after a race, potentially disrupting the tight television schedule. Burnouts will still be allowed for whoever is

crowned Champion at Homebush at the end of the season. However, the burnout ban has been poorly received by the drivers. “I thought it was great when van Gisbergen did it in Hamilton,” said Tony D’Alberto. “Everyone loved it. It’s showing the emotion of winning a race. We try and base so much of our sport on NASCAR, then take away this, something really fun for the

Should race winners be allowed to do burnouts? Let us know via Twitter – @MotorsportENews or on our Motorsport eNews Facebook page

V8 SUPERCARS

expected to have a driver signed before the Winton round of the championship, which kicks off on May 20. By doing so, WSR will be able to field its new signing in the codriver practice sessions at the rural Victorian circuit. As for the who the driver is, eNews understands that,

despite his public spat with the team, Shane Price is still in the frame. However, the most likely outcome is that last weekend’s Carrera Cup round winner Jonny Reid will get the drive – although a left-field signing can’t be ruled out. – ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

THE final remaining endurance seat will be filled in the coming weeks, as Wilson Security Racing looks to lock down a driver to share with Tony D’Alberto at Phillip Island and Bathurst. D’Alberto and his team are

drivers and the fans.” “Burnouts are great for the sport,” added David Reynolds. “Especially in the case of Shane where it was his first win. You need things like that, otherwise it all looks too boring.” – ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

Lowndes: My best chance V8 SUPERCARS

Rob Lang

COULD Jamie Whincup’s biggest challenger for the 2011 V8 Supercar title come from within his own team? After solid rounds in New Zealand and Perth, Craig Lowndes has earmarked 2011 as the year where he has his best chance of winning an elusive fourth title – which is exactly what he told assembled media after his second place finish in Race 7 at Barbagallo Raceway.

“Right at the moment, yes [this is my best chance at a title],” he said. “In the last three or four years, I’ve never had a strong start to the season, [but] I always have a very strong back half [of the season]. So for me, its great to have decent rounds like New Zealand. In previous years I’ve hit everything except the Safety Car over there. So it’s nice to come away with a second from there. I was a bit disappointed with the Sunday,

but we still came away with some good points. “Really, I’m just trying to clean up the circuits that I haven’t done well at, and so far, touch wood, it’s going to plan. We’re in a great position now in the championship, we’ll fight hard. The next couple round we go to is Winton, which has been quite kind [in the past]. “It’s a long year, there’s a long way to go. You’ve just got to stay consistent, stay at the front, and stay out of trouble.” motorsport news

Will V8 Supercars force into India? V8 SUPERCARS is eyeing a double swing in India as part of its overseas expansion. News broke last Friday that V8 Supercar officials and trade representatives from India had met to talk about staging two V8 Supercar events in India – one at the new Formula 1 facility in New Dehli, inset, and another at an existing circuit near Chennai. The Indian races might even happen as soon as 2012, however a 2013 kick off is much more likely. The V8-India deal might not be restricted to races, either; a radical plan to have an Indian team and driver enter the series are also being discussed. Australia Trade Commission’s

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senior trade commissioner from New Delhi Peter Linford met with V8 Supercar CEO Martin Whitaker and executive chairman Tony Cochrane on the Gold Coast last week. “Having an Indian driver with an Indian team racing against all of the other Australians makes a lot of sense because that will give us the opportunity to televise the series more popularly in India,” Linford told AAP last Friday. “Then, when the series does come to India it will have a fan base already established. “From the V8 side they’re all ready to put up a base sponsorship commitment so the commitment of money has actually come from the V8s themselves here in Australia

to the Indians, rather than the other way around ... and we don’t see that too often. “The next phase is to get an equal commitment from the Indian side and then to work together with the Indian and Australian commercial entities to bring about other commercial supporters, so we’ve got the budget needed to deliver the first event.” Whitaker confirmed that the ball was already rolling in regard to racing in India. “I can’t really tell you when [we would race there], but there’s a considerable amount of interest from there in us going there, which I think echoes how we’re increasingly

sutton-images.com

V8 SUPERCARS

viewed worldwide,” Whitaker told AAP. “I’d love to see an Indian driver in the Fujitsu cutting his teeth there then moving up to the main game. There’s a lot of Indian companies who are investing in Australia and a lot of Australian companies investing in India. It’s being done not just for the racing and the TV spectacle, but the business opportunities and the tourism opportunities that come with it.”

Should V8 Supercars race in India? Let us know via Twitter – @MotorsportENews or on our Motorsport eNews Facebook page

AUSSIES OVERSEAS CRAIG Lowndes and Warren Luff will head to Germany later this month to contest a round of the VLN Series at the Nurburgring with Audi Race Experience. Lowndes, in particular, has been vocal about his ambitions to contest the Le Mans 24 Hour, and the pair started a relationship with Audi at February’s Bathurst 12 Hour. Since then, the various parties have been in talks to explore opportunities to race in Europe and, as previously reported by eNews, the Nurburgring’s VLN Series will be the starting point. The Nurburgring 24 Hour is on

their radar and while Luff has contested the race before, Lowndes has never raced on the famed Nordschleife, and must complete a lower-level race at the circuit to gain the credentials. On May 28, he’ll do that when he and Luff team up in an Audi Race Experience R8 LMS in the four-hour ADAC ACAS H&R-Cup. “We’ve been in talks with Audi since the 12 Hour, trying to work out a race and a track that we could compete at with them in the future,” Lowndes said. “Our main objective was to do the 24 Hour race, but to do the 24 Hour race, you need to classify yourself and it’s a circuit

Andrew Hall

International Audi gig for Lowndes & Luﬀ I haven’t raced at before – the full circuit, I’ve raced on the short circuit, the Formula 1 track – but to do the 24 Hour race you need to be classified. “And to do that you need to do, in a sense, a club race, and this will classify us to do the 24 Hour race. Mostly likely next rather than this year, but whenever we can.” The pair will fly from Melbourne to Frankfurt on Monday May 23 after Winton’s V8 Supercar round and are likely to get some time on the circuit before the event kicks off. GT racer Marc Basseng – who was in the ‘international’ Audi at Bathurst – has been enlisted to help them get up to speed.

“I think on the Tuesday or Wednesday there’s an open sort of day that we can drive around the circuit in road cars and that’ll give us a great opportunity to get our head around the circuit,” Lowndes said of the build-up. “Learning the circuit as quickly as we can is going to be the ultimate thing. We’ll look at YouTube to try and get a handle on what it’s all about and it’s already been organised for Marc to spend some time with us to try to give us a heads up on lines, brake markers on a track he knows well. “He knows the Nurburgring like I know Bathurst, so that’ll be a great help.” – MITCHELL ADAM

Murph calls for longer quali V8 SUPERCARS

Serge Mironenko

GREG Murphy has called for the all-in qualifying sessions to be longer at V8 Supercar race meetings. According to Murphy, 20 minutes is not long enough for drivers to safely attack a qualifying session – particularly at short circuits like Barbagallo Raceway and Symmons Plains. “I think the powers that be need to have a good, hard look at these qualifying sessions,” Murphy told eNews. “We are just asking for damaged cars with this 20 minute session. There needs to be a realistic approach taken to this issue, because someone will have a big crash, and the someone else will get penalised for it … and it won’t be fair. I

mean, the end of the sessions [at Barbagallo Raceway] were absolute chaos! 20 minutes is just ludicrous.” At Barbagallo Raceway, the main game were limited to two 20 minute qualifying sessions, while the Fujitsu V8 Supercar Series competitors were given 30 minutes to qualify. Murphy believes it is the wrong way around. “A longer qualifying session is better for everyone. The fans get to see the cars for longer, there’s a lot less chance of damaging cars, and it’s really easy to do. Someone needs to be sensible about this issue.” But while Murphy was critical of the length of the session, he said using the fastest two laps from Sunday’s session to determine the grid for Races

8 and 9 didn’t change his approach much. “To be honest, it’s not really [weird],” added Murphy. “We had five sets of tyres, and we only got to run on four. You have heaps of tyres, so every time you go out you just try and do the fastest lap you can. That’s what we do all the time. You go as fast as you possible

can and hope that it’s good enough.” Murphy qualified 18th for Race 8, and 11th for Race 9. – ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN Should the all-in qualifying sessions be longer? Let us know via Twitter – @MotorsportENews or on our Motorsport eNews Facebook page motorsport news

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Senna and Ratzenberger WILL CATERHAM END LOTUS CONFUSION? FORMULA 1 TEAM Lotus has bought Caterham Cars – but whether or not the purchase will resolve the confusing Lotus name issue in Formula 1 is not yet known. Last week, Tony Fernandes’ Team Lotus Enterprises bought Caterham Cars from Corven Ventures. According to Fernandes, the deal is about the upkeep of the famous ‘Seven’ sportscar design, originally a Lotus creation. “Caterham has a unique place at the

heart of the motoring world,” said Fernandes. “As well as being proudly and staunchly British, it has an enviable and uniquely unblemished reputation within the industry for performance, handling and engineering excellence. “Caterham Cars has remained wholly faithful to Colin Chapman’s philosophy of ‘less is more’, and the DNA of the original Seven can still be traced to the newest additions to Caterham’s product offering.”

But while Fernandes has confirmed that his GP2 team will be branded as Caterham, he told AUTOSPORT that he will wait on the results of the upcoming court case with Group Lotus over the use of the Lotus name before making a decision about the branding of the F1 team. “I don’t know yet, to be honest,” Fernandes said. “I am waiting to see what happens with the case, and all these sort of things. But an ideal scenario would be a marriage of the two.”

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RAIN HA INDYCA BRAZIL INDYCAR PERSISTENT rain and poor visibility has forced the postponement of the Sao Paulo IndyCar race to Monday morning, South American time. The race did get under way as scheduled yesterday, but heavy rains which set in half an hour before the start caused a series of incidents and lengthy spells behind the pace car. By half distance as dusk approached, visibility became

a serious enough issue for the decision to be taken to call a halt to proceedings. Will Power, who started from pole for the 20th time of his career, had held the lead throughout the 14 laps that were completed of the scheduled 75, and so retains pole for the resumption. According to the order on lap 14, alongside on the front row will be Ryan Briscoe, followed by Takuma Sato, Graham Rahal and Dario Franchitti. – MARY MENDEZ

Love v Hate INDYCAR THE drivers and teams might not like it, but the fans love it. The IZOD IndyCar Series’ new double file restart procedure seems to be a hit with the public, and for that reason it isn’t likely to go away any time soon. Car owners see it as a needless cause of more crashes, and therefore more expense, by placing the drivers in such close proximity. As for the drivers, all three race winners this season agree these restarts could have Championship ending consequences. “The double file restarts have really mixed it up,” said Will Power, winner at Barber Motorsports Park. “Most of the top contenders have been taken out at some point. I only finished 10th at Long Beach. There is not much you can say because it was a racing accident (hit and spun 14

by team-mate Helio Castroneves). It’s a product of double file restarts. I expect lots of crashes on every restart because we approach the starter at slower speeds. There is always someone who gets desperate thinking they can win the race from sixth place.” “The double file restarts can work in favour or against you,” explained Dario Franchitti, winner of the St Petersburg season opener. “I’ve been on the lucky side at both St Petersburg and Long Beach where I could make passes. But the other side is my team-mate, Scott Dixon, who has been taken out in two of three events.” “The double file restarts are a bit of a mess,” said Long Beach winner Mike Conway. “I was caught up in the St Petersburg start but at Long Beach I was able to come back from 21st after a bad pit stop.” –MARY MENDEZ

Panther Raci Buddy Rice f INDYCAR BUDDY Rice has signed with Panther Racing to become JR Hildebrand’s team-mate for the Indianapolis 500. Rice, after a two-year IndyCar hiatus, will drive the #44 entry. Panther Racing has finished second in the last three Indy 500s (2008 with Vitor Meira and 2009 and last year with Dan Wheldon). During Rice’s 97 IndyCar series starts, the American earned three victories, five poles, and finished a career high of third in the 2004 Championship. “I’m pumped to be at Panther,” the ‘04 500 winner said. motorsport news

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ALTS Everybody Loves ARS IN Juan* L

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NASCAR

OIndyCar Media

JUAN Pablo Montoya has been involved in yet another incident in NASCAR’s Sprint Cup – and there are signs that the other drivers in the series have had enough. After starting from the pole at Richmond, Montoya fell back from the leaders, and after the first round of green flag pitstops, was involved in a clash with Ryan Newman. The two Chevys clashed, and Montoya’s Earnhardt Ganassi car spent the next hour in the garage, getting patched up. When the red car returned to the race it was, likely, only for one reason. Sure enough, on lap 237, Montoya tapped Ryan Newman, spinning him into the path of Kurt Busch. “He just drifted up in front of me [the first time] and that was it and crashed himself basically,” Newman said. “I don’t know if he didn’t know he wasn’t clear or what, but he crashed himself off of Turn 2.

“I don’t know if he thought it was me on purpose, but the message was delivered that it wasn’t intentional. Either way, he ruined our day at that point and then he finished our day off later in the race on purpose.” While Newman visited the NASCAR officials’ trailer after the race, Montoya made no comment – but second-placed Denny Hamlin did, at the post-race press conference. “I watch the screen,” said Hamlin, referring to the giant video screen in the middle of the infield. “I don’t like it. Every time Montoya has damage, you see who did it, [and] they usually end up getting wrecked. You usually know that’s coming. “You have to realise – Montoya, I like him; I think he’s a hell of a driver. But you can’t wreck everyone every time you get in an accident. Accidents happen. Guys make mistakes. Why hold grudges?”

cing signs for Indy 500

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NASCAR Media

“The intention is that we’ll be able to run more than Indy, but this is the first step. I’m here to help JR and the team. “The whole key for me coming back is that I wanted to be in competitive equipment and have a chance to win. I didn’t want to come back to Indy just to pound out laps. “I’ve had offers in the past that didn’t work out for different reasons. I wasn’t coming back and driving unless I had the chance to run up front. Panther is a team that can win the race so when I had the opportunity, I couldn’t say no.” –MARY MENDEZ

MW looks at Wildcard, FG V8 SUPERCARS MW Motorsport is looking to add an FG Falcon to their stable in time for this year’s V8 Supercar endurance races. The Fujitsu Series squad has run as a wildcard at Phillip Island and Bathurst for the last two years, and currently field three BF Falcons in the

second-tier category. They’d like to run as a wildcard again in 2011, but would need to upgrade to an FG for the two Main Game races. It’s something team boss Matthew White is investigating, with a view to acquiring an FG – with FPR the likely source – for use in the endurance races followed

by their ongoing FV8 program. “It’s definitely something I’d like to pursue,” White said of the wildcard opportunity. “We’re looking at getting an FG, so that would be a great platform to start from, but it does require getting a lot of things in order. (MW’s lead Fujitsu Series drivers) Dave [Russell] and Tim [Blanchard]

have both got enduro drives, so we’d have to look elsewhere for drivers but there is interest out there. “We’ll see which way it falls. We’ve enjoyed doing it the last few years, and I think we’ve done a fairly solid job, we’ll put it out there and see what people want.” – MITCHELL ADAM

Emery and GMR look at enduros, too V8 SUPERCARS GEOFF Emery is looking to run as a wildcard at Phillip Island and Bathurst again this year with Greg Murphy Racing. Emery drives a VE Commodore for the squad in the Fujitsu Series, and raced in the team’s wildcard entry last year alongside Marcus

Zukanovic. While in the early stages of exploring a possible 2011 wildcard program, Emery says he’s keen to contest the two Main Game enduros again. One of his GMR team-mates, New Zealander Daniel Jilesen could also be involved. “We were discussing it this morning, would you believe, for the first time,” Emery said during Barbagallo Raceway’s

Fujitsu Series round. “It’s definitely on the cards but obviously it is early days at this stage. Obviously we’ve got four cars at GMR, so we’re just tossing up which one we’re going to use and how we juggle it all, whether we run the Fujitsu Series races at Bathurst as well as a wildcard or what. “There are several options

for us at the moment. A lot of it comes down to budget, so we’re just trying to put a budget together for it. If we can pull the budget together, I’m keen to do it, for sure. I think young Daniel wants to have a go as well, obviously budget pending, so that’s pretty much GMR’s intention at this stage, I think.” – MITCHELL ADAM

Phil Williams

motorsport news

news

PLANNING UNDERWAY FOR NEW WA CIRCUIT GENERAL PLANNING for a new racing circuit in Western Australia has received preliminary council approval from the Shire of Murray. The circuit, which would be built on 250ha of rural land in the Nambeelup area, approximately 60 kilometres south of Perth, was first flagged at Shire of Murray Planning and Development Services Committee meeting back in December last year. A Mr Steve Ling, from KML Private Equity, attended the meeting with a Mr Jeff Zampatti, a consultant to Trackday Limited. The pair proposed to build a racing circuit and resort on the land, as part of a lease deal with Trax Infrastructure Group, which plans to build new permanent circuits in up to five Australian states.

According to the minutes from the meeting, ‘Trackday’s objective is to construct and operate motor sport facilities in Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria, New South Wales and Queensland. Three new sites have been identified and it is intended to make an offer to include Phillip Island Circuit in the portfolio. ‘Trackday’s management will be led by Luke O’Neill who is recognised as the most experienced operator in Australia who, with very limited access to facilities, has attracted a client base in excess of 3000. ‘It is proposed to establish on-site accommodation and hospitality services which will attract intrastate, interstate and international tourists to the Murray/Peel Region. This will provide employment and business opportunities for the local community.’

The minutes also state that the circuit would be called ‘Ravenswood Raceway’, as a tribute to the drag racing facility that used to operate in the Peel/Murray region until it was replaced by the Kwinana Motorplex. Cr Morris Bessant gave the plans the Shire’s thumbs up at the conclusion of the presentation. The official recommendation was ‘That Council, in respect to the proposal by Trax Infrastructure Group Ltd for a Motor Racing Circuit and Associated Facilities on Lot 71 Hopeland Road, Nambeelup, advises the applicant that: 1) whilst it cannot pre-empt a decision on a future formal planning application, it is considered that there is a strong case to further explore the proposal, subject to all of the normal planning and environmental issues being addressed,

including in particular the impact of noise from the facility on the surrounding land; and 2) encourages the applicant to work with the Shire toward preparing a formal comprehensive application which satisfactorily addresses such issues.’ There has been no further communication published via the Shire of Murray since. This isn’t the first time that plans have been laid for a circuit in the state’s South West. Back in 2007, Ross Roberts led a bid to build a circuit near Bunbury, however the concept was curiously abandoned after the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport distanced itself from Roberts and the planned circuit. eNews has been unable to make contact with any of the people involved in the new project. – ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

BARKER EYES BRITCAR ON TRIP HOME SPORTSCARS BEN Barker will use Carrera Cup’s mid-season break to go home to England and look to build his European sportscar profile. The reigning Australian Formula 3 Champion has switched to tin-tops in 2011, and has made an impressive start to his maiden Carrera Cup

program. In the gap between Round 3 of the series at Townsville in July and Round 4 at Bathurst in October, Barker will head back to Europe and make at least one appearance in the Britcar Series. “I want to go back to Europe and crack GTs over there as well, and get a name for myself over there,” Barker said of his career,

“But Australia’s definitely on the top of the list [long term], as far as V8s go. “I’m planning on going back to Europe midway through the year, actually, to have a race. “I’m looking at a GT race, in Britcar, it’s not 100 percent confirmed, but we’d be in a Lamborghini Gallardo, which would be getting another car on my CV which is good. We’re

getting the interest out there with owners in Europe, which is good, I’ve just got to try and make the most of it. “I’m looking to go back and do a few races to keep me in the seat, basically, go and see family and friends and that sort of thing as well. But the main agenda is to try and get in a seat.” – MITCHELL ADAM

LOVE TO TWEET? THERE ARE THREE WAYS TO FOLLOW MOTORSPORT NEWS 1 – GET THE LATEST NEWS AT @MOTORSPORTENEWS 2 – FOLLOW V8 SUPERCAR RACE ACTION LIVE AT @MNEWSUPDATES 3 – FOLLOW THE MNEWS TEAM AT @PHILBRANAGAN (PHIL BRANAGAN) @AVLMELBOURNE (ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN) @DRMITCHELLADAM (MITCHELL ADAM) UR

O HING ON Y GOT SOMET TO ’T FORGET N O D ? D N I M BOUT IT! A S U T E E TW www.mnews.com.au

Rob Lang

Heimgartner at Winton FORMULA FORD ANDRE Heimgartner will continue in the Australian Formula Ford Championship at Winton, but he remains a round-byround prospect for the balance of the season. The 15-year-old New Zealander made his debut in the Australian Formula Ford Championship at the Clipsal 500, having previously won the 2010/2011 New

Zealand Formula Ford Championship and appearing in the 2010 Victorian Formula Ford Championship. In what was initially a one-off drive, Heimgartner showed impressive pace in one of Team BRM’s Mygales, and has secured the funding to race in Round 2 alongside Tom Goess. Beyond that, though, his future in the championship remains uncertain. “Andre’s in for Winton, but it’s round by

round at the moment,” Team BRM’s Mark Rundle told eNews. “He’s keen as mustard to do the rest of the year, but obviously budgets have got to come into it. “But he’s really looking forward to Winton. He raced there last year in the Victorian State Series and, considering the pace he had at Clipsal, he’ll be at the front, so he’s really looking forward to it.” – MITCHELL ADAM

Brabham returns for 3 FF rounds FORMULA FORD

Dirk Klynsmith

MATTHEW Brabham will return to the Australian Formula Ford Championship at Winton later this month. Brabham contested the 2010 championship as a CAMS Rising Star, but has switched to Sonic Motor Racing Services in 2011. While the focus of that program is the Victorian Formula Ford Championship, he’ll also contest three National rounds in his Mygale. The first of those will be

Winton on May 20-22, while Brabham’s State Series team-mate Josh Hunter will also make three National appearances with Sonic throughout the year. “Matt’s, at this stage, doing three rounds,” Sonic boss Michael Ritter told eNews. “Winton’s going to be the first, the other two at the moment are TBA but we’re definitely going to be doing another two. “The plan is to do the same thing with Josh, the only one we’ve absolutely locked in

with him at the moment is Symmons Plains. The ideas is to give them both mileage in the National Series and they’ve obviously got to raise their level compared to what they’re doing at State to get them ready for next year, basically.” Sonic runs three cars fulltime in the Australian Formula Ford Championship, for Cameron Waters, Nick Foster and Garry Jacobson. – MITCHELL ADAM motorsport news

news

WSBK Bust WORLD SUPERBIKE

GREEN RED-FACED OVER PMM BLUE V8 SUPERCARS DANNY Green drove a V8 Supercar for the first time at Barbagallo Raceway, but not for very long ... The current IBO Cruiserweight Champion backed Paul Morris’ Fujitsu Series entry in WA, to promote his title bout with Antonio Tarver in Sydney in July, and a drive in Morris’s Commodore was organised, with the West Australian having secured a CAMS licence before the event. The drive was in jeopardy when Morris rolled in the second Fujitsu Series practice session, but the car was repaired

in time for Green to get behind the wheel. With Morris in the passenger seat, he spun at Kolb Corner on the first of his three scheduled laps. “Paul said ‘you know, we'll just ease into it this first lap and work our way up to speed’ but I just went for it from the word go like I do in my fights!” Green said. “I had three laps up my sleeve, but I didn’t have much control. I was really looking forward to going down the bottom of the back straight, but I had fun. I went for it. Unfortunately, I’m not experienced enough. I dropped the clutch out going from fourth to third – probably should have stayed in fourth –

and the back wheels locked up and it started spinning.” Despite the shorter than expected drive, Green is keen to get behind the wheel. He’ll spend further time at PMM’s Driving Centre, and may sample a Supercar again at a test day later this year. “I’d love to do more motorsport,” he said. “The guys at Paul Morris Motorsports have been great, though but Paul's said before I get behind the wheel of one of his racecars again I have to head up to the Gold Coast for a full day's training with his crew at The Driving Centre ... probably not a bad call either!”

months or so. We’re still looking good, but we don’t have a date when it should be ready, it’ll be ready when it’s ready. “We’ll try and get the Javelin ready for Darwin, but if we don’t, we’ve got the Sprint.” Sprint. – MITCHELL ADAM “It’s coming along but it’s not a priority,” he said of the Javelin. “The priority is keeping racing what we’re racing, the Javelin will be another couple of months or so. We’re still looking good, but we don’t have a date when it should be ready, it’ll be ready when it’s ready. “We’ll try and get the Javelin ready for Darwin, but if we don’t, we’ve got the Sprint.” – MITCHELL ADAM

SPRINT OR JAVELIN?

JIM Richards isn’t sure which car he’ll drive in the Touring Car Masters at Hidden Valley in June, but he doesn’t really mind either way. TChotly-anticipated MASTERS AMC Javelin is Richards’ nearing completion at his Melbourne base, and JIM Richards sure car he’ll while Richards isn’t would likewhich to debut it in drive the in the Touring Car Masters at Hidden Valley in Northern Territory, he’s in no rush to finish the June, but he doesn’t really mind either way. build and get the car on the track. If it’s not Richards’ hotly-anticipated Javelin is ready, he’ll simply stick with hisAMC current Falcon nearing completion at his Melbourne base, Sprint. andcoming while Richards would likea to debut it “It’s along but it’s not priority,” heinsaid the Northern Territory, he’s in no rush to finish of the Javelin. the build and get the car on the track. If it’s “The priority is keeping racing what we’re not ready,the he’ll simply stick with his current Falcon racing, Javelin will be another couple of www.mnews.com.au

A DRUG scandal has struck the Superbike World Championship. Trucks belonging to Paul Bird Motorsport, the company that runs the WSBK’s Kawasaki Racing Team, were stopped and searched on the way back into Britain from Italy last week. United Kingdom Border Agency (UKBA) officers allegedly discovered 8kg of cocaine, 71kg of amphetamine tablets and more than 100kg) of cannabis in the vehicles, as well as a handgun and 35 rounds of ammunition, according to a report in Britain’s Telegraph newspaper. Four members of the Bird team were arrested on suspicion of firearms offences and importing controlled drugs. They were later bailed. A UK Border Agency spokesman said: “Two lorries were searched by UK Border Agency officers as they passed through Dover Eastern Docks. Quantities of Class A drugs, Class B drugs and a handgun were discovered. “Four men, aged 50, 40, 32 and 27 were arrested on suspicion of the importation of controlled drugs and firearm offences. They were questioned and later released on bail pending further enquiries.” The incident means that trucks involved in many levels of the sport, up to an including Formula 1, are likely to undergo much more stringent searching when the re-enter Britain in future. 19

Prodrive

A MINI COMEBACK WRC THE long awaited debut of the MINI WRC Team will take place this weekend, at Round 5 of the World Rally Championship in Sardegna, Italy. Both factory MINI drivers, Dani Sordo and Kris Meeke, will be on hand to give the new John Cooper Works WRCs their first competitive outing, after several thousand kilometres of testing and twoyears preparation. But this is only the beginning of a limited program for Prodrive, BMW and MINI in 2011, with this weekend’s round being the first of six planned for this year

to gather crucial data before a full assault on the 2012 championship. Kris Meeke told Associated Press of his excitement to turn a wheel on a competitive special stage in the new Countryman. “I cannot wait to get the season started. It’s nice for everyone in the team to see the result of their work presented in such a spectacular way. The heritage of MINI in motorsport is fantastic. Now we want to make sure we play our part in adding some more chapters to the success story.” Team-mate Dani Sordo is also looking forward to returning to the WRC stage, after departing the factory Citroen team.

“The break since my last rally has been long enough, now we want to show how good we are. Everything is new for me this year. “Bearing this in mind, the additional time to get accustomed to my new environment has definitely been helpful. Now I’m really looking forward to the new challenge and to fight for strong results with the MINI John Cooper Works WRC.” Prodrive last ran in the WRC with Subaru in 2008, but pulled out of the 2009 season due to Subaru’s budget restraints. – CALLUM BRANAGAN

SEIDERS RATES THE NEW ECU V8 UTES THE AutoOne V8 Ute Racing Series’ new control ECU has been given the initial tick of approval. Barbagallo marked the debut of the category’s new MoTec ECU, which was used in all 32 Utes in the field. Even with some minor teething problems, David Sieders feels it’s good move for the category. “It’s definitely a step in the right direction, that’s for sure,” he said. “There are still a few teething issues down the pitlane, on both sides, but with the shortness we’ve had the gear in the car, it’s

amazing how well it’s performed straight out of the gate. “People have had some issues with their cars, and with the MoTec been able to find them quicker and easier than what they have, and that’s been a big bonus. The boys that are in my team are loving it, they’re getting to see good data for once from me, whereas the old Driftbox stuff, we didn’t even really look at it. “Now we’ve got good video, good data to work with and it’s only going to make the category tighter. Some of the teams with not-so strong drivers might find start to learn a bit more, now that they can see, physically, what they’re doing with the throttle and things like that. That’s really going to help.” – MITCHELL ADAM

Dirk Klynsmith

motorsport news

WHY IS DUAL V8 SUPERCAR CHAMPION JAMIE WHINCUP

SO FAST?

That’s the question we ask the experts in the May edition of Motorsport News, and the results offer a fascinating insight into how the championship leader works. With V8 Supercars’ Car of the Future looming large, we take an exclusive, behind-the-scenes look at the radical new component which will drive it. We talk to Pirelli about their return to Formula 1 as a tyre supplier, and the key players in the Australian Rally Championship about the sport’s future. Plus, catch up with Formula 5000 legend Warwick Brown, Fujitsu Series rookies Chaz Mostert and Ash Walsh, Formula Ford’s newest winner Tom Williamson and Top Fuel Drag Racer Steve Read. And much more!

On sale from ON SALE NOW! Wednesday at Newsagents www.mnews.com.au

Rob Lang

ANDREWS PREFERS HIS WHEELS OPEN VIC STATE FORMER Commodore Cup driver Scott Andrews is looking to forge a career through open-wheel racing in the coming of years. Having spent two seasons in Commodore Cup, Andrews has switched to Victorian Formula

Ford in 2011, running a Kentpowered Spectrum. He won two of the three races in the recent season opener at Phillip Island, in the first part of his three-year plan. Andrews aims to contest the New Zealand Formula Ford Championship next summer, followed by the 2012 Australian

Formula Ford Championship and the 2012/2013 Toyota Racing Series. He’s also identified Formula Renault UK as a likely option for 2013. “I’ve got a three-year plan, and when that plan’s over, I’ll have enough experience to figure out the next step from there,” Andrews said.

“I really wanted to forge an open-wheel racing career, because I think that the drivers in open wheelers are a lot more sharp and competitive, and it’d be good to push myself against the best young kids coming through overseas, which is what we’re hoping to do.” – MITCHELL ADAM

2X4 IN QLD RALLYING

Peter Evans

TWO-WHEELED machinery will be part of next weekend’s International Rally of Queensland. In a first for the event, a Moto section will run, covering over 187km across 14 stages on May 13-14. The class has been introduced in conjunction with Motorcycling Queensland. “The Forest Moto bikes will be a spectacular addition to the rally line-up and I have no doubt the crowds at the Hella Spectator Park in the Imbil forest will absolutely love them,” Event Director Errol Bailey said. “These are the kinds of bikes and riders at home on legendary events like the Australian Safari and to have them as part of the International Rally of Queensland is a great coup for us. “Motorcycling Queensland have been excellent partners in making this happen and we’re

hopeful their involvement will encourage some top riders to enter and compare their skills against rally car drivers from around the world.” Another plus of the weekend is a record entry list of 96 cars, along with twice as many international entries (16) from last year’s rally. 10 countries will be represented across the two days and nights of competition with names including Alistair McRae, Chris Atkinson and Production World Rally Champion Karamjit Singh. Errol Bailey explained the event promises to be a spectacle not seen in Australian rallying for some time. “This is one of the biggest field ever seen at an Australian championship rally event in recent memory. With so many cars passing spectators twice each night and twice each day and no more than two-minutes apart, it will be non-stop action.” motorsport news

Subscribe to Australia’s No 1 motorsport magazine Motorsport News and Motorsport eNews are the complete source of motorsport knowledge in Australia: monthly print magazine Motorsport News is a super read, covering everything from V8 Supercars to F1 to Speedway to Drag Racing to Models - insightful features to digest in your leisure time. Motorsport eNews (by subscription only) is the cuttingedge, weekly, digital magazine, direct to your desktop every Monday evening, with all the very latest news, opinion, analysis, and weekend coverage from the world of motorsport. 21st century motorsport media! Check it out (sample issue) on our www.mnews.com.au home page.

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Badcock to bow out after Winternationals DRAG RACING REIGNING Pro Stock Motorcycle champion Andrew Badcock has announced his retirement at the end of this season. Badcock is currently hunting his second consecutive ANDRA Pro Series Pro Bike Championship title, after last year’s Castrol Edge Winternationals saw him secure his maiden championship despite the pending birth of his first child and engine issues which almost saw him fail to qualify for the event – a result which would have seen him lose his grasp on the title. “My wife Liisa was due to give birth to our first child Jayden two weeks after the 2010 Winternationals, but we were all worried he was going to come early,” said Badcock, rider of the Dutch Master/ Harvest Time Hydroponics/ Suzuki Springwood Pro Bike. “Luckily he instead went the opposite way and came two weeks late, and I was able to travel up from Tassie to compete at what was one of the biggest events of my career to try and secure the championship. “Unfortunately it was the event from hell, with some silly mistakes and a hurt engine seeing Trevor Birrell

(bike owner) and I struggling the team for the 2010/2011 to qualify, which would have season. been a disaster, but luckily we “Hopefully in a few years I were able to pull it together will come back into it, but we and qualify on the bump spot. will see – I remember when “While we didn’t make it I returned after two years through past the first round, away a few years back it took it was enough to achieve the a few events before I got goal I had set out 10 years ago the nerves down, you never while a 21-year-old member understand how quick those of a Tassie bike club – to bikes are until you get on win a Pro Stock Motorcycle them and with the constant championship and get my development there is always name in the ANDRA rule book.” catching up to do when you Since that win, the Badcock have been out of the game. family has relocated to Liisa’s “What would be really nice, home-state of Queensland, and what I think we can do, settling in Daisy Hill, with is to secure back to back baby Jayden set to be on the championships – we are right sidelines cheering on his dad up there in the title fight at when it comes to this year’s the moment and now that Winternationals, which will be we have the bugs ironed out, his last Pro Stock Bike event hopefully we can repeat the for the foreseeable future. winning streak we had last “We have relocated our season and secure the title. business Pro Cycle Dyno “The start of the Industries from Tassie to championship chase has Slacks Creek and it is coming been difficult as we have along very nicely, with a been testing a new engine brand new dyno and engine combination, but now we assembly room in place and a have the ‘old faithful’ engine few local drag racers already back in the bike – which using our services for their we won with last season bikes,” he said. – and the recent Top Fuel “With the business and the Championships event at relocation, and Trevor having Willowbank showed that we raced in this category since it have the consistency. started way back when, the “If we can keep running like time is right to step out of it that, I think we will be pretty for a bit and a new guy on the unbeatable, and that is a scene – Scott White of Darwin good feeling to have!” – will be taking ownership of – LUKE NIEUWHOF

motorsport news

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Success timed right DRAG RACING SUPER Street racer Carl Taylor timed a Nitro Champs win in Sydney on the weekend just right as he has just picked up new support for his team. Tilley Automotive has a long history in circuit racing but its plan for the future is to expand their brand and business across all aspects of motorsport, including the drag racing scene and this has started with supporting Taylor’s Super Street Chev. Coming off some recent strong results including a win at the third round of the Sydney Track Championship as well, Taylor was ecstatic to repeat the result on Sunday afternoon. – LUKE NIEUWHOF

Corbett crashes out DRAG RACING

Ken Ferguson

AUSTRALIAN Modified champion Kelly Corbett had a heartbreaking end to her Nitro Champs event on the weekend, as she crashed out in qualifying. She was looking to score some important points in the Rocket Allstars Racing Series but it wasn’t to be, with her nsane.net.au dragster left in a very bad condition. Corbett got loose near the finish line and tagged the wall, before heading into the opposite wall and coming to a stop. Corbett was quick to let everyone know she was okay but “just a little sore”. “I’m definitely feeling it today, it’s so sad to see the car so bent up,” she said. – LUKE NIEUWHOF

Next ANDRA Pro Series Round: 2011 Castrol EDGE Winternationals Willowbank Raceway, June 9-12 ANDRA Pro Series on TV: Friday May 6 Top Fuel, Sydney Dragway www.mnews.com.au

FIVE MINUTES WITH ...

KARL REINDLER

Even before his fiery crashon Sunday, Karl Reindler was poised to make headlines with a breakthrough showing of pace. ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN spoke to him on Saturday evening in Perth, just after his first Top 10 finish MOTORSPORT NEWS: Mate, your first Top 10 finish on Saturday afternoon looked a little too easy from where I was sitting. KARL REINDLER: It was my easiest race in V8 Supercars. I found that when I was racing British Formula 3. I finished fifth at Silverstone, and it was the best result I had that year, and it happened to be the easiest race I had that year.

I wrote an article about you for The West Australian newspaper last week, which said there is no such thing as a home track advantage. Were you lying to me, Karl? (Laughs) I’m still certain there is no home track advantage! If there is, look out at Winton, because I’ve done a hell of a lot more laps around Winton than I have at Barbagallo Raceway! So it was just a coincidence that things clicked together at your home race, then. No one will believe me, but it is a coincidence. The car is working well, and I feel confident. I think the biggest advantage is that I’m sleeping in my own 26

Dirk Klynsmith

The race might have been easy, but the qualifying lap on Saturday looked mega! Is that the hardest you’ve ever driven the car in qualifying? Not really, the car was just working well for me. I know the circuit well, and all the time around here is braking into Turn 1, braking into Kolb, and braking into the final corner. It’s a little bit technical, but it’s really about the braking. I had some clear space in qualifying, so I was able to lean on the car pretty hard without getting involved in other people’s problems. We probably went a little bit early, before the track was at its best, but that was just a bit of a compromise to get some space on the track. In hindsight, I’m glad we did go early, because it worked for me to have clear space. We might have gone quicker at the end, but we might have got caught up in traffic, too.

bed at night, not waking up in the middle of the night in some foreign hotel room, and taking sleeping pills to manage the time difference between here and the east coast! It’s the least pressure I’ve ever felt at a race meeting! When we did talk last week, you said a Top 10 would be the ultimate goal – and you did it, straight out of the gate. How do you feel? And I was well inside the Top 10 [on Saturday]! I feel really relaxed about it. The car is strong, which is great. Are you settling in to the category now? Is that what we’re seeing happen? Yeah. Qualifying has been a weakness is the past. Trying to get a clean lap, and get the tyres to come up to temperature evenly front to rear, is hard. Nailing the lap is hard. There are so many things you have to get right. You have to feel like you’re about to have an accident on every corner to do get it right! Do you feel that Brad Jones Racing are across what they need to do to go from making these sorts of results a surprise to making them the norm?

The cars themselves have come so far in the last 15 months. Brighty (Jason Bright) and Phil [Keed] have really led the way with this new concept in engineering, and we’re down to refining it now. We’ve typically struggled on low-grip surfaces, but we tried to some new things this weekend, and straight out of the gate it has worked. We’ve been into areas of the car we’ve been before. It’s just a constant refinement process, now. You and Brighty raced together at Bathurst back in 2009. It was a different team, and a different make of car, but has it helped you understanding, and adapting to, what he wants from a racing car? Every time I jumped in the car with Brighty back in ’09, it was exactly how I would want it to be. He had that car set up magically. He likes the car reasonably stiff. The way I drive the car is very similar to him, to put it simply. He originally came from an open-wheeler background, like me. Jason Richards’ driving style is quite different, and Bargs (Jason Bargwanna) is a bit more aggressive with his set-up, but Brighty and I are right on the same page. motorsport news

chat

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

Hats off to the Jonses. Lit OPINION Phil Branagan – Executive Editor

OOGLE Earth may well show something unexpected about the racetracks of Australia. If your PC screen has enough detail, you may well see that the rooves of garages around the land are padded by any number of baseball caps. They are mine, and they are on those rooves because Kim Jones threw them there, starting in about 1990. For years, I have been wandering into Brad Jones Racing garages around the land, and K Jones has responded by tearing off my chapeau de jour and flinging it upon high. Kimmy is many things, and a serial abuser of variable-quality headwear is one of them. In the giant scheme of things, a team scoring its maiden win after 11 years of trying is hardly the mark of greatness. There will be many people around the country today who will read words that portray that message, and come to the conclusion that Kim and Brad Jones, Wally Storey and Phil Keed and their bunch of merry men from Albury have underperformed for a long, long time. That’s not my view. That view discounts the many Super Touring wins; the five AUSCAR titles, and one in NASCAR; heck, I even recall Bradley bagging a Proddie Car title yonks ago, in some sort of damn Lotus. The real picture is that the Joneses and Co have done more, with less, for a long time. There have been a few false dawns along the way, but they appear to have the bits and pieces, and some smart people, necessary for sustained success in V8 Supercars. Jason Bright’s win was ably backed up by Jason Bargwanna on Sunday; some may prefer to think of that as Bargs being in the right place at the right time, but he got the result, nonetheless. There is also the small matter that until it caught fire, there were showings of considerable speed from Karl Reindler on his home soil. In fact, there are any number of teams that would have, gladly, taken the points BJR scored over the weekend, and banked them. Brad, Kim and Co are racers. They are not the kind of folk you expect to see selling off their assets and setting up rocking chairs in what KJ refers to as ‘Smallbury’ any time soon. I expect that I will be bumping into the brothers, and probably Macauley (Brad’s son, currently looking quick in karting) for many years to come. So, three things. First, credit where credit is due. It’s time to say ‘well played’ to BJR, and to look forward to ongoing competitive showings from the team in the coming events, starting with their home track of Winton. Second, time to think about Jason Richards, who so nearly won at Albert Park and wish him the best in his away-from-the-track endeavours. Thirdly, Kimmy, stop throwing my hats on the roof! You’re a race-winning owner now, it looks childish – and if you were tall enough to see the top of my head, you would understand why it is that I wear them these days ... 28

motorsport news

comment

terally

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

E’RE getting closer to the point where Dunlop’s standard control tyre is becoming irrelevant – and we’re getting there fast. Whether by design or fluke, the Barbagallo Raceway round provided the perfect showcase for the differences between the Control tyre, and the Sprint tyre ... and it wasn’t pretty for the harder rubber. Saturday’s race, run exclusively on the control tyre, was pretty boring. There was no slipping and sliding as the tyres were chewed to the canvass, and no overtaking, simply because drivers didn’t have the confidence to go diving down the inside of another car on the harder tyre – even when it was brand new. On Sunday, when the Sprint tyre came into play, the racing came alive. For starters, the guys suddenly had faith in the outside front to grip up when trying to pass someone on the inside, so the overtaking became more prevalent. And the fact that the tyre went off so quickly made for some very exciting power sliding, particularly by Craig Lowndes.

Dirk Klynsmith

IT’S TIME TO LOSE CONTROL OPINION Andrew van Leeuwen – eNews Editor It was the perfect test; same track, identical weather conditions across each day, and identical lap count and strategies. And in the end, there was little doubt that the hard tyre race was boring, and the soft tyre races were great. So, perhaps, the time has come for the Control tyre to disappear, and for all V8 Supercar racing to be done on the softer tyre. According to one experienced V8 Supercar driver I spoke to on the weekend, the soft tyre is actually harder than it was last year, so that it can withstand a little bit more of a beating. And the teams were given plenty of tyres to use in Sunday morning qualifying, which was another tick in the ‘good ideas’ column. Sounds to me like the powers that be are already heading down the path of ditching the current control tyre.

There will always be two sticking points – Phillip Island and Bathurst. Phillip Island is, simply, a tyre killer. The long corners tear rear tyres to shreds, so yes, racing the soft tyre there might be an issue. As for Bathurst, there are safety concerns with the softer tyre. For starters, there is a constant weariness of increasing speeds across the top of Mount Panorama. And then, there is the potential for catastrophe if a tyre lets for at, say, The Chase (just as Fabian Coulthard). But to this there is a simple solution. We make the current Sprint tyre the new control tyre, and make the current control tyre a special ‘Endurance’ tyre. The introduction of the fickle Pirelli tyre has spiced Formula 1 up so much this season. V8 Supercars is half way there in doing the same with the Sprint tyre. Lets keep it going. 29

V8 SUPERCAR CHAMPIONSHIP RACES 7/8/9 – BARBAGALLO RACEWAY, WA

TYR

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race

YRED AND EMOTIONAL After a pretty tame race on Saturday, V8 Supercars’ return to Western Australia went into overdrive when the Sprint tyre was introduced on Sunday. ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN reports

Serge Mironenko

www.mnews.com.au

RACE 7: AS EASY AS THE

ACE wins don’t get much simpler than Jamie Whincup’s effort on a sunny Saturday afternoon in Western Australia. With just a single stop required for the 50-lap journey, and a typically abrasive surface playing havoc with the rubber, the big question during Race 7 at Barbagallo Raceway was whether to take two tyres during your stop, or four. Do you sacrifice some late race grip for track position, or visa versa? For Whincup, it didn’t matter. In the first 28 laps of a race, he built up a big enough lead to cruise into pit-lane, take on a belly load of fuel, throw four new tyres at the car, and cruise back onto the track – all without losing the lead. He ended up with optimal grip and track position. Of course, a Safety Car on any lap between about Lap 20 and Lap 28 would have bought Whincup well undone, but it never came, and he took home the points. “I got into Turn 1 first, and then it’s all about managing the tyres,” said Whincup. “The car was quick and had good tyre life – you couldn’t ask for anything more. “We were pretty disappointed with New Zealand, so it’s good to bounce back.” Second was Craig Lowndes, the most noteworthy part of his race coming when he actually passed someone for position on the track. Lowndes barged his way past Will Davison at the last corner on Lap 25, one of the 32

few on-track passes seen throughout the race. Davison held on to finish third, his first podium since joining Ford Performance Racing (see breakout). Having run second early in the race, a sluggish stop cost Steve Johnson a podium spot, with both Lowndes and Davison sneaking past as he trundled out of pit-lane. He wound up fourth, having shadowed Davison late in the race. Shane van Gisbergen was the real mover and shaker of the race. Having started well down in 16th place, he waited until Lap 26 to make his stop, and then stormed his way to fifth place in the closing laps, leaving Jason Bright back in sixth place. Best on ground – at least behind Whincup – was Karl Reindler. Having run 11th during Friday practice, Reindler proved he had the home ground speed by qualifying sixth. He then jumped Rick Kelly in the stops to grab fifth spot, before losing spots to van Gisbergen and Bright late in the race, still finishing a very credible seventh. Eighth was Mark Winterbottom, however he only grabbed the position on the final lap after a spirited battle with Kelly – which resulted in the Jack Daniel’s Commodore copping a bad sportsmanship flag for blocking. James Courtney rounded out the Top 10, while his Holden Racing Team team-mate Garth Tander had a tough day, qualifying 23rd and grinding his way to 13th in the race.

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Serge Mironenko

Dirk Klynsmith

EY COME

Dirk Klynsmith

Serge Mironenko

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First Timers: Will Davison took his first podium for Ford Performance Racing, top, while Karl Reindler took his first Top 10 finish in V8 Supercars, above. Craig Lowndes took second, left, keeping his remarkable run of results in WA alive. 33

RACE 8: BRIGHT BREAKS THROUGH

TOPPING as late as possible was important on the hard tyre at Barbagallo Raceway, and on the soft tyre, it became absolutely

crucial. In the end, it was Jason Bright that took home his first win since Bahrain 2006 – and Brad Jones Racing’s first ever win in a points-paying V8 Supercar race – but there was a time during the race that it looked like it might elude him. Having made a blinder of a start, Bright opted to stay out until Lap 26 before pitting, running the risk of being thwarted by a Safety Car, or run down by someone on fresher rubber in the middle stint of the race. The Safety Car never came, but when Craig Lowndes stopped on Lap 14, took on four new tyres, and started chewing into the time difference between he and Bright, things looked a little shaky for the boys at Brad Jones Racing. Lowndes did manage to sneak past Bright when the stops shook out, but it

came at a cost – tyre life. As it turned out, it was Bright and BJR that has played the blinder, with the Team BOC Commodore hunting down Lowndes, grabbing the lead with 11 laps to run, and never looking back. “That meant a lot,” said Bright. “We’ve worked pretty hard this year and have had a tough couple of rounds over the last few months. They were pretty frustrating times and we needed to bounce back from that if we were going to stay in the championship battle.We did that today. “We put a lot of thought into it and the team did a great job but this win today was certainly for JR (Jason Richards), and I think everyone understands that. If he was around, it would be him up here winning races as well.” Behind Bright, it was a day of complete contrast for BJR. Karl Riendler, in the middle of a break-through weekend, stalled at the start of the race. He was then collected by Steve Owen, resulting

in a massive fireball (see breakout). But Jason Bargwanna made sure the good outweighed the bad for the Travelling Alburies, using a very similar strategy to Bright to find himself with pace to burn in the closing laps. He passed Lowndes for third at Turn 1 on the final lap of the race. Sandwiched between the BJR cars of Bright and Bargwanna was Jamie Whincup. Once again, launching a car in the Sprint tyre seemed to trouble Whincup, the start leaving him down in third. He was back past Alex Davison by the end of the first lap, but by that point Bright was long gone – and stayed that way. Still, handy points for the title leader. Lowndes ended up fourth, while Tim Slade and A Davison put their Hamilton differences aside to race cleanly to fifth and sixth respectively. Tander wound up seventh having stopped early like Lowndes, while Will Davison, Lee Holdsworth and Shane van Gisbergen round out the Top 10. motorsport news

race

Dirk Klynsmith

Serge Mironenko

Bright Spark: Behind winner Jason Bright, above, Jason Bargwanna made it a BJR 1-3, with a stunning drive to third, left. Meanwhile, Tim Slade was the best of the Stones cars, below left, and Jamie Whincup banked more points with second, below.

Dirk Klynsmith

Serge Mironenko

www.mnews.com.au

RACE 9: WHINCUP HITS

HE lesson from Sunday’s first race was that pitting early and hoping for a Safety Car didn’t work on the Sprint tyre at Barbagallo Raceway – and it was a lesson well learnt by all, especially race winner Jamie Whincup. In Race 8, the round of stops started on Lap 15. In Race 9, nobody bothered the pit-lane entrance until Lap 20 – and that was only because Craig Lowndes’ rear tyres were so fried that he literally couldn’t keep the car straight. Anyway, as was typical of his whole weekend, Whincup played the game with a pretty straight bat. He pitted on Lap 24 (of 50), took on four new Sprint tyres, and jumped early leader Jason Bright in the process. Then, he earned his considerable wage by driving fast, straight, and keeping a clearly faster Bright at bay. For Bright, second was another great result – although it easily could have been a second win, based on pure pace late in the race. However, a slightly slower stop than Whincup cost track position, and with the points leader keeping it clean at the front, Bright just couldn’t find a way past. Garth Tander was third, with a typical, grinding Garth Tander drive. He wasn’t the fastest man on track, but he looked after his tyres enough to be on the podium when it counted, nothing up another important little win over James Courtney, who was back in fifth. Between them was Lowndes, who had a very untypical weekend. Two years ago, Lowndes was sublime on the soft tyre at Wanneroo, but in 2011 he seemed to struggle to make it last, during both stints. Sixth was Steve Johnson, further proof that the loss of Burgess, Courtney and co hasn’t left Dick Johnson Racing completely in the cold. Behind him was Shane van Gisbergen, who for the third time across the weekend converted an average qualifying position into a reasonable race report. Jason Bargwanna backed up his morning podium with eighth place, with Tim Slade taking another Top 10 with ninth, and Greg Murphy proving his Hamilton pace was no fluke with a solid 10th place. 36

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BACK BY HOLDING ON

Serge Mironenko

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WINNERS

Davo: Back in love wi

JAMIE WHINCUP: Once again, bounced back from an ordinary round to take a heap of points. Will be tough to beat this year. BRAD JONES RACING Man, these guys have got their act together in a big way. Well done to Brighty and Phil Keed for turning it all around. GARTH TANDER: GT has a remarkable ability to just press on and get results. When others, like his team-mate, get frustrated with a lack of pace, he turns a trying weekend into a Race 9 podium. Bravo. MNEWS’ TWEEPS: Special mention to @ mnewsupdates follower Christine McDonald, who correctly predicted that Whincup would clean sweep the split qualifying session.

LOSERS JAMES COURTNEY: The Sunday morning clash between JC and Rick Kelly was a 50-50, but the Champ needs to start keeping it clean. DANNY GREEN: Who would have thought a guy with no racing experience at all wouldn’t be able to handle a V8 Supercar, even at low speed? Oh that’s right, everyone except Paul Morris. KARL REINDLER: What a weekend for the West Aussie. On Saturday, he made headlines by being so fast. On Sunday, he made headlines by catching on fire in a pretty big way. A winner in that he wasn’t seriously injured. 38

The Giz shows the signs of ageing

THERE is no doubt that Shane van Gisbergen is maturing as a racing driver. During the first race in WA, he faced one of the toughest challenges a young driver can face – seeing the bigger picture and being patient. Having qualified a lowly 16th, van Gisbergen was forced to sit patiently in the traffic for the first stint, letting the track clear as cars pitted. When they did he was given the green light to go hard, before pitting later than most, taking on four brand new tyres, and storming through the field late in the race to finish fourth. There were no dummy spits or over-ambitious moves, just good, level-headed driving. “Qualifying was a bugger; we couldn’t make the car work,” said van Gisbergen. “The first few laps of the race, we were never going to pass anyone, we just used up the tyre. “The plan was to see what happened. Right at the start we couldn’t make any head way, but when everyone pitted our car speed was awesome. In the end we had great grip from the four tyres, and we could just carve everyone up as we wanted to. It was pretty cool, and lots of fun.” Karl Reindler was one of the drivers to feel the wrath of the charging van Gisbergen late in the race. “He came up so quickly,” said Reindler. “There was nothing I could do. He gave me a few taps at the apex of Turn 1, and I just conceded in the end. I realised that he had probably put four tyres on [at the stop], and was going from there.” – ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN motorsport news

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ith WA

Dirk Klynsmith

ALMOST two years ago, the Barbagallo Raceway round of the V8 Supercar Championship ruined Will Davison’s title campaign. A dog of a weekend in WA in November 2009 all but took Davison out of title contention, leaving a decidedly sour taste in his mouth. But last Saturday he washed it away with champagne, after taking third in Race 7 – his first podium in Trading Post/Ford Performance Racing colours. “Things are starting to turn my way again this year,” said Davison. “It’s nice to stand on a podium again. Hopefully in time I won’t be rapt with third, but right now I am, because I’ve joined the team, we’ve bonded well together, and we’ve been knocking on the door of podiums at every race this year. This is Trading Post’s home event, so what an awesome event to get my first podium for the team. I like Barbagallo [Raceway] again, you could say.” While Davo was rapt with the podium, he was quick to point out he wasn’t surprised to get a result “There are always little gremlins with a new team, fine tuning on the run, but in Abu Dhabi I could see the potential in the car. I’ll get stronger the more I understand this car.” – ANDREW VAN LEEUWEN

Dirk Klynsmith

MATTY White was MIA from Perth. White and 7000 other journalists from around the world had finished stretching an hour’s worth of information over a whole week’s TV, and were somewhere up in the air, exiting the UK after last Friday’s happy event’s, when Kate Middleton fulfilled every girl’s dream and married Will (no, not Davison). So, into the breach for the Barbagallo stepped Aaron www.mnews.com.au

THE CRASH: COMMENTS FROM ALL INVOLVED THERE was nothing lucky about Karl Reindler’s Top 10 pace on Saturday at Barbagallo Raceway, but there was a lot of luck when it came to him avoiding serious injury during a serious start-line crash on Sunday morning. The start of Race 8 was marred by the fiery crash, which occurred when Reindler stalled his Commodore on the line. While most of the field got around him safely, Steve Owen was left completely unsighted, and struck the back of Reindler’s car almost immediately after selecting third gear, at approximately 150km/h. The force of the impact, rated at around 37G, caused the full fuel cell in Reindler’s car to burst, leaving both cars trapped in bellowing flames. Owen was quickly out of the car, while Reindler, thankfully, escaped soon after. Reindler was taken straight to hospital for treatment to second-degree burns, mostly to his arms and hands, while Owen was admitted to hospital later when he developed general soreness. “I loaded the clutch up and it stalled,” explained Reindler later. “I had my foot all the way down; I didn’t even release the clutch. I couldn’t get it

Noonan. Over the years he has developed into a seasoned pro, so much so that if Mark Skaife and Neil Crompton detected any change in the lineup, it did not show in Punterland. The commentary was smooth as ever, and the explanation of what might have otherwise been a less-than-gripping Race 1 added to what was a processional show. Such were the events of Sunday that the story was

going at all. There was nothing I could do. Before I knew it I saw flames inside the car. I guess I panicked and tried to get out as quick as I could. My body’s fine, it’s just my hands [that are burned].” “It happened that quick I barely got on the brake by the time I hit him,” added Owen. “I was in third gear, flat out after getting a pretty good start. I opened both doors and there was fire. The officials were straight there and put the fire out which allowed me to get out quickly. “I felt pretty sore when I first got out of the car but I’m alright now. I saw Karl briefly in the medical centre and fortunately he’s fine apart from some light burns.” The luckiest of the three was David Reynolds, who went within millimetres of hitting Reindler before swerving violently onto the grass during his daring evasion – all without losing control of his Commodore. “It was a very quick reaction time from me because I only saw the stalled car at the last millisecond,” said Reynolds. “It saved the team the car. There was nothing I could do except turn hard, hard right and hope for the best. I’m glad that Karl and Steve are okay. It must have been a huge impact.”

FROM THE COUCH with PHIL BRANAGAN evident – but that does not mean that it told itself. The information from the Reindler-Owen shunt was comprehensive, and Mark Larkham’s insights were particularly interesting. So should they be, considering he was once left in a similar position to Reindler’s at Oran

Park several years ago. V8 Supercars Television is in a fortunate position to have decent backup. White did a decent job with the wedding, and other royals will get hitched in the future. Maybe Seven might consider sending Skaifey and Cromley to do the next one … 39

Results :: Race 7 – Barbagallo Raceway, WA

Results :: Race 8 – Barb

Pos

Driver

Team/Car

Qual

Pos

Driver

Team

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 DNF

88 888 6 9 17 8 21 5 15 1 14 34 2 39 11 33 49 18 16 19 4 47 61 12 3 30 7 55

Jamie Whincup Craig Lowndes Will Davison Shane Van Gisbergen Steven Johnson Jason Bright Karl Reindler Mark Winterbottom Rick Kelly James Courtney Jason Bargwanna Michael Caruso Garth Tander Russell Ingall Greg Murphy Lee Holdsworth Steve Owen James Moffat David Reynolds Jonathon Webb Alex Davison Tim Slade Fabian Coulthard Dean Fiore Tony D’Alberto Warren Luff Todd Kelly Paul Dumbrell

TeamVodafone Commodore VE2 TeamVodafone Commodore VE2 Trading Post FPR Falcon FG SP Tools Racing Falcon FG Jim Beam Racing Falcon FG Team BOC Commodore VE2 Fair Dinkum Sheds Racing Commodore VE2 Orrcon Steel FPR Falcon FG Jack Daniel’s Commodore VE2 Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE2 Jana Living Racing Commodore VE2 Fujitsu Racing GRM Commodore VE2 Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE2 Supercheap Auto Racing Commodore VE2 Pepsi Max Crew Commodore VE2 Fujitsu Racing GRM Commodore VE2 VIP Petfoods Commodore VE2 Jim Beam Racing Falcon FG Stratco Racing Commodore VE2 Mother Energy Racing Team Falcon FG Irwin Racing Falcon FG Lucky 7 Racing Falcon FG Bundaberg Racing Commodore VE2 Triple F Racing Falcon FG Wilson Security Racing Commodore VE2 Gulf Western Oil Racing Commodore VE2 Jack Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE2 The Bottle-O Racing Team Falcon FG

1 3 2 16 4 10 6 12 5 7 21 13 23 20 22 11 17 9 15 18 8 19 27 24 28 26 25 14

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 DNF DNF

8 88 14 888 47 4 2 6 33 9 61 39 5 17 19 15 18 34 55 16 12 7 3 11 30 1 49 21

Jason Bright Jamie Whincup Jason Bargwanna Craig Lowndes Tim Slade Alex Davison Garth Tander Will Davison Lee Holdsworth Shane Van Gisbergen Fabian Coulthard Russell Ingall Mark Winterbottom Steven Johnson Jonathon Webb Rick Kelly James Moffat Michael Caruso Paul Dumbrell David Reynolds Dean Fiore Todd Kelly Tony D’Alberto Greg Murphy Warren Luff James Courtney Steve Owen Karl Reindler

Team Team Jana Team Lucky Irwin Toll H Tradin Fujits SP To Bund Super Orrco Jim B Moth Jack D Jim B Fujits The B Stratc Triple Jack D Wilso Pepsi Gulf W Toll H VIP Pe Fair D

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race

bagallo Raceway, WA

Results :: Race 9 – Barbagallo Raceway, WA

m/Car

Qual

Pos

Driver

Team/Car

Qual

m BOC Commodore VE2 mVodafone Commodore VE2 Living Racing Commodore VE2 mVodafone Commodore VE2 y 7 Racing Falcon FG Racing Falcon FG Holden Racing Team Commodore VE2 ng Post FPR Falcon Falcon FG su Racing GRM Commodore VE2 ools Racing Falcon FG daberg Racing Commodore VE2 rcheap Auto Racing Commodore VE2 on Steel FPR Falcon FG Beam Racing Falcon FG her Energy Racing Team Falcon FG Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE2 Beam Racing Falcon FG su Racing GRM Commodore VE2 Bottle-O Racing Team Falcon FG co Racing Commodore VE2 e F Racing Falcon FG Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE2 on Security Racing Commodore VE2 i Max Crew Commodore VE2 Western Oil Racing Commodore VE2 Holden Racing Team Commodore VE2 etfoods Commodore VE2 Dinkum Sheds Racing Commodore VE2

2 1 7 3 17 4 5 8 10 20 16 24 11 6 22 14 12 19 21 26 23 27 15 18 28 9 25 13

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 DNS DNS

88 8 2 888 1 17 9 14 47 11 4 15 61 55 6 7 34 33 39 3 18 12 19 16 30 5 49 21

Jamie Whincup Jason Bright Garth Tander Craig Lowndes James Courtney Steven Johnson Shane Van Gisbergen Jason Bargwanna Tim Slade Greg Murphy Alex Davison Rick Kelly Fabian Coulthard Paul Dumbrell Will Davison Todd Kelly Michael Caruso Lee Holdsworth Russell Ingall Tony D’Alberto James Moffat Dean Fiore Jonathon Webb David Reynolds Warren Luff Mark Winterbottom Steve Owen Karl Reindler

TeamVodafone Commodore VE2 Team BOC Commodore VE2 Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE2 TeamVodafone Commodore VE2 Toll Holden Racing Team Commodore VE2 Jim Beam Racing Falcon FG SP Tools Racing Falcon FG Jana Living Racing Commodore VE2 Lucky 7 Racing Falcon FG Pepsi Max Crew Commodore VE2 Irwin Racing Falcon FG Jack Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE2 Bundaberg Racing Commodore VE2 The Bottle-O Racing Team Falcon FG Trading Post FPR Falcon FG Jack Daniel’s Racing Commodore VE2 Fujitsu Racing GRM Commodore VE2 Fujitsu Racing GRM Commodore VE2 Supercheap Auto Racing Commodore VE2 Wilson Security Racing Commodore VE2 Jim Beam Racing Falcon FG Triple F Racing Falcon FG Mother Energy Racing Team Falcon FG Stratco Racing Commodore VE2 Gulf Western Oil Racing Commodore VE2 Orrcon Steel FPR Falcon FG VIP Petfoods Commodore VE2 Fair Dinkum Sheds Racing Commodore VE2

1 2 4 3 5 6 18 13 19 11 7 10 16 17 14 26 22 12 24 15 21 27 20 23 28 8

Top 10 Points: Whincup 946, Lowndes 804, Tander 737, van Gisbergen 730, W Davison 714, R Kelly 713, Bright 674, A Davison 666, Winterbottom 665, Johnson 639.

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

FUJITSU V8 SUPERCAR SERIES ROUND 2, BARBAGALLO RACEWAY, WA

Clean sweep

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race

This is the view the Fujitsu Series field had in WA, as Andrew Thompson took a pair of race wins to kick-start his season and move into the series lead. MITCHELL ADAM was there

Dirk Klynsmith

www.mnews.com.au

Dirk Klynsmith

HE season opener at the Clipsal 500 in March mightn’t have gone his way, but there was no denying Andrew Thompson in Round 2 of the Fujitsu Series at Barbagallo Raceway. Thompson won Triple Eight’s inaugural FV8 race in Adelaide, but a clash with Nick Percat in the second ended his weekend on a sour note. In the Fujitsu Series’ first visit to WA, Thompson had no such troubles, winning both races and the round to move to the top of the standings. Thompson stamped his authority on proceedings in qualifying, leaving the pits at the head of the queue and banging in 57.0 on his second flyer. For most of the session, that had him over half a second clear of the pack, and he notched a 56.9s late in the session, before Jack Perkins improved to close his eventual pole margin to 0.3832s. Light years at Barbagallo. When the opening 28-lapper got underway, Percat was his closest challenger, in particular at the restart from the first Safety Car intervention, before he skipped away to a comfortable win. “I made a little error on that first restart, didn’t quite get it right, but we were sort of under control for most of it,” he said. “Obviously Percat pushed me pretty hard for the first 10 laps before he seemed to drop away with a bit of an issue, and then Jack moved into there. Jack pressured me in the next restart and made us work a little bit harder there, but we managed to get a bit of a gap that was safe and we didn’t have to worry too much.” There was more of the same in the second, the Monster machine was never headed as Thompson completed his clean sweep. After leaving Adelaide frustrated and fifth in the points, Thompson now leads the series by 15 points. “I was hoping to be leading the Championship somewhere after Townsville but to come out on top this early in the season in a great confidence boost,” he said. Behind Thompson, there was a bit on. Namely between Percat and Paul Morris. When Perkins passed Percat for second midway through the opener, it put Percat under pressure from Morris. They clashed at Turn 6 on Lap 17, and it continued to Turn 1 on the following lap, with Morris eventually spat out and down the order. Percat continued, but was later given a mechanical black flag for 44

leaking gearbox oil, having broken the casing over a kerb, which ended his race. The stoush between the pair didn’t end with the chequered flag, with Morris having words as they crossed paths in pitlane after the race. In Race 2, Morris pitted at the end of the first lap and rejoined a lap down, several cars ahead of Percat, who started 23rd. Percat made his way past on Lap 19, and the pair remained in close contact, before it eventually boiled over at Turn 1 on Lap 25, when Morris turned the Walkinshaw junior around. Morris was later excluded from the race for the incident, while Percat finished 16th and drops to eighth in the points. By contrast, David Russell, Scott McLaughlin and Perkins all had consistent weekends. After finishing second in the opener, Perkins was on for second for the round late in Race 2, before he was passed by McLaughlin with five laps remaining. That put the three level on points, with Russell (Thompson’s closest challenger on Sunday) and McLaughlin getting the weekend podium spots on a countback. For Russell and Perkins, it was valuable points after Adelaide troubles, while McLaughlin impressed again with his speed and maturity, and actually led the points on Saturday night after grabbing third in Race 1. “The goal for me with only the two races in Perth was to ensure that I stayed out of trouble and improved the car with every session on the track,” Russell said. “It is very satisfying to move up a heap of places in the Championship, the key now is to repeat and improve on this performance for the remainder of the season.” Russell’s team-mate Tim Blanchard didn’t have as good a weekend, unable to match the leaders’ pace and copping a penalty for a hit on Taz Douglas at Turn 7 in the opening race. In the second race, Marcus Zukanovic looked set for fifth, before spinning at Kolb Corner with 10 laps remaining. Fifth for the race and weekend eventually went to Daniel Jilesen, the Kiwi showing good racecraft and a level head. The same can be said for the drivers who followed him, Chaz Mostert and Robert Cregan, with the latter’s performance particularly noteworthy in the Irish driver’s second weekend in a Supercar. motorsport news

race

Dirk Klynsmith

James Smith

Dirk Klynsmith

David Russell, top left, and Jack Perkins, top right, each grabbed a second in the two races, with Russell finishing second for the round. Other than Thompson, though, the big story was Paul Morris and Nick Percat, above, going a couple of rounds during the weekend ...

Results :: Round 2, Barbagallo Raceway Pos

Driver

Team/Car

Qual

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24

80 28 93 999 51 10 86 92 777 27 71 48 90 59 83 26 75 95 58 222 23 24 67 73

Andrew Thompson David Russell Scott McLaughlin Jack Perkins Daniel Jilesen Chaz Mostert Robert Cregan Taz Douglas Rodney Jane Tim Blanchard Marcus Zukanovic Geoff Emery Ashley Walsh Aaren Russell David Wall Tom Tweedie Aaren McGill Nathan Vince Drew Russell Nick Percat Todd Fiore Matt Hansen Paul Morris Brett Stewart

Triple Eight Race Engineering Commodore VE 1 Team Jayco Falcon BF 5 Fujitsu Racing Falcon BF 4 Supercheap/Bob Jane T Marts Falcon BF 2 Earthex/R&J Batteries/KingGee Commodore VE 12 Simpro Software/Master Elect. Falcon BF 16 Matt Stone Racing Falcon BF 11 Fastaz Motorsport Commodore VZ 9 Bob Jane T-Marts Falcon FG 6 Team Jayco Falcon BF 10 Midway Concrete&Garden Supply Commodore VE13 AC Delco/Simworx/Signiversal Commodore VE 17 Simpro Software/Master Elect. Falcon BF 8 Go Karts Go Falcon BF 21 Wilson Security Racing Commodore VE 15 Team Tom Supporters Club Falcon BF 18 NCSS Falcon BF 24 Blacktrack Haulage Falcon BF 23 Go Karts Go Falcon BF 14 Coates Hire Racing Commodore VE 3 Flexi Staff Falcon BF 19 Sportsalive.com / AFS Commodore VE 20 Green Machine Racing Commodore VE 7 Formula Tech/Interquip Commodore VE 22

1 4 3 2 6 8 9 11 5 14 7 12 10 16 15 13 20 19 DNS DNF 17 18 21 22

1 2 3 4 5 6 8 7 19 9 17 12 15 10 11 14 17 20 13 16 DNF DNF EXC DNF

Top 10 Points: www.mnews.com.au

Thompson 507, McLaughlin 492, Perkins 429, David Russell 414, Jilesen 402, Blanchard 387, Mostert 378, Percat 324, Jane 318, Cregan 312 45

PORSCHE CARRERA CUP AUSTRALIA ROUND 2, BARBAGALLO RACEWAY, WA

On the board

The reborn Carrera Cup headed West and found a new round winner and a new race winner, MITCHELL ADAM reports 46

motorsport news

race

Serge Mironenko

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Dirk Klynsmith

HEN Carrera Cup returned to Australia at the AGP in March, an old hand did the winning, in the form of Craig Baird. But by the end of the second round, at Barbagallo Raceway, the series had a new race winner in Steven Richards and a new race winner, Jonny Reid. The weekend was about the series’ new blood from the outset. A late qualifying incident for Michael Loccisano worked in Ben Barker’s favour, who was atop the timesheets to claim pole position in just his second meeting aboard a Porsche. But the Brit couldn’t capitalise on that in Race 1, as he made a slow getaway, with Richards, Reid and Baird – via the grass – grabbing the top three spots. From there, Richards – at a circuit where he’s enjoyed success in the past – resisted Reid’s challenges and got on the board as a Carrera Cup race winner. “I haven’t had a win in a while so it’s pretty cool to take victory today,” he said. “I’m happy because we run the car ourselves and we’ve got a great bunch of guys in the team. Whenever you can have a win with the standard of drivers we’re racing against it’s good.” Sunday’s races belonged to Reid, though. He got the jump in Race 2 and went on to lead home Baird and Richards to grab his second win of the season,

having won a race at Albert Park. His Melbourne weekend went south after winning, but there was no repeat at Barbagallo. Baird led the opening 11 laps of Race 3, but began to struggle with rear grip, and Reid executed a move on the exit of Turn 6 to take the lead at Turn 7, and he went on to take his maiden Carrera Cup Australia round win, accompanying his success in Porsches in his native New Zealand. “I think everyone was struggling for grip, but in terms of the Michelin tyre, that’s the life, they’re designed for this sort of racing,” Reid said of the final. “They’re very good when they’re brand new and they go away after that. That’s pretty standard in any category you race in, so it was tricky out there, especially in the heat compared to the morning, it made it a bit more slippery for everyone. But in saying, that the V8s had had a race and the track was a lot more tacky. “If I look at my weekend from a tactical point of view, being off the front row, with pole in the last race, was probably the best place to be, because your tyres are at the weakest point and you’re able to manage it from there. “I had a good car and I was able to make the move on Craig stick, finally. There was a yellow flag when I tried to pass him the first time so I had to pull out a bit, but it was one of those weekends where we had

a faultless weekend, it was a good team effort and very pleasing.” Richards was second for the round to take a narrow championship lead, ahead of Baird, despite dropping to sixth in the final. Michael Patrizi had a strong run at his home event, just falling short of a round podium with a third, a fourth and a fifth from the three races. After fluffing the start, Barker’s opening race didn’t get much better. While looking to pass Daniel Gaunt for fourth, Gaunt locked a brake at Kolb Corner and ran wide, where Barker was already positioned in an attempt to pass around the outside. The pair clashed, ending Gaunt’s race, while Barker regrouped to 13th. In Race 2, Barker led the recovery, taking fifth with Gaunt seventh, before they finished third and fourth in the final. In the Elite Class, Max Twigg led the way in the first two races, but an early flatspotted tyre caused problems late in the final, necessitating a pitstop. That handed the race and round honours to Paul Kelly, the New Zealander on debut after missing the Albert Park season opener. James Koundouris was second ahead of Twigg. Pro Points: Richards 306, Baird 302, Reid 276, Gaunt 215, Barker 198, Patrizi 185, Matthew Coleman 171 Elite Points: Twigg 320, Theo Koundouris 276, Peter Hill 257, J Koundouris 252, Shane Smollen 177, Andrew Barlow 171 motorsport news

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Serge Mironenko Rob Lang

Steven Richards took his first race win in a Porsche in the opener, top left. Ben Barker, top, started the race on pole, but a slow start cost him places on the run to Turn 1, as Craig Baird took the agricultural route, above. At his home round, Michael Patrizi, right, narrowly missed out on a podium finish.

Dirk Klynsmith

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V8 UTE RACING SERIES ROUND 2, BARBAGALLO RACEWAY, WA

Dirk Klynsmith

Local does good

Grant Johnson added another V8 Ute round win to his tally on home soil through sheer consistency, MITCHELL ADAM reports

T’S an old adage, but consistency truly was the key for reigning V8 Ute Champion Grant Johnson as he took victory at home. Johnson finished second to first-time Barbagallo visitor Chris Pither in the opening race, then made his way up to third in Race 2, having started 21st in the Reverse Grid affair. In the final, Johnson and Pither battled it out in their Holdens, with Johnson making the definitive pass for the lead on Lap 10 and going to claim the race and round. “We were a little bit worried in qualifying after qualifying back in the pack and really struggled to keep with Chris in the first race and we kind of scratched our heads last night,” Johnson said. 50

“We worked on the car, changed our set-up and it was much better today. You really have to look after the tyres and when Chris got passed I just looked after the tyres and chipped away at his lead, we knew we were fast at the end of the reverse grid race and we that it would be the same for Race 3.” Pither’s second place for the weekend puts him in the lead of the championship, after Adelaide victor David Sieders had a quiet weekend, with fourth in the opener his best result from the three races. Nathan Pretty was third ahead of Kim Jane in the final to secure third for the weekend, his first podium in the category, while the Ryal Harris took fifth. Harris ran

strongly early on in Race 1, but dropped to eventually finish 17th. The reversal of the Top 22 for the Race 2 grid played into his hands and Harris capitalised, taking the lead early and eventually finishing three seconds clear of Allan Letcher. “I just did what I thought I should have done off grid six on a reverse grid race,” Harris admitted. “Keeping in the top three of the championship was all I was thinking about. I want to be able to celebrate with P1 and number one on the car if I’m running Utes again next year.” The weekend’s AutoOne wildcard, Marcus Marshall finished ninth for the round

on his debut in a V8 Ute, after grabbing a 12th, 10th and 11th from the three races. Cameron McConville’s weekend started beautifully, taking pole position. However the Holden three a timing belt late in the session, sidelining him for Race 1. He made progress to finish 15th and 12th in the remaining races. Mechanical woes also struck local Rick Gill. A sometime Ute racer, Gill upstaged the regulars when he utilised his Barbagallo knowledge to top a practice session and qualify third. He finished third in the opener, before a mechanical problem in Race 2 ended his weekend. Points: Pither 252, Johnson 251, Sieders 249, Harris 247, Jack Elsegood 209, Jane 200 motorsport news

race

Dirk Klynsmith Rob Lang

The battle was on between Pither and Johnson in the final, top. Earlier, Pither won the opener, above, while Nathan Pretty scored his maiden V8 Ute podium, right.

Rob Lang

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TOURING CAR MASTERS ROUND 2, BARBAGALLO RACEWAY, WA

JB, you’ve done it ag

John Bowe made it two from two in the 2011 Touring Car Masters in WA, but this round v straight- forward, RICHARD CRAILL reports

OHN Bowe’s victory in Round 2 of the Autobarn Touring Car Masters series at the weekend was a win that very nearly wasn’t. With a field of 25 stacked behind him, Bowe sat ready and waiting on pole position for the first race but worryingly for Bowe that’s exactly where he remained – completely motionless – when the light went green. His car stalled, Bowe was very nearly cannoned into by more than one car as the field took evasive action to avoid the stranded Mustang – Andrew Whiteside actually snapping the clutch pedal on his Mustang as he stomped on the

brake pedal with force whilst spearing off into the infield. It would have been a monster hit but was skilfully avoided. With the field clear, Bowe recovered, selected first gear and drove off – now in 15th position and looking for a way to salvage his weekend. And salvage he did. He finished that race fourth, behind a stunning battle for the race lead staged between Andrew Miedecke and Gavin Bullas that went right down to the final lap, Camaro driver Miedecke edging out the twotime champion after the pair swapped positions twice and ran side-by-side down the front straight to the delight of the crowd.

Bowe cut his way from sixth to win Race 2, a success he would replicate in the finale by leading from start to finish to cap off a weekend that could have been dramatically different. “The car stalled and it got a bit frightening,” a clearly relieved Bowe said. “The others did an unbelievable job to miss me – it was far too close and it shouldn’t have happened but that was that. I’m really pleased because the car was just fantastic all weekend, well balanced, quick. “There’s nothing left with ‘Sally’ that I’m not comfortable with now, and if you’re going to win you’ve got to enjoy it

and that’s what I’m doing.” Miedecke was second overall and Richards third in the Falcon sprint, whilst fourth was reserved for an outstanding Tony Edwards in the still-new and still underdeveloped SLR/5000 Torana. Edwards finished as high as second in Race 2 and now looks to have the goods to regularly challenge at the front. Opposed to Bowe, Bullas’ weekend started well and slowly slipped backwards as the event progressed. His strong Race 1 result was backed up by fourth in Race 2 and the bright red Mustang was battling with Bowe for the lead in the finale before motorsport news

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James Smith

Andrew Miedecke and Gavin Bullas slugged it out for the Race 1 win, above, before Bullas’ weekend went downhill. Tony Edwards was an impressive fourth in his Torana, below, while Tony Karanfilovski debuted his new Falcon, bottom.

Dirk Klynsmith

gain

victory was hardly

James Smith

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Rob Lang

it dramatically slowed on lap four. The cause? A blown head gasket – the same issue that plagued the car at Clipsal and left Bullas with no points. The result? One unhappy driver seeking answers. Chris Stilwell won the class B battle in his Ford Mustang after a close weekend with Bernie Stack (Camaro) and Andrew Whiteside’s Mustang, whilst John Nelson won Class A over the husband-wife battle waged between Greg Keene and Amanda Sparks all weekend – to the point where they finished the final race side-by-side, Keene getting one back on the other half after Sparks dominated at Clipsal.

2011 NITRO CHAMPS SYDNEY DRAGWAY, NSW

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Read’s got Nitro

The 2011 Nitro Champs at Sydney Dragway had everything, including a full quota of ANDRA Pro Series categories, with Phil Read taking out Top Fuel. JON VAN DAAL was there

John Morris / Mpix

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HE 2011 Nitro Champs had everything – highlights, lowlights, record passes, upsets and plenty of rain. Racing was stopped and started following a number of showers on Friday including a qualifyingending dump. Saturday saw a similar weather pattern with racing stopping a couple of times during the day, while Sunday dawned bright and beautiful but it took until 8pm to put the race in the books. Over 300 teams from all over Australia descended on Sydney Dragway for the biggest event this year and while the event was slow going, it was well worth it when it came down to the final pairings. The race saw a number of crashes with Kelly Bettes writing her Modified dragster off by slamming the right wall, and Brett Gillespie crashed his early Chev Doorslammer against the opposite wall in qualifying. By far the biggest hit came in the final of Super Compact when Rocky Rehayem turned hard right in the lights, just missing his opponent and contacting the wall head on at around 200 mph. The flaming car slid to a stop on its roof and with a dazed but conscious Rehayem being taken to hospital. Due to the on again, off again weather in qualifying, Top Fuel dragster only saw one qualifying pass with a surprising Perth racer, Damien Harris securing the top spot with a respectable 4.813s on a cooling track. The rest of the field failed to put down representative passes and a mooted second qualifier on Sunday morning was never run. Round 1 saw Harris picked up where he left off with a bracket-like 4.823s putting away a slowing Bob Shepherd. Next up, Mark Mariani caused a slight upset when he took out Phil Lamattina with a 4.976s to a slowing 13.13s while fellow Rapisarda Racing driver, Alan Dobson did the same to better-reacting 55

John Bosher

points leader, Darren Morgan in a close 4.962s to 5.303s duel. Lastly, Terry Sainty, in a third Rapisarda car, was swamped by Phil Read who ran low ET and Top speed of the event thanks to a 4.616s / 305.01mph effort. Read’s revival continued in the semis when he faced Dobson where, after an even start, the former Australian champion stretched his lead to a solid 4.914s to 5.679s win. Harris, on the other hand, looked unstoppable with a third four eighty – a 4.810s to 5.010s victory over a fading Mariani. With the Rehayem crash taking a while to clean up, the last pairing of the event took place right on 8pm. Worries of a cooling track for the final were quickly dismissed when Phil Read pounded out a solid 4.900s / 291.92mph to totally cover the hapless Harris. The

yellow BTP Racing rail of Harris when silent on the launch where it appears the throttle cable snapped, allowing the Team Read/Auto One team a well deserved win – their first for some time. Top Alcohol had two qualifying passes with Wayne Newby taking the top spot with a 5.647s from his alky dragster. Sadly, points leader Aaron Hambridge has had to virtually retire after his workshop was recently burgled and all his engines were stolen and has conceded his attempt to win this year’s title. Newby used solid 5.720s and 5.676s passes to turn back a red-lighting Stuart Ham and slowing Steve Reed, respectively. He faced Funny Car shoe, John Cannuli who firstly took out WA dragster driver, Adam Marchant and then fellow flopper driver Wayne Price, with low ET and Top Speed of the

meet at 5.598s / 256.80mph and an engine damaging 6.915s respectively. The Cannuli pit certainly used the four hours between the semi and final well, as up to 10 different crew members assisted in readying Cannuli’s engine in a wild pit thrash. He was able to pull into the beams beside Newby in fine shape after both blanked the chilling night air with tyre smoke. Alas, for Newby, this would be his fate on the green as his dragster overpowered the track to let a valiant Cannuli take what seemed like an unlikely win – 5.753s / 251.81mph to a 10.622. However, with Hambridge now out, Newby has all but sealed another Australian Top Alcohol championship. The Top Doorslammer and Pro Stock fields were huge with 18 and 24 cars respectively. In the tricky conditions, 5.913s

and 7.078s were the top passes in qualifying, for John Zappia and Nick Xerakias respectively. Zappia made it to the final where put away Peter Kapiris – with a snaking 5.888s to 5.922s – while Xerakis almost crashed his car in the second round with an awesome save. In Pro Stock, Dave Newcombe’s 7.296s won over a red lighting Bektash. The Top Bike final saw Chris Matheson overpower the track a number of times with a 7.616s that stayed in front of an ailing Mick Murray, while in Pro Stock Bike, top qualifier Bob Shaw was upset by Maurice Allen in an all Suzuki affair – a 7.555s doing it to a slow starting 8.10s. The event certainly had everything thrown at it with rain delays, oil downs and crashes but the untiring officials kept the show on the road and in the end a solid event went into the record books.

John Morris / Mpix

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John Bosher John Bosher

John Morris / Mpix

Opposite page: Damien Harris was a standout performer in Top Fuel, top, but had no answer for Phil Read in the final, bottom. John Cannuli took out Top Alcohol, top, while John Zappia, above left, won Top Doorslammer, Dave Newcombe, above, won Pro Stock, and Chris Matheson, left, grabbed the win in Top Bike.

John Morris / Mpix Jon Van Daal

John Morris / Mpix

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NASCAR ROUND 9 – RICHMOND, VA

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Kyle High Joe Gibbs Racing showed its complete mastery at Richmond, Kyle Busch heading a 1-2 finish ahead of Denny Hamlin

W Toyota Media

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HAT are the chances of another NASCAR Sprint Cup driver helping Kyle Busch to take a victory? According to the man himself, that is just what happened at Richmond. Two days before his 26th birthday, Busch spent the first sector of the race behind teammate and track expert Denny Hamlin and the experience he gained from a similar strategy last year gave him the edge over the final laps of the race. All he had to do from there was to manage his fuel – which he did to such good effect that the #18 Toyota ran dry after the chequered flag. “This is pretty awesome,” said Busch. “We

had a really good car, and we knew that if we could play through traffic a little bit better than the #11 [Hamlin] that we had a shot at the win, and we did that tonight. “I learned from Denny Hamlin last fall [autumn] and I’m not going to say what I learned, but he might know. We did a good job of doing what we needed to do early in the run, and once we got out and had to go through traffic, the traffic kind of fell our way, so we were able to pick our way through there.” Hamlin was second, after having won both the Late Model and Nationwide races over the previous nights. Busch’s win means that the two Joe Gibbs drivers have won the Sprint Cup races at the 0.75-mile

for the last five years. Kasey Kahne gave Red Bull Racing its best result of the season with third, a week after undergoing minor surgery on his knee. It was the best showing for Kahne since he made the switch to the team – for which he will only drive this season. Behind the trio of Camrys came the Roush Fenway cars of David Ragan and Carl Edwards, while Clint Bowyer continued his run of top-six finishes with sixth in the Childress Chevy. The race was a tough one for Juan Montoya who, after starting on the pole, led the opening 25 laps. The Earnhardt Ganassi Chevy fell away to the back end of he top 10 until lap 108, when he had a big crach with Ryan Newman. Montoya returned to the race and prompted a caution on lap 238, when he clashed with Newman in an apparent payback incident. The event was almost a nonevent for Marcos Ambrose. The DeWalt Ford started 35th and he finished 23rd, which is also where he sits in the Sprint Cup standings. In the Heat of the Night: The three-quarter mile circle at Richmond Virginia turned on its share of action on Saturday night but when the flag fell, it was all-Toyota, all-Joe Gibbs Racing, all the time.

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Results :: The Matthew and Daniel Hansen 499, Richmond, VA Pos.No. 1 18 2 11 3 4 4 6 5 99 6 33 7 43 8 48 9 14 10 83

Driver Kyle Busch Denny Hamlin Kasey Kahne David Ragan Carl Edwards Clint Bowyer A.J. Allmendinger Jimmie Johnson Tony Stewart Brian Vickers

Make Toyota Toyota Toyota Ford Ford Chevy Ford Chevy Chevy Toyota

Team Joe Gibbs Joe Gibbs Red Bull Roush Fenway Roush Fenway Childress Petty Hendrick Stewart Haas Red Bull

Sponsor Qual. M&M’s Pretzel 20 FedEx Freight 11 Red Bull 4 UPS 27 Scott’s EZ Seed 8 BB&T 3 Nautica 18 Lowe’s 30 Mobil 1 31 Red Bull 37

Top 10 Points:

Edwards 335, Johnson 326, Ky Busch 305, Earnhardt 301, Har vick 300, Ku Busch 289, Bowyer 284, Newman 277, Kenseth 276, Stewar t 275.

NASCAR Media

NEED TO JOIN A CAR CLUB TO GET YOUR CAMS LICENSE? No matter what car you drive, Formula Ford Association membership is a cost effective way to get you on track.

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Marshall Dillon Reigns in 410s

The Allerton Way

410 SPRINTCARS

GLENN Allerton picked up a pair of wins to extend his lead in the QBE Insurance Australian Superbike Championship at Barbagallo Raceway. In the ASBK’s first run on the V8 Supercar card for the year and the championship’s first visit to the circuit since 2006, and Allerton started the weekend with victory in Race 1 thanks to a penultimate-lap pass on Honda rider Wayne Maxwell. “We came across some lap traffic and I probably got in front of him for a split second but couldn’t make it stick,” Allerton said. “The other guys were there racing for position and I really had to attack hard to get through them. I got Wayne towards the end and managed to get through some traffic heading up the hill, I wasn’t sure where he was but knew he would have to deal with them as well.” The BMW rider had to work for victory in the second race as well, as Craig Coxhell and Jamie Stauffer fought for the lead early. Allerton picked his way into the lead as the pack navigated lap traffic, though, and ultimately beat Maxwell home again, with Coxhell and Stauffer rounding out the top four. It gave Allerton the round win over Maxwell and Stauffer, and he extends his championship lead to 58 over Suzuki’s Troy Herefoss, who was seventh for the weekend. “We knew that everyone would be searching for more grip after yesterday’s race so got together and made some changes to the bike to make it a bit better,” Allerton said. “Over race distance it came on strong again and was super quick. I can’t thank the team enough for putting everything they have behind me.”

Dirk Klynsmith

LUKE Dillion has taken out his second Speedway City Revolution Racegear 410ci Sprintcar Championship Series. Unfortunately Mother Nature played its part to bring the series to a premature end, handing Dillon back to back series championship with an 18-point buffer from Strathalbyn teenager Danny Pestka, with Jamie Cobby just a further thirty points behind. Rounding out the top 10 in the points score were Luke Bowey, Matt Egel, Steven Caruso who collected points at each round, and Ricky Maiolo who missed some of the series while contracted as a World Series Sprintcars competitor. The series was hard-fought affair, producing nine different winners from the 11 contested events. Cobby and Australian Champion Brooke Tatnell were the only multiple round victors. Other round winners included Dillon, Pestka, Keller, Egel, Maiolo and Steven Lines, proving that the competition level was of a high calibre. In addition the 360 Sprintcars also had their series go down to the wire. Shane Hendry took the title from his cousin Jamie Hendry, with Tregan Gates coming home in third. Further back were rookie competitors Brendan Guerin and Tyson Chambers. Guerin deserves a special mention, having travelled from New South Wales for every round of the series. Rounding out the top six was Mark Caruso, who sacrificed a few meetings while racing in the Victorian Sprintcar All Stars Series of which he won the overall pointsscore. – PARIS CHARLES

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Lakeside TORAN-AGE! LAKESIDE

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MARK PRIOR

A HUGE crash, which all but destroyed four Group N Toranas and sent driver Carol Jackson to hospital with a number of injuries, marred the second round of the Queensland Raceways Drivers Championship held at Lakeside Park over the weekend. The accident occurred during the opening lap of the third race for the higher capacity Group N cars. Approaching the bridge, third-placed Bruce Dummett appeared to get into the side of Peter Bageley, taking both cars heavily into the Armco fencing before sliding back onto the circuit in front of the field. The two cars were then collected by Jamie Heffernan and Jackson, who was trapped briefly in her car before being removed with a back brace and taken to hospital where it was discovered she had a broken collarbone and a fractured pelvis. The weekends racing featured large fields of Formula Vees, Improved Production, Group N Touring Cars, Historic Clubman, QR Sports and Sedans and the always sideways Trans Ams. While Saturday’s events flowed smoothly and ahead of schedule, despite the brief

appearance of rain, Sunday was full of interruptions and red flags to retrieve bogged or broken race cars. The Improved Production and Trans Am were other categories to suffer a number of damaged vehicles. Despite the carnage there was plenty of close racing action. Michael Antonieff in a PRB Clubman dominated all four of the QR Sports and Sedan races as did Christopher McIlwain in Group 1 of the Group N Touring cars where his Datsun 1600 proved unbeatable.

Bruce Dummett started the weekend well, taking the first Group N race for Group 2 before Cameron Black, Ford Escort, took the top step in race 2. Despite the considerable thinning of Queensland’s Group N XU1 ranks Sunday morning, it was a Torana that took the final 2 races in the hands of Ethan Lind. Grant Wilson took out the first Trans Am race but was unable to beat fellow Camaro driver Ian Woodward in the remaining 3 events. Shane Hart continued his winning ways

in his Jacer Vee but an engine miss in the fourth race allowed Mike Smith in a Hobart Vee to take the win. Kevin Smeaton, Mallock, ruled the roost in Historic Clubman but it was great to see racing legend, Kevin Bartlett return to the winners circle in race 3 with the first win for the Tigershark. Round 3 of the Queensland Raceways Drivers Championship will be held on the 9th and 10th of July at Queensland Raceway. – MARK PRIOR

DTM

Spengler: Splendid!

sutton-images.com

BRUNO Spengler took honours in the DTM opener at Hockenheim, the Mercedes driver taking a lights-to-flag win. The Canadian was never headed and was able to control the pace of the race, but behind him a fine scrap raged for second place with Mathias Ekstrom just hanging on to score the position. The Swede, who suffered a badly broken hand in the winter, ran out of stamina and was fortunate to be able to hang on to second sport from Ralf Schumacher, whose Mercedes was just 0.187s away from the Audi at the end of the race. It gave Schumacher a maiden podium finish. Gary Paffett could only make it as far as sixth after staring from 18th on the grid. – DAVID ADDISON

sutton-images.com

RICHMOND IS ALL-DENNY’S NATIONWIDE IT took a while, but Denny Hamlin has finally won a Nationwide race at Richmond. The Joe Gibbs driver dominated the race, leading 199 of 250 laps. Only a late-race 64

yellow, that led to a green-white-chequer finish, put the question in doubt. With fuel range in question, Hamlin held off Paul Menard for the win, with points leader Justin Allgaier third. TV viewers may not have picked that, as the graphic at the end of the race listed Danica Patrick as

third – some effort, considering she was in Brazil, preparing to race her IndyCar. It was a great weekend for Hamlin, who apart from taking second in the Cup race, won the Late Model race from the back of the grid. motorsport news

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Three winners at Thruxton BTCC

Honda Pro Images

THREE different winners came from Thruxton’s annual rounds of the BTCC at the weekend where Gordon Shedden, Matt Neal and Jason Plato took the wins. Shedden qualified on pole and dominated race one, his pace never threatened although ever the team-player, Sheds backed off to allow team-mate Neal to catch and pass him. With a point on offer for each leader of a race, Neal collected and lifted, allowing Shedden back through for the win. Neal dominated a quiet second race storming away from the pack, while Plato made up for a puncture-induced crash in race one by winning race three which included a safety car period after Tom Chilton crashed his Ford Focus. Plato built up his lead again on the restart to be chased home by Mat Jackson’s Ford Focus and the SEAT of Tom Boardman, who took a career-first BTCC podium. Mitchell Gilbert took two fifth places in the Formula Renault UK Championship, the Kuala Lumpurborn Aussie bagging two second places in the Graduate Cup for the younger drivers. – DAVID ADDISON

Pedrosa eases the pain with a win MOTOGP

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DANI Pedrosa pulled off a spectacular passing manoeuvre over compatriot Jorge Lorenzo with five laps left to remaining to win the Portuguese Grand Prix. Perhaps what made the pass more impressive was how easy Pedrosa made it look as he easily out paced Lorenzo along the main straight. But it was a completely different story in Parc Ferme, as a visibly emotional Pedrosa looked to have nothing left, but was happy following his first race

since recent shoulder surgery. Pedrosa had trouble taking off his riding gear initially, before he eventually make it up to the podium presentations. Jorge had to settle for second after what was a great opening half to his race. Riding his Yamaha beyond its pace, Jorge just couldn’t hold off Pedrosa for the lead, but managed to hold of Repsol Honda Rider Casey Stoner in third. Valentino Rossi looked set to take fourth as he continues to come to terms with his Ducati, but the sheer power of the Repsol Hondas came back

to haunt the Moto GP field. Coming out of the final turn, Andrea Dovizioso pulled out of the draft on his more powerful Honda to take fourth with a photo-finish across the line. Colin Edwards was the best of the Americans. Marco Simoncelli was a real threat all weekend on his Gresini Honda, but fell off in spectacular fashion during the opening lap. The bouffanthaired Italian later blamed cold tyres as the cause for the incident, but his pace looks to be promising for the later stages of the year. 65

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ODD SPOT!

Dumbrell and Pies share Rose win

rear of grid LUCAS Dumbrell was a busy lad on the weekend. Apart from having his team compete in the west, Dumbrell was on hand to present the Robert Rose Cup to Collingwood Magpies’ skipper, Nick Maxwell. The Cup has been awarded, since 2000, to the winner of the Collingwood-Footscray clash, and commemorates the life of Robert Rose, who played football for both clubs and cricket for Victoria until, at 22, he became a quadriplegic in a car accident. “Collingwood Football Club was honoured to have Lucas present the Robert Rose Cup to the club on Sunday,” said Magpies CEO Gary Pert. “Lucas is a great supporter and friend of the club and an advocator for others suffering from spinal injuries. What Lucas has achieved over the last few years not only in confronting his disability, but in moving on with his life is truly inspirational.” For the record, Collingwood won the game by 48 points.

ON THIS DAY 2 MAY 1976 FOR many, Tyrrell’s P34 was one of the more remarkable cars ever to take to the racetrack. The unique six-wheeler made its race debut 35 years ago today, in the Spanish GP at Jarama. Patrick Depailler qualified third in the first race for the radical car, but spun out after suffering brake problems on lap 26. Below the Frenchman leads Vittorio Brambilla (March 761), who crashed out on lap 22.

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