Motorsport News Issue 429 - March 2013 by V8 Sleuth

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FORMULA 12013 - FULL SFARON PREVIEW

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JACK LINKS 1-3 March 2013

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Australian

NEWS

Editorial Group Editor Steve Normoyle snormoyle@chevron.com.au At Large Phil Branagan

Editorial Enquiries

THIS MONTH’S FEATURES

The Grid

Chevron Publishing Level 6,207 Pacific Highway, St Leonards, NSW 2065 Locked Bag 5555,St Leonards, NSW 1590 editorial@chevron.com.au

Contributing Writers

Mark Glendenning, Andrew van Leeuwen, Chris Lambden,Geoff Rounds, Bruce Moxon,

Art Director Chris Currie

Photography

Sutton Motorsport images, Dirk Kiynsmith, John Morris, Andrew Hali, Geoff Grade, Paui Cross, Clay Cross, Peter Bury

r, CHANGE It’s all change this year in V8 Supercars- a field ofall-new cars, and two additional car brands... and even a race in Texas.

Advertising Advertising Director Chris West cwest@chevron.com.au P 02 9901 6376 M 0416125 252 National Sales Manager Luke Finn lfinn@chevron.com.au P02 9901 6368 M 0423 665 384 Chairman, Chevron: Ray Berghouse Circulation Director: Caroie Jones

The Formula 1 season kicks off later this month at Albert Park. Andrew van Leeuwen takes a look at the 2013 class ofFI.

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chevron PUBLISHING GROUP W/ a division of . nextmedia Pty Ltd.

Level 6,207 Pacific Highway, St Leonards, NSW 2065 Locked Bag 5555,St Leonards, NSW 1590 Chief Executive Officer, David Gardiner Commerciai Director, Bruce Duncan Motorsport News is published by nextmedia Pty Ltd ACN: 128 805 970, Level 6,207 Pacific Highway,St Leonards NSW 2065 O 2013. All rights reserved. Motorsport News Is printed by Webstar, Sydney, distributed by Network Distribution. No part of this magazine may be reproduced,in whole or in part, without the prior permission of the publisher. The publisher will not accept responsibility or any liability for the correctness of information or opinions expressed in the publication. All material submitted is at the owner’s risk and, while every care will be taken nextmedia does not accept liability for loss or damage. Privacy Policy We value the integrity of your personal information. If you provide personal Information through your participation In any competitions,surveys or offers featured in this Issue of Motorsport News, this will be used to provide the products or services that you have requested and to improve the content of our magazines.Your details may be provided to third parties who assist us In this purpose. In the event of organisations providing prizes or offers to our readers, we may pass your details on to them.From time to time, we may use the information you provide us to inform you of other products,services and events our company has to offer. We may also give your information to other organisations which may use it to inform you about their products, services and events, unless you tell us not to do so. You are welcome to access the Information that we hold about you by getting in touch with our privacy officer, who can be contacted at nextmedia, Locked Bag 5555.St Leonards, NSW 1590.

THE 12 HOURS OF BATHURST Unprecedented international participation and a contest of changing fortunes that was still up in the air in the final hour, the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour was cracker.

The Rolex Daytona 24 in pictures

www.mnews.com.au motorsport news

Unusual Suspects

EXILE ON MAIN STRAIGHT

He's an Aussie but he's never lived in Australia, which must make him a bit like a rolling stone... But he is also a fine young talent, and a driver with whom Australia may soon become very familiar.

Sydney-based shooter extraordinaire Andrew Hall has in recent years been globetrotting about the place in search ofimages ofsome of the world's big sports car races. Here's some of what he captured from last month's Daytona 24.

From humble beginnings, Kees Weel's PWR business empire now supplies vital components to the world's very best race teams,from FI to NASCAR.

FUELING THE BATTLE As the ANDRA 2012/13 Top Fuel championship is nearing Its end the title fight looks like it's become a two-way battle.

WARRNAMBOOL WINNER

THE Grand Annual Sprintcar Classic is already a big event but next year it will be bigger still expanding from the current two-day event to a new three-day format.

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Plenty ofmotorsport followers know the name Kees Weel but now Kees' PWR Performance Products Is being recognised and praised by the federal and state governments. And why not - because from humble beginnings as a radiator business in Warrnambool, Weel has built an empire that supplies critical components to a host of different categories including Formula I and NASCAR.

REGULARS Motor Mouth with Phil Branagan The Scoop with Steve Normoyle On The Limiter with Chris Lambden Box Seat United States of Origin Model Behaviour Trade

www.mnews.com.au

Classifieds

Parting Shot

Mitchell who? The entire population of Australia can be forgiven for not knowing anything about this young Aussie who's set to be a serious contender in the European F3 Championship. That's because Mitchell Gilbert has never actually lived in this country. For an explanation of this bizarre anomaly, turn to page 70. 5

PHIL

BRANAGAN MOTOR MOUTH

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HE Future is here. What has been called, until now,V8 Supercars'Car of the Future has had its

Test Day and will race in Adelaide and beyond.There is no going back. The aims of COTF have been well noted.They are many but the main ones are: enhanced

driver safety; to provide a platform to entice new makes into the category;'closer'and 'better'racing; and lower the cost to the teams. Safety is a no-brainer. Every generation of racecar should be, and almost always is, designed to be safer than the last. There appear to be no problems here; tick. New makes? Nissan is in. Erebus has bought MercedesBenz'in'on a customer basis.

as the most competitive championship of its kind in the world. Looking over the last decade, I cannot identify any instance that might justify a $20 million spend to make the racing closer or better. Can you? And,cost.This is where it becomes quite complicated. V8 Supercars has stated that the aim is not just cheaper cars but cars that are cheaper to race, maintain and repair. How that part of the cost equation stacks up is not going to be measurable, in all likelihood, until at least the end of the season. But the pre-build targets and the actual start-up costs can be looked at. At Bathurst in 2009, V8 Supercar Chairman Tony Cochrane said that the Car of The Future "will have an absolute all-up cost of $250,000 to build one from scratch, so the engine costs will come down enormously". Later, I asked for clarification of that number and

Whether any others follow, replicating either of those two paths, remains to be seen.TBA. 'Closer'racing? V8 Supercars has been deservedly lauded

V8SC's response was that the

$250k number was"plus engine". Subsequently, Mark Skaife has stated that the cost of a rolling chassis would be "around 25 percent" less than the older car. Is it? I asked some team principals how much their COTFs cost. Not all of them, but a representative sample. Some declined to comment but some did, off-the-record. One shrugged his shoulders and said "the cars will cost what they cost" but when pressed, stated the new cars cost about the same.The rest all said their COTFs cost more than their old cars. A couple said a lot more. One swore. Most numbers mentioned were around $50k more; one suggested $100k. Their replies put the cost of a COTF in the $400,000 to $500,000 range. Next I looked at the cost of cars raced in similar championships around the world. All numbers exclude taxes and delivery. The DTM's manufacturers replied as I expected; they do not discuss the cost of factory race programs with the media. But GT3 cars are for sale to customer teams. A Mercedes-

/ asked some team principals how much their COTFs cost. Some declined to comment butsome did, off-the-record.

Benz SLS AMG GT3,just like the one that won the Bathurst 12 Hour, costs €397,000 - about $515,000. BMW's Z4 GT3 is cheaper at €340,000($440,000) and Nissan's GT-R Nismo GT3 costs a modest 35 million yen ($365,000). In Touring Cars, an S2000 from the World Touring Car Championship or one of the domestic series can be built for about €220,000 - about $285,000. In the British series, a prototype built to the costcontaining NGTC regulations is about £375k and customer cars are around £250k each ($380,000).[My source insisted I report that NGTC running costs are much lower than in S2000. He said that engine costs are about half]. In New Zealand,the VSSuperTourer Series heads into 2013 in better shape than it was in a year ago, with several upgrades having improved the cars'gearboxes and oil systems. A notable team owner offered to build me a new Chevy V8-powered racer for around NZ$260,000 - that's about $211,000. Will V8 Supercars'COTF be a success? The Jury is out. Is it off to a good start? You be the judge.

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! STEVE

NORMOYLE THE SCOOP

o, Car of the Future is now Car of the

Present. Or I guess we should now think of

the new spaceframe, transaxle cars simply as'V8 Supercars'. After a gestation period that's taken years, and after the most exhaustive, most expensive programme to develop a new racing category ever undertaken in Australia, pay day has now arrived. Now, with this new car, it's time for the category to move forward into a new post Flolden-vsFord era and reap the rewards of all that hard work. In one sense, COTF already has proven a success, in the form of Nissan's involvement, and to a lesser extent the non-factory Erebus team. Attracting new manufacturers was always integral to the COTF brief, and from day one we have a third factory team, plus

another brand as a privateer. But the proof of the pudding is in the eating, or in this case the racing, and until the cars have got a few of those under their belts, we'll reserve judgment on the COTF. In the meantime,though, it hasn't been what you'd call an absolutely stellar start. For one, it does seem as though the cars are costing more than the COTF architects predicted they would. And this news comes at an inconvenient time, because right now extra expenditure is something with which some teams can barely cope. Secondly,for what it's worth, the new cars, apart of course from the Merc and Nissan, don't look any different from their predecessors. That's no big news to anyone who follows the sport closely. For the wider viewing public, though, it might be hard to

understand what all the fuss has been about. Because for all the hype and anticipation behind the new cars, if you weren't told they were all-new, you'd never know it from watching them out on the track. Of course, it is a different story when it comes to listening to them, because the Merc and the Nissan bring a fresh look as well as a new sound to the series and doesn't that Mercedes-Benz engine make the most beautiful noise! Don't know how they did it, but somehow the AMG boffins have got the sleevedback SLS engine sounding more like a 3-litre Cosworth FI engine from the mid-'80s. We're told that with their significantly superior vehicle dynamics - lighter weight, better weight distribution and more conventional rear axle design, notwithstanding the transaxle - they'll be more raceable. Again, we'll have to wait and see on that score, but basic engineering logic suggests that

I've seen how much time and effort has gone into the COTF, there's no way they could possibly have got it wrong.

they should make for better racing. There are issues, yes, but then there usually are with a new formula. People may whinge about the higherthan-expected cost of the new cars, but in all the time I've been watching motor racing I've never seen a new formula come in under budget. It always ends up costing more - often a lot more - than was originally planned. But just wait and see. In a year or two,some of the really smart pieces of engineering on these cars will start to prove their worth,so that down the track the cars won't just be better and safer than the old V8 Supercar, but also cheaper. I've seen how much time and effort has gone into the COTF;there's no way they could possibly have got it wrong. It is a far cry from,for instance, the last time we tried to develop a new top-line category in Australia.That was when they did Formula Flolden in the late 1980s.This much anticipated new premier Australian openwheeler category made a disastrous debut and almost fell over in the first year, crippled by endless crankshaft failures on the race-developed Flolden V6 which, when it wasn't breaking crankshafts, was ridiculed for its unpleasant flat exhaust note. Formula Flolden wasn't the work of dills, with Cheetah racing car constructor Brian Shead providing the brains trust. The ideas and the basic concept behind Formula Flolden were sound. But with

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little or no budget to do any meaningful engineering evaluation before locking down the final specs, and Flolden not exactly offering overwhelming support on the engine side of things, the project was ill-prepared, if not doomed, right from the start. Flad Brian Shead had the kind of resources behind him to develop Formula Flolden that the V8 Supercars COTF team has enjoyed, I'd reckon that the state of top level openwheeler racing in this country would be far less parlous than it is now. motorsport news

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f CHRIS

LAMBDEN

! ON THE LIMITER

mate and I were

sitting around with a glass of red a couple of months back, dissecting V8 Supercars,the Car of the Future and,indeed,the future of the category itself. As you do. One ofthe things we identified as missing from V8 Supercars was a strong attraction to women. It's always been a blokey thing. As I've explained to my two teenage sons,their sister is the one with the bright future. Women are taking over at the top - we have a female Governor General, a female Prime Minister, a female head ofthe ANZ Bank ... Things are changing, guys ... So, we mused, when would Seven be adding a genuine female voice to the commentary team? How could V8 Supercars double its audience by capturing the interest of the female viewer? The answer was, of course, staring us in the face. One hundred and nine days after doing a deal with Ross and Jimmy Stone, Betty Klimenko's Erebus racing took the wraps off three AMG Mercedes-Benz V8 Supercars on the eve ofthe 2013 pre-season V8 Supercar test day, in Sydney.The sheer achievement in getting that done was in itself astounding. As Ross Stone explained, it wasn't simply a case of throwing some Merc panels and an engine at the prototype Falcon COTF they'd built. It was, within the constraints of COTF, a "clean-sheet" project. Personnel at what used to be Stone Brothers Racing have worked crazy hours to get it done and complementing their input has been the experience and support of Mercedes' motorsport arm, AMG. With Mercedes-Benz Australia

was under way. Long days at SBR were completed with video conferences with AMG personnel just starting their day in Bavaria.The result, 109 days and many air-freight consignments later, was the unveiling of the three cars which, along with Nissan, will add new colour and interest as the COTF era kicks off. That the Merc has, among other things, a flat-plane crank and fly-by-wire throttle has certainly created a stir probably due to the fact that so few knew of the concessions until the very last minute.The bottom line is, however,that the Merc(and the Nissan) engines fit within the power/torque curve limits set for the category.That is, fundamentally, what matters. The bonus is that the Mercs, beautifully constructed by Erebus(nee SBR) have that high-pitched note not heard in Australian motorsport since the glory days of Frank Gardner's squad ofJPSBMW635 CSi Group A champions. All this is the next step in the motorsport dream of Betty Klimenko, who I'm not alone in predicting will become one of the cult individuals of the

category - and that magnet for the female audience. And

12 Hours a year ago, her Mercedes SLS team went one

I'm not just talking about the obvious - the laid-back singlets, tattoos and colour-of-the-week

better just a week before the V8 Supercar launch. This year has already been a very good one for Betty Klimenko, and the signs are that, in turn, she could be one of the best things to happen to V8 Supercars in its all-new COTF form.Take this, again from the Betty-at-Erebus-Motorsport Facebook page: "I don't need to drive; never had a hot lap, don't want one - I love the sound and feel when

hair that are already the Betty Klimenko signatures.There is already quite a following on her Facebook page, where she quite happily answers the questions of an intrigued audience already around 50:50 split along gender lines. Betty has, let's face it, been fortunate in life. She's the adopted daughter of the late John Saunders who,along with Frank Lowy,founded Westfield. The family cashed out and moved into property and is, according to the BRW Rich List worth a little short of a billion dollars. But, as she revealed in answering a Facebook question last week, her Dad wanted to ensure Betty was grounded: "1 started in a hotel we owned in Artarmon as a cleaner,then housekeeper,then ... all the way to duty manager. I then shifted to head office(my father believed that you can't ask someone to do something you haven't done). I worked there till his death in 1997 ..."Betty was 38. A few years later, she dabbled in motorsport for the first time as an F3 sponsor and, well, one thing has led to another. Having finished second in the Bathurst

you stand at the wall and they come past. I love the strategy it takes to win a race, the on-thespot decisions, and the highs and lows. With racing it can change second by second, it never stays the same. It is also a sport that can be shared, talked over, dissected and loved by nearly anyone. "I know it is a sport, but to me it's also about the entertainment, and the people I have met and talked to and share things with so many strange, and wonderful people. "I needed an outlet, where my rebel-side could soar, and somewhere where I could make my own footprint, as to follow in my father's would have been pointless - his footprint was too big, and it was his." Was that a breath of fresh air I Justfeit blow by?

This year has already been a very good one for Betty Klimenko, and the signs are that,in turn,she could be one ofthe best things to happen to V8 Supercars in its all-new COTFform : -X II 'fmotorsi ortvft.com

just not sure this was their cup of tea (something which they will surely ultimately review), Mercedes and motorsport nut Klimenko dealt direct, expanded her customer relationship with AMG and, hey presto, the project 10

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I ANDREW

You have to think that the demise ofHRTis oniy the beginning. How long can these teams keep running around so far offthe pace at the back ofthe field? 'VE worked in quite a few temporary media centres over the years. But a temporary media centre directly underneath a Formula 1 team's windtunnel? That was a first. A few weeks back I was asked to travel to Switzerland to cover

the launch of the Sauber C32-Ferrari. It meant taking a long (40 minute)flight from Frankfurt to Zurich, then driving for roughly the same amount of time to reach the little town of Hinwil. It was both my first FI team launch, and my first visit to a proper factory. I'm not sure what I was expecting, but I always thought an FI team's facility to be somewhere ... magical. But h.ere-1 was, in a pretty ordinary looking business park.The onJ)rj;entale signs from the outside were a small'Sauber Motorsport'sign, and a row of trucks and transporters. Things were a lot more impressive from the inside. Clean, modern, a fun scattering of old Sauber FI cars in the entrance hall, and the aforementioned media workspace set up under the team's surprisingly big windtunnel, which intermittently roared in and out of life.

The launch itself was nice. A presentation in a mix of broken English and Swiss Deutsch, interviews with Monisha Kaltenborn and the drivers, and a tech run down with the car's designer Matt Morris,followed by small'press-only'groups where us journos could ask questions in a more intimate(and voice recorder friendly) environment. Like I said, it was nice. But it wasn't over the top.There were no rockstars.There were no pyrotechnics.There were goodie bags filled with jackets, hats, iPads or Swiss watches. That seems to be the way for modern FI. Once extravagant affairs, launches are now done in either the team's workshops, or at whatever track is hosting the first test of the season. It doesn't matter if is Sauber, or McLaren. FI has simplified the way it does anything that doesn't directly affect on-track performance. "We used to hire Alexandra Palace,"said Martin Whitmarsh from McLaren during the first test in Jerez."We used to spend a fortune ■■■U....JI 6>R.|atiwehe»,^ever>yene dld^ didn't^thay?.Itwas a-competition. "Now, our launch cost us the two grandstands that we put up in the atrium of our factory so it didn't cost us very much. No one has done that anymore because people don't want to see a million pound launch extravaganza so I think FI has changed." So, FI has become smarter, more resourceful and a lot less wasteful. That's a good thing for the longevity of the sport. .com.au

But in m^Wthd,thg£,'§^till^e area where teams are being wasteful. Modern FI is tough on rookie drivers, simply because the super-expensive testing teams are a thing of the past. Now,rookies enter their first season with next to no miles under their belts, a far cry from the FI of 10 or 15 years ago. So, my question is this - why aren't the medium-to-big teams using the'minnow'teams as a way to give young drivers a chance to bank FI miles before they are expected to perform in the mid-field? It's happened before; it's exactly what Red Bull did with Daniel Ricciardo at HRT back in 2011. The benefits speak for themselves. Ricciardo had done a few 'Friday' miles when he joined HRT, but still massively struggled getting the most out of the tyres in qualifying in those first few races. But he quickly improved,and surely that was a feature in the way he so comprehensively beat Jean-Eric Vergne, a real rookie, in qualifying last season. Maybe Williams, which now has a technical relationship with Marussia, should have thought about helping Vaitteri Bottas into a seat last year.That's just one example,and things are never that simple (there's every chance they did think of it), but it would work. Deals could be made for technical assistance, technology sharing, sponsor sharing, driver's personal budget sharing, whatever. And everyone would be a winner.The small teams would benefit from both a better financial situation and having better young drivers (ie: young drivers not relying solely on a family budget), the young drivers would be much better prepared to take their opportunities with bigger teams when they come,and the bigger teams would benefit from having their young drivers coming into a season with genuine experience, not just a thousand miles in a simulator and a few test days. As I already said, things are never quite that simple. But I really do wonder why more teams haven't taken the opportunity to stick drivers in Marussias, Caterhams and, up until the end of last year at least, HRTs. Yo,u have tQ think that the demise of HRT is only the beginning. How long can these teams keep running around so far off the pace at the back of the field? How long is it viable to serve absolutely no purpose in one of the world's richest sports. Maybe, with a few more Ricciardo-HRT style scenarios, the minnows can find their purpose in FI. Could be just the trick for the new lean, mean and excess-free world of Grand Prix racing. 13

^he USA is a litigious country. Even if you never get sued - or never sue anyone the possibilities to be on either side of a lawsuit seem endless. Driving a 5,600km fishhook-shaped loop from Maine to _ California last year,the only roadside billboards that came close to rivaling those advertising fast food in their ubiquity were those advertising the services of slick-haired attorneys beseeching you to call them if you've just caused a traffic pile-up.Turn on the TV,and you'll hear excited-sounding men informing you that if your pet bird died within six months of you receiving a particular medication for kidney stones, you could be eligible to Join a class action and receive compensation. But ONLY IF YOU CALL NOW! From that perspective, it seems appropriate that we have a potential lawsuit to help kick off the new indyCar season, in one corner, you have Dragon Racing and sponsorTrueCar, a website that offers pricing and information for new and used cars. On the other side is Katherine Legge,a suddenly unemployed driver who is now trying to find out whether the contract that she says entitles her to the car that was recently allocated to young Colombian Sebastian Saavedra is worth the paper it's written on. At time of writing, Legge is fighting the battle like someone who has nothing to lose. Which,of course, is precisely what she is. IndyCar seats are a premium this year,and Just over a month out from the opening race, virtually all ofthem are gone.The one or two that might be left require a not-inconsiderable amount of

funding,and Legge's sponsor has already aligned itself with the team rather than its former standard-bearer. Indeed,TrueCar will be the main backer of Saavedra's entry. Truth be told,the Legge/Dragon relationship was a slightly awkward one even when she had her name on the side of a car. Dragon was one ofthe teams that started last season with Lotus power;a move that it, like most of the other Lotus-powered teams, quickly sought to rectify once it became apparent Just how poor the engines really were. It managed to wriggle out of the relationship midway through the season and secure a deal with Chevrolet- but only for one powerplant. One engine into two cars doesn't go,so for the rest of the season Legge and Sebastian Bourdais were forced to share the car. Bourdais got to drive it on the street and road courses(such as Sonoma, below),and Legge took over on the ovals. Over the course of her career, Legge has proven herself to be an'adequate'driver rather than the sort that you might consider building a team around. Last year marked her return to singleseaters after a three-year stint in the DTM;a spell that ended with her finishing the championship in 19th, 18th, and 18th, with zero career points and a best race result of 12th, which she achieved twice in 2009. Prior to that she spent two years in Champ Car, managing a sixth piace for PKV at Milwaukee in 2006,and another one for Dale Coyne Racing at Las Vegas the following year. It was hard not to

Over the course ofher career, Legge has proven herselfto be an 'adequate'driver rather than the sort that you might consider building a team around.

^ motorsport news

kjMARK

suspect the presence of a tiny fleck of condescension in the quote attributed toTrueCar CEO Scott Painter in a team release issued after her split from Dragon had been confirmed. "After 12 months of collaboration, hard work,andTrueCar's sincere efforts to resurrect Katherine's open-wheei career,TrueCar has decided to pursue a different driver for 2013," he said. 'Resurrect'is a word that carries ail sorts of inferences and implications, but however you wish to interpret it, the fruits of TrueCar's'efforts to resurrect'her career in single-seaters were limited to a ninth place in the season-finaie at Fontana. In none of her other 14 starts did she finish inside the top 15.This, in a car that Bourdais regularly had in the top 10,and nearly won with at Sonoma.For a smail team that thinks big, as Dragon does,this was going to set off aiarm beils. The saga took an even more bizarre twist when Bourdais decided to weigh in.The Frenchman has never been one to sugarcoat things, and an inquiry last year by this journalist about how he and Legge worked together was worth the effortjust to watch Bourdais try to come up with a diplomatic way to say that he didn't think he could learn an awful lot from her. But Bourdais'objection to her continuing association with the team had iess to do with her pace, and more to do with what he considered to be tokenism. Uniike many series,female drivers are not a novelty in IndyCar. Yes, it had Danica for years, but the real kicker is that it has Simona de Silvestro - a driver who would be in

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GLENDENNINOl: I' UNITED STATES OF ORIGIN

the series regardless of her gender. Legge's programme was part of a widerTrueCar initiative called'Women Empowered', which funds female drivers in different levels of racing. "For sure,at some point you've got to earn it," Bourdais was reported as saying."It's a tough sport, like any professional sport. You have a lot of competition.You shouldn't get an opportunity because of your gender.You should get an opportunity because you deserve it and on your talent. It's the way sport is, it's the way it should be.Simona deserves that ride at KV [Racing].There's nothing against females in the sport. It's a tough sport for everybody." Tokenism or empowerment,fast or slow, naive or betrayed; in theory, none of these should matter if Legge's contraa is what she says it is, although in practice it's not hard to imagine that Dragon's Jay Penske and TrueCar would be just as happy to pay her out to make her go away if the fine print was on the Brit's side. Where it could get ugly is if both sides decide to keep fighting it. We can safely assume that Penske has access to pretty good lawyers.'Tea n't speakfor Legge, but if she gets stuck, I saw plenty of attorneys with 1-800 numbers smiling down from billboards in South Carolina whose details I'd be happy to pass on.Some won't even charge a fee if they lose.

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A field of new ears, a new aed a returning brand, new drivers, new eenbinations - and a race in Texas. The 2013 VO Oupercar Oeasoe kicks oif with the grid facing a let of enknowns. POIl OOANAGAN skines a light en some nf the taetors that will deterieioe who wins and who loses this season 77

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Supercars Championship. Now, they are gone - sort of. Technically,TeamVodafone and Ford Performance Racing are kaput. In their places sit, respectively. Red Bull Racing Australia, the third incarnation ofTriple Eight Race Engineering's V8 Supercar platoon, and the rather garish cars from Pepsi Max Crew FPR. Behind the fizzy beverages and paint, the teams are largely the same. Of course, there has been a change in ownership at FPR, prompted by the exit of Prodrive after a decade.There has also been a shuffle in the

its associated satellites, Rod Nash Racing and Charlie Schwerkolt's CS Racing teams. But the core of the team remains very close to what was there a year ago. But atT8, things are Bullish.The drivers are the same, the same engineers are in the same places and Adrian Burgess is shooting for his fourth straight title as a team manager, after 2010 success with James Courtney at Jim Beam Racing and 2011 and '12 with Jamie Whincup atTeamVodafone. Don't forget,● the last time that anything other than a TB-designed car won a V8 Supercar Drivers' title was when John Howard was the Prime Minister of Australia.

engineering appointments between FPR and

There is any number of people in pitlane

wo teams won all 29 races of the 2012 V8

It would be a huge ask to expeot that two teams that did not, betwoGo them, manage to win a paints race last season with their previnos, weil-devoloped cars, to change marqnes in the nff«on and make an immediate step fnrward in 2B13 78

prepared to put down a dollar on the wager that the two teams will extend the winning blackout for all the other teams in the championship to two years. On the other hand, such have been the number of improvements that the opposition have made - not to mention the generational change in hardware - that there will be genuine rivals to not just take the wins off RBR and FPR when the main players stumble, but to beat them fair and square, on the track. And in spite of the change in the cars themselves, that remains the biggest question to be answered by the 2013 Championship.

ick Kelly qualifies as a 'recent'winner in V8 Supercars. Sure, it was November 2011 when the former champion guided his Jack Daniel's Racing Commodore to victory at Sandown but since that day, only TeamVodafone and FPR won points races. And Just like those

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Townsville two teams, Kelly Racing is gone, replaced by Nissan Motorsport. Much has been written about the arrival of the Japanese maker and its four Altimas in V8 Supercars. It is no secret that the project has been running close to the deadline. As this is written, just before the official V8 Supercar Test Day at SMP, the team was racing against time - and when two cars were shown to the media on Tuesday February 12, the cars on stage matched the number of complete engines that the team had available; two. "We have not submitted the final [engine] spec,"Todd Kelly told MN. "We have had to do 10 years'worth of work in four months. We have gone a huge way towards what we had with the Holden engine last season, and we have a high benchmark to live up to. We have a good direction, and one single change can give you 10 [more] horsepower. '[But] we have only spent seven days on the dyno, and you have to spend a day mapping the thing." On the other hand, as the teams were prepping for the Test Day, things looked

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at Erebus Motorsport looked slightly more advanced. The team formerly known as Stone Brothers Racing was expecting to have nine engines ready to be put in rotation, and the only slight concern appeared to be how many of things like front bars for the E-Classes would be ready in time to take on Turn 8 at Adelaide. In the meantime, there was the chance to test the cars at QR for a day, possibly two, before kicking off the season. It would be a huge ask to expect that two teams that did not, between them, manage to win a points race last season with their previous, well-developed cars, to change marques in the off-season and make an immediate step forward in 2013. It may be mid-season until both teams settle into their new 'skins' but clearly, ambitions are high at both Dandenong and Yatala.

After years and years of development of the Car of The Future, it sounds like an obvious thing to say but everyone goes into

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jM the 2013 V8 Supercar Championship with a new car. That is not that unusual in the wider world of motorsport. Heck, it happens every year - nominally, anyway - in Formula 1. It happened last year in the IndyCar Series, when the Dallara DW12 became de rigeur for all the teams,and in the DTM,in which new generation cars from Audi and MercedesBenz coincided with the return to the fold of BMW with its M3. It happens again this year in NASCAR, when all teams lining up for the Daytona 500 with new generation cars. But in the V8 Supercar era, every team and driver in a new car... when did that last happen? When V8s started to appear, 21 years ago,they mixed it with Group As at Bathurst; a year later, a number of'new' Commodores were former Gp A VPs updated to the new specs, and they raced against existing BMW M3s {and, for that matter, 2-litre cars). When the Project Blueprint cars appeared in 2003,they did not do so all at once;they were introduced gradually. Even before that, when CAMS retired the indigenous Group C and introduced the

'World'Touring Car formula. Group A,for 1985, not all those cars were new. Some of the cars that were imported were used racers (like some of the BMW 635s and Mark Petch's Volvo) or updated Production cars (like the Alfas)- and class cars remained. So that makes 2013 an almost unique event in the history of the sport in this country. Of course,some cars will be slightly less new than others. Only the Nissans and the Benzes are cars that will be raced in a totally unique specification; the Holdens and the Ford carry over a number of mechanical items, not the least of which are the 5-litre pushrod engines with which they will race. A good deal of effort has gone into ensuring that the aerodynamic numbers of the four models raced are as close as possible to each other, but on the eve of the season,the same equality - in terms of power,torque,fuel consumption, weight and centre of gravityis looking more of a challenge on the engine front. One'throwback'to the old days of Group A is that the adage of'Win on Sunday, sell

Don’t forget; the last time that ao]|thing other than a TB-designed oar won a V8 Sopertar Drivers’ tiDo was when John Doward was the Prinie Minister of Australia. on Monday'is out the door, at least in the short-term. As it turns out, when the season starts in Adelaide, only the Falcon FG is actualiy in the showrooms(and even then you can only buy it in six or four-cylinder form).The Commodore VF goes on sale across the country mid year, the E-Class Benz around mid-year and the Nissan Altima in the final quarter of the year.The race track'sneak preview'of the Altima and VF

lii 20

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is also something new - never before in V8 Supercars (and indeed the entire history of Australian touring car racing) has the race version preceded the on sale date of the road car.

with long histories in motorsport and both have tasted a measure of success.The management at FPR is sound, but what comes next will - must- be different from what we have seen from the team so far.

Business as Unusual

Whether that leads to a path forward to success or a step back to struggle street remains to be seen. At Erebus, there is still a lot of Stone Brothers Racing left in the team.The cars might be E-Classes, but they have been built by most of the same people who built the SBR Fords. The engines come from Germany, but it will be the team's personnel tasked with getting the best out if their cars.There is a new team CEO, Ryan Maddison, but Ross Stone remains with the team, even if his role is not what it has been to this point. But, eventually, the team will become less and less SBR and more and more Erebus.That

Practically every time a team changes its ownership structure, a press release follows with words like'Business as Usual'attached. But history shows that when a team changes owners, it is never Business as Usual. There are lots of examples, and not just in V8 Supercars; witness the change in fortunes of Flonda-to-BrawnGP in GP racing; of StewartFlaas in NASCAR;and of Andretti Green-toAndretti in IndyCar.There are lots of factors involved, and multiple and unique reasons why things changed in those teams. But the common thread is that ownership played a big role. Cue Ford Performance Racing and Erebus Motorsport.The former is no longer Prodriveowned, now under the reins of Rod Nash and Rusty French. Both are savvy businessmen.

will be a point of difference, and the process of evolution may prove to be difficult. And if you think it might be hard for the fans to cope with, imagine how Mark Larkham will feel when he bowls into the team's garage to do his first colour story of the season, and

finds out that all the Fords are gone ...

The HURT locker

It's a cliche to suggest that it looks like the Flolden Racing Team is back - after all, it has not like the team has been anywhere else in the last two seasons. But there are signs that the generational change in V8 Supercars technical rules, and the changes made by new management Steve Flallam and Tony Dowe, may lead to Team Red getting back to somewhere near fighting form in 2013. And that is important. WhileTriple Eight has won everything there was to win for Flolden since James Courtney won the 2010 title, that is not quite the same as FIRT winning the big awards. It has been a fact for 25 years that Flolden and HRT are joined at the hip, and the team has a relationship with its manufacturer unlike that of any other team in the pitlane. Simply put, FIRT is Flolden, and vice versa. The driving talent is there. Garth Tander never looks like a man satisfied with having

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won past championship and Bathurst titles and after finishing seventh last year, expect more from him In 2013. Finishing 10th in his first two years was, probably, the furthest thing from Courtney's mind when he joined HRT and the driver who beat Jamie Whincup in a straight fight for the 2010 title has rarely been sighted since he went Red. But there are a number of people in opposition teams who expect a much stronger season from Courtney this time around. D84J

SP73R D93J

DZ86RW

Some of the changes within the team will be difficult to spot. Along with a number of teams, HRT'spun off'a unit that focused primarily on the development of the new car alongside the existing 'race' program and, with the arrival of the new car, those units now need to be combined. Building five cars has not been the work of a moment, but the signs are that it was completed without undue stress. Another season without an HRT win will DZ03G

not be well received at Holden. Bathurst 2011 seems a long time ago ...

Part-time, Full Responsibility

Apart from stepping into relatively unknown territory In Texas, and skipping the long trip to Abu Dhabi, much of what will happen in 2013 reflects whatVB Supercars has done, and where It has been. In recent years.

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But, there is a change, which on the face of it seems small but could place a significant role. The Gold Coast 600 looks set to maintain the same race format as it has had in 2011 and '12 but without the requirement of all the teams to import international co-drivers. So,the chances of most of the cars making it through the first chicane, without being bent,folded, mutilated, inverted or destroyed appear to be fairly high. This presents the teams with the opportunity to run their endurance co-drivers in the first three races of the spring; Sandown, Bathurst and Surfers. Suddenly, co-drivers of the calibre of Greg Murphy at HRT and Warren Luff at RBR may have a big say in the determining the champion. Any number of well-experienced or not-so could be carrying their main driver's title hopes in their hands for longer than ever before - perhaps as many as 1000 kilometres over the three races. The effects of any mistakes will be magnified and the race pace of the GC600 is bound to pick up a tad (though the likelihood that the new cars will, probably, be faster than the pre-13 cars by

the second half of the season could account for some of that). Of course,some teams may yet choose to have one or more of the classier Internationals that we have seen in recent years so we could yet get to see your Sebs, Mikas or Powers, or others, make the trip, as there is no date clash between the Gold Coast and IndyCar or the DTM. One more thing; a third enduro, with the probability of most teams choosing endurance co-drivers for a third weekend, potentially presents the opportunity to have a real, series-within-a-series endurance championship. Some of us at MN are ancient enough to remember when such a thing existed in the Good Old Days, and there used to be some cachet attached to the title. With new cars and new brands on the grid, an Enduro title chase could be very entertaining. Can we have it back, please?

It is 13 years since Mike Kable passed away - but boy, would he be excited about the

2013 season. Apart from being the most respected motoring writer in the country,'Kabelli' has been honoured by having V8 Supercars' 'Young Guns'Award named in his honour. It is voted on by the press and sometimes, we have to have a bit of a hard think about who qualifies for consideration, and who was the standout of the year. Kable would like the quality of rookies in this year's championship. Scott McLaughlin has a hugely impressive 2012, winning both the Dunlop Series in Australia and New Zealand VBSuperTourer title. But it was in the V8 Supercar enduros that his dazzled, looking absolutely comfortable in theTekno Commodore he shared with Jono Webb. At no time did the teen look to be in over his head in the Main Game. Inevitably, he makes the step up into the spotlight in Garry Rogers'team - as have so many other V8 Supercar winners in the past. Scott Pye may have been a little overlooked in the battle of the Scotts last year but that does not mean that he was not a worthy adversary. Climbing into the

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Monster Energy Commodore - the entry that won the previous two Development Series titles - was always going to be a big ask for the lad with such a relatively short sedan resume. But with wins in British Formula 3 and Formula Ford, second in the DV8s was a promising start. He maintains his links with Triple Eight by driving Lucas Dumbrell's Commodore VF. The Scott V Scott battle may not be in the top 10, but it has the potential to be a fascinating battle between young tyros - and Kable always liked one of those ... Then there is Maro Engel.The highlyrated German is in a position similar to that of Alex Premat a year ago; a European driver relatively unknown in this part of the world, replacing a race winner. Engel admits he faces a steep learning curve, and Erebus is not likely to look to him to win races; they have the experienced Lee Holdsworth and Tim Slade to do that. But Engel does have a sound pedigree and adds another interesting wrinkle to watch when the Benzes take to the track.

To Honour and Obey (love Optional!

The relationship between driver and engineer can be like a marriage, and feature similar levels of cooperation,fights and, sometimes, divorce and even reconciliations. In some instances, drivers and engineers stay together for what seems like an eternity. As already noted,the Fones may have become the Bulls, but the relationship Craig Lowndes and Jamie Whincup have with their engineers remains rock solid. Likewise, the core of the engineering staff remains in place at Ford Performance Racing, but there has been a shuffle, notably Campbell Little moving from Mark Winterbottom's car to that of Alex Davison. Frosty goes into 2013 partnered with James Small, whose spot on the David Reynolds car is now filled by Nathaniel Osborne.

Sometimes, drivers and engineers even 'move states'together. Scott Sinclair did just that when James Courtney moved from Dick Johnson's team to HRT,the rangy

engineer swapping to Garth Tander's car mid-season last year. Alistair McVean moved to Courtney's #22 and stays there this year, but Jason Bush has stepped up to engineer Tander - while Sinclair will not be far away. Likewise, Michael Caruso continues this season with his 2012 engineer Steven Todkil, in spite of having swapped his GRM Commodore for a Nissan Motorsports Altima. And then, a driver and an engineer can behave like Richard Burton and Liz Taylor and can separate and then reunite years later. Witness Rick Kelly's reunion with Erik Pender, with whom he worked at Holden Young Lions, then Kmart Racing and then the HSV Dealer Team.

Age Shall Weary Theni

Getting old is no fun.Trust Me. And getting old cannot be much fun for a racing driver.The line between being a young tearaway yourself and learning your craft as you advance in the sport, to fighting on the track with someone who seems barely older than your kids is a grey one, and must

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be hard to recognise, let alone deal with. And while some drivers get to pick the moment that they walk away from the cockpit, there are more who only come to that moment after they get a tap on the shoulder from someone high up in the business. The oldest driver on this year's V8 Supercar grid, Russell Ingall, was racing touring cars before the youngest, Scott McLaughlin, was even born. And that does not automatically mean that the GRM rookie will beat the Supercheap Autos veteran; in fact, that could be quite an entertaining battle. As this issue of MN goes on sale. Ingall will be embarking on his 50th year, and his final one as a full-time driver in V8 Supercars. Further down the list of Dates of Birth, there is a generational shift well and truly in motion. A number of drivers have stepped aside in recent years; Mark Skaife, Greg Murphy, Steve Richards, Cam McConville, Paul Dumbrell and Paul Morris, all of whom have won championship events.There are some significant candles to be blown out this year, starting with the 40 that Jason Bright faces

in March and 39 in Chez Lowndes in June.

Island - one of which now bears his name, no less - will need to be convinced that he

That is not to say that MN is suggesting that those drivers are the next to go;far from it. But Brighty, having not had a win since Perth in 2011, will be keen to not slip further down the field than his 16th in the 2012

has focus and talent, not to mention bravery. Watching him do something as simple as walk up stairs at PI, while he was recovering from the horrendous leg injury he suffered at Indianapolis, was an indication of Just how dedicated he is to beating whoever else happens to be on the grid with him. But there is no way of telling how competitive Stoner is in a Commodore until he actually goes out and does it. Word is that he can drive fast; but can he do it through Turn 8 at Adelaide - or his own corner at the Island, for that matter - centimetres from the car in front, or the one behind? Stoner is a talent. He has been brilliant

championship.

The Stoner Factor

Aaren Russell and Michael Hector will race ex-SBR Falcons in the Dunlop Series this year. Cam Waters will drive an ex-GRM Commodore for Minda Motorsport. I thought that I better mention those things now, because you may not hear much about them for the rest of 2013. With the support of Red Bull, Casey Stoner will race in the Series, which all but guarantees that whatever publicity the second-tier series gets in the general media will start - and maybe, end - with how the two-time MotoGP

racing on two wheels, and made a fortune by doing so. He is also not averse to speaking his mind,even if nearby PR minders might cringe when he does so. A grid full of Dunlop Series drivers, many with a good deal of V8 Supercars experience and armed with a quality of hardware that has never been seen in such numbers in the series before, will be trying hard to make sure that his arrival in

champion fares on four wheels. There is little doubt that Stoner is a racer. No one who has witnessed him slide a Honda GP bike through the fast sweeps of Phillip n

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holoen

their playground is not a happy one. There will be days in which Casey Stoner races clean and hard and brings home a largely undamaged Commodore outside the major placings.The media might report that as an ordinary result on days when,in fact, it really will be anything but. Win, lose or draw, having Stoner in a V8 Supercar will be fun to watch. If you haven't watched the Dunlop Series before, 2013 looks like a good time to start.

The driver who heat Jamie Whincup in a straight fight for the 2010 tide has rarely been sighted since he went Oed. Out there are a numher of penpie in oppnsitinn teams who expect a much stranger season from Courtney this time around.

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Biiin start o

NE Nissan and both Lucas Dumbrell

Motorsport Commodores in the top 10, and Brad Jones Racing Commodores dominant at the top of the time sheets.They were the main surprises to emerge from a Sydney Motorsport Park test day that has set the scene for what will be arguably the most anticipated season opening Clipsal 500s ever.

Of course, it's all academic until they do roll out onto the streets of the City of Churches in the first weekend of March, but for the moment the team to beat appears to be not Triple Eight/Red Bull Racing Australia, but BJR, Indeed, it was an emphatic display as Jason Bright topped two out of three timed sessions (the middle session was rain affected and ignored by most). And just to show it wasn't simply a superstar effort from Brighty,team-

Leavini aside Hie cleudir skies, It was a blight start all round at Sydnei Msterspsrt Park’s preseason V8 Supercars test day, just two weeks betere hosHlltles csninience lu the Cllpsal 500.

mate Fabian Coulthard backed up for second fastest on both occasions in the Lockwood

wanted with these cars set up wise," Bright told MN."We've concentrated on certain areas

Racing Commodore. Clearly the BJR machines were best on the day. Bright's fastest lap of 1 m28.9655s,the only sub-1 m29s time, was three-tenths under Jamie Whincup's Sunday pole effort at the circuit last year - which suggests the new cars are likely to be a little bit faster this season, which should mean a swag of new lap records - and four tenths quicker than the best Whincup could manage on the day from his new Red Bull Racing Australia Commodore.. Ironically, what made the difference for Bright was one of the few pieces of pre-COTF technology that's been carried over into the new car, in the form of the Triple Eight front-end layout the team now uses. "We put a lot of thought into what we

of the car and it's paying off. This is really only our first proper day with the car, so to be so competitive now and not having driven the car as much as some of the others is very encouraging." Watching the new cars out on the track - as an estimated 17,000 Sydney fans did it is hard to discern any visible differences from last year's cars in the way they brake and handle.The giveaways, of course, are the two new body styles, the slightly different note of the Nissan engine, and the completely different high-pitched scream of the Mercedes-Benz. In fact, leaving aside the sights and sound, from behind the wheel they're not that different from the old cars, say the drivers. "They were never going to be massively different to drive," Bright said."There are aspects of the car at the moment that do feel a lot better, but I'm not sure I'd put that down to the Car of the Future, though; I'd put it down to the Triple Eight front end. It's the characteristics of it getting into the corner that I like, and for us that's making the difference. "But for BJR,there's nothing from last year we're using, so which characteristics of the car are being caused by the front or the rear end, we're not totally sure at the moment. We're still learning a lot about the car. "When we get them right, they'll be a bit

motorsport news

-1

V8 Supercars Pre-Season lest Sydney Motorsport Park GP Circuit - 16th February 2013 ,

No.

Team

Driver

Vehicle

Fastest Lap

Gap

Team BOC

1:28.9655

Lockwood Racing

Jason Bright Fabian Coulthard

Holden Commodore VF

1:29.0057

0.00.0402

888

1:29.3610

0:00.3955

Craig Lowndes Dean Fiore

Holden Commodore VF

Red Bull Racing Australia Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport

Holden Commodore VF

1:29.5090

0:00.5435

Rick Kelly

Nissan Altima

1:29.6220

0:00.6565

Lucas Dumbrell Motorsport

Scott Pye

Holden Commodore VF

1:30.3537

0:01.3882

Jamie Whincup

Holden Commodore VF

1:30.4820

0:01.5165

Red Bull Racing Australia The Bottle-0 FPR Ford

Ford Falcon FG

1:30.5174

0:01.5519

Pepsi Max Crew FPR Ford

David Reynolds MarkWinterbottom

Ford Falcon FG

1:30.5242

0:01.5587

19 22

Tekno Autosports

Jonathon Webb

Holden Commodore VF

1:30.6251

0:01.6596

James Courtney

Holden Commodore VF

1:30.6646

0:01.6991

Holden Racing Team Tekno Autosports

Holden Commodore VF Holden Commodore VF

1:30.6862 1:30.7469

0:01.7207 0:01.7814

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Jack Daniel's Racing

13 14

Fujitsu Racing GRM

Shane van Gisbergen Scott McLaughlin

SP Tools Racing

Maro Engel

Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG

1:30.8221

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Supercheap Auto Racing

Holden Commodore VF

1:30.9331

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Pepsi Max Crew FPR Ford

Russell Ingall Will Davison

Ford Falcon FG

1:30.9721

0:02.0066

Wilson Security Racing

David Wall

Holden Commodore VF

1:31.1709

0:02.2054

Holden Racing Team

Garth Tander

Holden Commodore VF

1:31.3342

0:02.3687

19 20 21 22

Fujitsu Racing GRM

Holden Commodore VF

1:31.3776

0:02.4121

Heavy Haulage Australia Racing Norton 360 Racing Tony D'Alberto Racing

Alexandre Premat Tim Slade

0:02.4242

1:31.4003 1:31.4208 1:31.4694

0:02.4348 0:02.4553 0:02.5039

Irwin Racing

Tony D'Alberto Alex Davison Lee Holdsworth

Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Nissan Altima Holden Commodore VF Ford Falcon FG

1:31.3897

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Dick Johnson Racing

Tim Blanchard

Jeld-wen FPR Racing

quicker. There's probably nearly a second [at this track] still to come out of the cars. When you look at how much lighter they are, the 18-inch wheels,the better weight distribution, all those things should add up to time." What Adelaide will bring remained to be seen. If the bare times were really representative, then the Holden Racing Team and FPR - none of which was within even 1.5 seconds of Bright's pace) looked like they had plenty of work to do. On the other hand, Rick Kelly's 1 m29.6220s in the new Jack Daniel's Racing Nissan Altima was a stellar effort that can't be ignored. Consider this: it's not far off the best a V8 Supercar has ever done at Eastern Creek, and it's better than any of the Jack Daniel's Racing Commodores were able to manage at this venue last September. Maro Engel surprised by setting the fastest lap of the Erebus Mercedes trio in the German's first hitout in V8 Supercars as well as Eastern Creek, while young Scott Pye was sixth fastest for LDM in his first ever V8

James Moffat

Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG Ford Falcon FG

1:31.7670

0:02.8015

1:33.7276

0:04.7621

Rick Kelly’s 1m2R.B220s in the new Jack Daniel's Racing Nissan Altima was a stellar effert that can’t be ignered. Censider this; it’s net far eft the best a VB Snpercar has ever dene at Eastern Creek, and it’s better than any nf the Jack Daniel’s Racing Cnmmndnres were able tn manage at this venue last September.

Supercars Championship practice session. Will any of this translate or mean anything in the Clipsal 500? Not even the teams themselves really know for sure, but until qualifying gets under way in Adelaide it's all we've got to go on. Bring it on!

www.mnews.com.au

already started the development ew 2014 cars, so concurrent It will be happening right from . In other words,teams won't have 3'fix'their 2013 cars if they aren't ;t close, to the money straight ; have also had the challenge of regulations and coming up with \nd we've seen it happen - the ds on the Sauber C32 and the ;on the Ferrari FI 38,for example. ve won't know anything for sure ng comes to a close on Saturday k. But until then, here are our who's looking good, who's got

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Total

Sebastian Vettel ^st in 20121

Mark Webber (6th in 20121

Last was a strangesuccessful one for Red Bull. Yes, theyyear were ultimately in both the drivers and constructors titles, but it's impossible to say that they built the best car. At times the RB8 was the best rig in the field, but on plenty of occasions it was much slower than the McLaren.There were even times it was comfortably out-paced by the Lotus, and, on at least one occasion,the Mercedes. But the car was good enough, particularly in the hands of Sebastian Vettel.The young German might not have the best reputation in Oz(his annoying finger antics and the perception that he's favoured over Mark Webber don't help him), but he is supremely quick. And not only is he supremely quick, but he's also hard working, clever, and very good at

ROLEXAOSTRALIANGRANOPRiX 2013 FIA Formula One 15-17March:Melbonrna World Championship Raoo Gahnuiar

being part of the team.That's why he's a threetime World Champion at the age of 25. And if the car is close to the mark - and the team seem to think it's already better than last year's car - then he's got every chance of making it four world titles in a row this season. But let's not write off Webber just yet. While the development of the car seemed to get away from MW last year, he still won races (including Monaco). All that was missing was a touch.of consistency to mount a proper title challenge like he did in 2010. His RBR deals are restricted to single-year arrangements now,so if RBR have built a good car, then Webber needs to make it count. The good news is that he's good enough to do it.

PETRONAS MALAYSIA GRANOPRiX 22-24March:Sapang

rfiotorsport

Ferrari ^Santaod^

-V

Fernando Alonso in 20121

Felipe Massa [7th in 20121

hat Fernando Alonso went so close to

winning the title last year is quite incredible. Let's get something straight - last year's Ferrari was not a good racing car. It was only Alonso's brilliance that kept the team from major embarrassment, because the car was a disaster. And it was a disaster that has put a lot of pressure on the men in charge of designing the FI 38.The team can't afford to build another clunker like last year's car. While it's still early, it seems that they've sorted it out for 2013.The car seems much better placed than it was 12 months ago,to

the point where even Felipe Massa looks quite comfortable in it, something that never really happened in 2012. Speaking of Massa, he's another man under pressure to succeed this season. While he had the odd good outing last year, he still looked a heck of a long way from the man who almost won the World Championship Just four seasons ago. Ferrari have already been hugely, and

unprecedentedly, patient with Massa, but you can't imagine that will last. He needs to perform. Alonso faces no such pressure. He was simply sublime last year, proving that he is Formula 1 's class act.There are simply no question marks with this guy. Give him a car that's even barely capable of winning the title, and he'll deliver. Over to you, Maranello.

McLaron-Mercedes^

Sergio Poroz ^IDtii in 20121

any would argue that McLaren built the fastest car in 2012, and I'd agree. But for a host of reasons, ranging from the guys in the car to the car's fragility, the title never came. Having now not won a drivers title since 2008, McLaren might be starting to feel a little pressure.They've built plenty of fast cars since then, but still no title. The good news is that the MP4-28 looks like a rocket. Once again McLaren have built a ripper

car, and it should be one that can compete with Red Bull this season. But are the drivers up to it? On his day, Lewis Hamilton is the fastest driver in FI, and suddenly the team doesn't have his brilliance to rely on. But they also don't have to deal with the troughs that seem to follow the majority of Hamilton's peaks, with the consistent Jenson Button now leading the team.The trick for Button will be finding a couple of extra tenths

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Jenson Button [5tliin2D121 ^

to keep McLaren right at the front. The Sergio Perez experiment will be interesting to watch.The Mexican is obviously rapid, but his lack ofform at the end of 2012 was, and I'm guessing to some still is, somewhat troubling. Soon enough, we'li know if he's going to be another Hamilton, or another Heikko Kovalainen. Right now, it's too early to call.

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Lotus-Renault ^

KimiRaikkonen ^3rd in 20121 The challenge this yearinwill holding on tofor theLotus fourth place thebe constructors standings that it somewhat spectaculariy claimed last season. It's not an unrealistic goal.The E20 was, much of the time,the third best car last season, and the early testing form suggests Its predecessor is pretty handy as well. Even Kimi Raikkonen, the most understated man on the planet, has been talking it up during testing.That's saying something.

Raikkonen's comeback was one of the stories of 2012,and he should be even better this season, with a year of racing back under his belt. He's capable, quick, and doesn't take any bullshit. You can imagine that he makes life hard for the PR team at Enstone, but having a plug-and-play driver like that must be heaven for the guys in the garage (and the design room). Opinions differ on whether or not the team did the right thing retaining Romain Grosjean

RomainGrosjean [Qtli in 20121 ^

for another season, but in this reporter's opinion it was a smart move.On the occasions when he did get through the first lap, Grosjean was surprisingly quick last season. Now, he's more experienced and shouid be ready to turn that pace into results. Still, the man described as a 'first lap nutcase' by Webber last year can expect to be the focus of everyone's attention on the run to Turn 1 in Meibourne.

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Lewis Hamilton ydtb in 20121

NicoRosberg [8th in 20121 ^

Trying toispredict Mercedes season a trickyhow thing to do. will fair this Last year, Ross Brawn and co built a fast car with an incredibly narrow operating window. In fact, it was so narrow that they oniy really found it once - in China.The rest of the time, it didn't look fast at all. Early hiccups aside, one of the most interesting comments to come from the team at the first test was Nico Rosberg talking about not expecting the car to be quite as quick out of the box as last year's. Maybe,the team has elected to build a car that doesn't have the

absolute peak speed, but will work inside a much larger window of performance. If that's the plan, then it's a good one. What Mercedes does finaily have is a top-iine driver. Rosberg is good, but he's a 100 percent kind of guy, who's yet to prove that he can take and average car and make it look great. Lewis Hamilton can do that. When he's on.

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he's unstoppable. And if finds the Mercedes environment a good fit, then he could do wonderful things. Of course, it could well go the other way as well. Nobody seems to know where Mercedes will land this year, not even Hamiiton. But it shouid be fun to watch.

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Gone are the dramatic days when an F1 launch meant dancers suspended from the ceilings of hired castles, and all kinds of fireworks and frivolity. In fact a number of teams opted to launch their new charges via a simple pit lane reveal. Here’s some shots of those that didn’t.

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.com.au

.Launches

MAGYAR NAGYDIJ 2013

To Da Announced 10-21July

2e-2SJuly:eudapost

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Sauber-Ferrari ^ t.rl 1

Nico Hulkenberg ^llthinZDia

Esteban Gutierrez [Bnnkiel

Sauber have high hopes for 2013,and why shouldn't they? With four podiums and sixth in the constructors title last year, the team deserves to be upbeat about it's chances this season.The problem is, the next step is a big one. At the launch of the Sauber C32, the talk was all about improving on what was achieved in 2012 - and that will require beating either Red Bull, Ferrari, McLaren, Mercedes or Lotus in the points.That's a big ask. Still, there is a lot to like. Nico Hulkenberg is a stone cold star, and was a wonderful winter signing by the team. Not only is the German fast, but he's consistent, and consistency was something the team just couldn't get out of

either Perez or Kamui Kobayashi. There's also the C32's aggressive lines, centred mostly on the skinny sidepods that the technical team are hoping will increase airflow to the rear of the car. If it works. Matt Morris and his team will look like a bunch of geniuses. If it doesn't, well, a lack of pace could be the least of their problems as cooling issues usually mean that cars don't finish races. As for rookie Esteban Gutierrez, he's got a good team leader in Hulkenberg to help him settle in to FI. But it won't happen overnight, and while he is experienced for a rookie, with plenty of outings for Sauber in the past, qualifying in Melbourne will be a big ask.

r. Force India-Mercedes

PauldiResta ^14th in 20121 Force are certainly leaving things late whenIndia it comes to the second driver. As MN went to press, there was still no announcement as to who will partner Paul di Resta in white, orange and green next season. It would seem that Jules Bianchi and Adrian Sutil are the favourites, but nothing, as of yet, has been officially announced. Here are the things we DO know. While he cut a lonely figure at the launch of the 2013 car, di

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Resta is a decent driver. In fact, he may well be better than decent, and there were times last year where that seemed to be the case. He can, however, be a little inconsistent. If he can be as consistent in his pace as he is in his apparent 'no smiling on TV'rule, then he'll be on his way to the big time. On a personal level, you can be sure di Resta wiil be doing everything he can this year to show he's capable of stepping into a faster car than the Force India.

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As for the car, it's a question mark.That midfield battle is always hard to predict, with teams like Sauber, Force India and Toro Rosso all capable of producing good cars, and all capable of producing bad ones.The team, and di Resta, have ail said positive things about the car; now we need to see where they really sit. There is one thing worth noting, though: very few massive success stories start with a lastminute driver signing ...

SINGAPORE GRAND PRIX 20 - 22 September iShigapura mil

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Pastor Maldonado pistil in 20121

Vaitteri Bottas [BooRiel

to 2011, last season was an Compared absolute triumph for Williams. To bounce back from their worst ever season to win a race was immense. But while there were highlights - the Spanish Grand Prix being the obvious one - there wasn't a lot of consistency. Pastor Maldonado spent too much time getting caught up in incidents, and Bruno Senna just never looked quick enough. This year, Maldonado has a chance to prove that he's not a crash magnet (the Venezuelan boasts the bizarre, even insane record of winning in Spain and not scoring a single point in any of the following nine races. And then there's those unwanted appearances

Last year's Toro itRosso was a difficult car - and that's putting nicely. All too often it was a car that could only beat Caterham, Marussia and HRT. That wasn't always the case, for example Daniel Ricciardo's stunning qualifying pace in Bahrain, and the team seemed to improve things in the latter part of the season. But for long periods at a time, it looked like a tough car to drive. This year, the car looks better, an expected outcome after the team poached James Key from Sauber last year. How much better? We'll find out in Melbourne, but the Sauber/Force India level should the minimum target. As for the driver line-up, the intra-team battle between Ricciardo and Jean-Eric Vergne could well be one of the highlights of the season. Red Bull has a habit of losing patience with drivers very quickly, and with Antonio Felix da Costa looking like the real deal, there's a real chance only of the two current STR drivers will make it to a third season in the Red Bull FI program. The good thing for us Aussies is that Ricciardo

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in the Steward's office - he copped no less than seven driving infringement penalties in 12 races). He's fast enough. But he has to hang around long enough to bank points even when things aren't going his way. As for Bottas, well, he's a rookie. A highlyrated rookie, yes, but a rookie all the same. And in this age of limited testing, that's a hard gig. He's also got the deal with the fact that he didn't race at all last year, so he may be a little rusty on his racecraft when the season kicks off. He definitely has talent. Now we'll get to see if that talent translates to an FI car.

Toro Rosso-Forrari /

Daniel Ricciardo ^IBtli in 20121

Jean-Eric Vergne 117111 in 20121 i

gave Vergne a good pasting in qualifying last year, which is really the only worthwhile stat for a team fighting in the mid-field. If he does it again, a Red Bull seat could beckon. If he doesn't... well, let's just hope he does. He's certainly good enough.

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Motorsport News magazine is the *" complete source ofmotorsport knowledge in Australia. The monthly u magazine is a great read,covering l . everything from V8Supercars to n Formula 1 and all things road'rdcing, ’ to Speedway to Drag Racing an&even scale model racing cars. Each month Motorsport News is jam packed with news and insightful features on your favourite sport to digest in your leisure time. ^ fVt^

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Charles Pic

Giedo van Her CardB tBookiel 1

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Caterham have already won something 2013 - the award for the ugliest car. i The chances of the team improving on their 2012 position are slim. In all likelihood, beating any of the teams above them on speed will be impossible, although the Renault engine (and KERS) paired with the Red Bull gearbox should give them enough pace to out-perform Marussia again. On the driving front, Charles Pic was a good signing.The Frenchman had a solid rookie season last year, regularly matching and

beating the far more experienced Timo Clock at Marussia. He's already spoken about how nice it is to have the Renault engine, and will be keen to keep on improving so that he can make a play for a seat at a more established team in the next season or two. Joining Pic will be rookie Giedo van der Garde.The Dutchman has been on the fringe of FI since 2007, and is a proven race winner at GP2 level. If he can beat Pic, then his FI career might have some legs. But that's going to be tough to do.

Marussa

Fi'

t's probably going to be a tough year for Marussia. With two rookie drivers, and as the only team left in the field with Cosworth engines, the chances of finishing anywhere but last are slim. Still, there are some positives.The car looks tidy, pretty, and it finally has KERS,thanks to a technical tie-up with Williams. It might not be a world-beater, but if it can give Caterham a decent scare, like it did last season,then that'll be a good start. The team also seems to be on top of some of the front-end stability issues that it faced last season as well, with tester-turned-

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racer Max Chilton already saying the car is an improvement. Heading up the team's campaign will be two rookies in Chilton and Luiz Razia. Both are experienced GP2 campaigners, with Chilton

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boasting decent FI testing mileage, and Razia coming off the back of a stellar GP2 campaign where he finished second. However, modern FI is tough for rookies, particularly when they don't have an experienced driver to learn from.

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50 Years of Bathurst - 2012 marks 50 Years since an endurance race for standard production cars was first run at Bathurst in 1003, iaying the foundation for what wouid soon hecome the icon event of the Austraiian motor racing caiendar. Come with us as we take a nostaigic iook at the track, the cars, the stars and the charac ters that have made the annuai Bathurst 1000 ....The Great Race.

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On tills very excnuig DUD W3 icc^ at 50 Awesome Bathcrst Moments Inctudlng the Icp Ten as voted by yon.

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OASSIf'"™" ^ EXEMP’f®"

1 When Dick hit the rock When Murphy clocked his lap of the gods 3 When Lowndes fought the tears to win Peter’s first trophy 4 When Dick hit the trees a When Jim called them a pack of a***holes I When Tender beat Lowndes by a bumper 7 When Ford crushed Holden with a 1 -2 When Brock won by six laps I When Bartlett rolled the Camaro It' When Channel Seven’s In-Car Camera was born We will remember the drivers who forged the Bathurst legend, We look at the Australian Muscle Cars that took on the Mountain and won. We look at crashes and near misses as we celebrate 50 Years of Bathurst.

BIGW

I live big for less

Great Race

EREBUS MOTORSPORT AND ITS ALL-GERMAN CREW OE BERND SCHNEIDER, THOMAS JAEGER AND ALEX ROLOFF TOOK THE HONOURS IN THE LIOUI-MOLY BATHURST 12 HOUR, BUT AFTER A MAGNIFICENT CONTEST THE EVENT ITSELF ALSO EMERGED AS A BIG WINNER BY STEVE NORMOYLE Clockwise from top left: Count them - no less than seven Audi Ms;Peugeot brought a factory team ofRCZ outfrom Paris; Mika Salo made his Bathurst debutin Maraneilo Motorsport's strikingly camouflaged Ferrari 458;the 7am start; German entry Engstier BMNZ4 came unstuck at Reid Park;out ofluck also were Craig Lowndes and Warren Luffin the R8 they shared with owner Rod Salmon;Clearwater Ferrari ofMok Weng Sun, Craig Baird and Matt Griffin went one better than iast year's third piace.

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OUNT Panorama and the international motor racing scene have had a chequered history together.Yes,the Great Race has hosted some of the best drivers from all corners of the globe almostfrom the year it migrated from Phillip Island to Bathurst. And yes,the very first race on the circuit,the 1938 Australian Grand Prix, was dominated by a visiting British ace. However, what was supposed to be a kind of coming of age for the venue on the world stage in the late 1980s - namely the 1987 World Touring Car Championship was instead a disappointing farce that left a bitter taste and a yearning for a more home grown style of Bathurst 1000.This wish was granted with the shift to the V8 touring car formula in 1993,the race reverting to a more domestically-flavoured event than really it had ever been over its 50-year history. And that is just fine. Mount Panorama doesn't need to be integrated into the world motor racing scene. In the year this grand old road celebrates its 75th birthday,the mountain venue has never been in better shape,or in as much demand. But it is something of an anomaly that the only public road circuit in the world that comes close to rivalling the Nurburgring does not boast a truly world class international event. Well, maybe now it does. Clockwise from top left:Drama all the way for the Sherrin BMW 1351. There was this near rollover and an engine problem that leftsuch a smoke haze across the Mountain that the race almost had to be stopped; late morning lead battle as Luffchases the two Erebus Mercedes;Matt Kingsley got a race-day call up tojoin Mark Quinn and Shane van Gisbergen in the ViP Porsche after Tony Quinn injured some ribs when he crashed the Aston Martin;Donut King Nissan GT-R lost more than one wheel but made it home second in ciass; dark clouds move in over Pit Straight on a typical fourseasons Bathurst day;Brendan Hartley was a disappointing late race retirement but was otherwise very impressive in his first visit to Mount Panorama. motorsport news

Greatest hits The potential international audience is the great unknown for the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour.The Radio Le Mans team's broadcast no doubt will do a lot to spread the word, but for the moment we do have some basic viewer numbers: The event's own website had more than

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115,000 views across the live stream, peaking at 9,800 simultaneous nearthe end of the race. Qualifying brought 35,000 views, but these figures are merely points of departure as they don't include the views on partner websites(other sites which also carried the telecast feed). The event also generated plenty of social media traffic, but perhaps the most illuminating set of numbers are the hits on Natsoft's race results website. At the time of writing, the 12 Hour race results page had received a total of 28,364 visitors. To put it into context, compare that with the 1051 hits for the results page of the lastV8 Supercar race for 2012, or the 2450 clicks on last year's Bathurst 1000 Natsoft results page.

For anyone who was at Mount Panorama on February 9-10,the buzz around the Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Flour was unmistakable. It was only year three of this event as a GT3 race, but in each of those years it has grown,and it's not stretching the truth to suggest that in 2013 the race might have reached a tipping point. Of course, Bathurst is a place that's always been a bucket-list item for top drivers the world over. Mika Salo was heard to say that as a circuit, it was the greatest challenge he's ever faced in the sport, adding that the fact that it is a street circuit on a Mountain makes it unique in the world. Fle'll tell stories of driving at Bathurst when he gets home,as will the other 30-plus international drivers(not including the Kiwis), and the crews,the engineers,the team owners. With Mercedes-Benz breaking the Audi deadlock and preventing its rival from scoring a hat trick,the 12 Flour itself Is slowly creating its own story, and has provided the focal point for Bathurst as a track that's part of the international GT3 calendar. Bernd Schneider probably can't remember all the races he's won over the years. But listening to him expressing his thoughts afterwards it was obvious this was a particularly special victory which the German superstar won't forget in a hurry. "I have been racing for 40 years," he said."It has been a long time since I have had to learn a new circuit..." (Actually, it had in fact only been two months since Schneider last had to learn a new circuit - which by coincidence was also in Australia.

Clockwise from top:Inclement weather in the afternoon added an extra dimension to the contest; Mai Rose's globetrotting Euro enduro Commodore finally got to race at home,and was an easy Class 13 winner; emotional victory for Bernd Schneider, Thomas Jaeger and Alex Roloff, as well as the local Erebus team;Phoenix Audi through the gloom;Class C winning Lotus Exige of Rob Thomson,Laim Talbert and Romano Sartori.

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But you'd forgive that memory lapse given Schneider had the Homebush street circuit and the rest of the Australian GT Championship field - under control within a handful of laps. Just goes to show there are public road circuits, and there are public road circuits...). Talk to any of the visiting GT3 drivers and it's fairly unanimous that the challenge posed by Bathurst is greater than any of the GT3 enduros other than the Nurburgring.That means Sepang, Dubai and even Spa-Francorchamps. And the important thing is that with the event looking like it's in for the long haul, for the international visitors it's not simply a one-off challenge, but something that can be anticipated on an annual basis. And the international visitors might not simply be the drivers, either. Summer down under has to be a reasonably attractive holiday proposition for anyone anywhere in Europe in February. And for those interested in motorsport,taking time out from a few weeks relaxing on Australian beaches to make the trip to the famous Bathurst circuit for the 12 Flour -

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there can't be many better ways to escape the European winter. Who knows what the future holds, because we are really in unchartered territory with an event like this. But if the Bathurst 12 Flour's growth curve retains the trajectory it's been on over the last three years, this thing could be huge.

Is my timing that flawed?

Back in 1997 Craig Baird was a Bathurst winner for a few hours until race officials discovered that he'd exceeded the maximum driving time limit, in what was surely the most disastrous miscalculation in the history of the Great Race, the BMW team got the sums wrong and opted not to install co-driver Paul Morris at the car's finai pitstop.The extra delay for the driver change would likely have seen them drop to second place - but that would have been an infinitely better outcome than their eventual disqualification. Fast forward 13 years and Baird would finally get a second place finish at Mount Panorama. But where the Kiwi was punished for overstaying his welcome in the '97 AMP Bathurst 1000, in the 2013 Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Flour Baird and Ferrari 458 co-drivers Mok Weng Sun and Matt Griffin were aliowed to keep their hard-won podium despite the incredible coincidence of Baird having again gone over the (4.5-hour) driving time limit, if this time only by 90 seconds... www.mnews.com.au

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Daytona isn’t just about the Daytona 500 and drivers like Marcos Ambrose, Juan Montoya and Jamie McMurray. There is also the 24 hours, with drivers like Ambrose, Montoya and McMurray, plus others Including Dario Franchitti, Sebastien Bourdais and Allan McNIsh. Our photographer Andrew Hall brought us these Images from America’s most famous sports car race.

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difficult of my racing career, because it's hard to turn up every weekend and finish 50th. I wasn't even making the final race, which was the top 34. 1 did six months of that before I saw some big improvements. But after that I finished third in the World Cup in 2009, and it made me realise that I could do It.

MOTORSPORT NEWS: Let's start off with your actual connection to Australia. Your parents are Australian, but they've been on the move for the entirety of your life. MITCHELL GILBERT: Yeah, obviously I don't come across as the most Australian person. But my parents are both Australian, and they lived in Australia for a good 30 years before business took them elsewhere. My dad has been In Malaysia for 25 years now,and my mum has kind of travelled around with me doing the racing. If someone asked me where I was from, I would say Cairns, because that's where I've spent most of time in Australia. But 1 wasn't born in Austraiia. MN:So where were you actually born? MG: I was born In Malaysia, in Kuala Lumpur, and I lived there for 15 years. That's where I started racing. I first started in KL in 2002, and when you start racing there you think'hey, this is it.'But when i first raced against people from abroad I realised that I wasn't up to scratch. MN:What is the karting scene like in Malaysia then? 72

MG:When I started, it wasn't horrendous. It was quite strong, and there were a lot of people racing.Then the number started to really tail off. When I was 13 I went and did one race in Europe, and while I was able to win in Asia, I finished the weekend 70th in Europe, i thought, 'I really need to look at this, and look at where I want to go with it.' MN: Is that when you knew you had to move to Europe to make a proper go of it as a career? MG: Weli, people have done it from Asia before, so my plan was always to do Asian Formula BMW,or Asian Formula Renault, but when I went to Europe to go karting I could see that that's as hard as it gets. I knew if I could be successful in karting in Europe, then the rest would seem normal. I wouldn't be in for a big shock when I tried to move to Formula 3 or something like that. So I did two full seasons of European karting with Kosmic, and it was a great learning experience. One tenth was 10 places, so It was difficult, and it was hard to get my head around. MN: But did you find that once you got there, your pace improved quickly? MG:Yeah.The first six months were the most

MN;How did you tackle the graduation to cars from karts? MG:Obviously there are so many options for the lower levels of racing now - Formula Ford, Formula Renault, Formula Abarth - so I eventually decided to do Formula Renault.Then there was something like five Formula Renault championships to choose from,so I was sitting there thinking'what do I do?' Eventually we went with the UK series, which was quite brave because it's not seen as the highest level, but the thing is we got so much track time. And the tracks; people think that you go the UK and you race at Croft and Oulton Park, and that these tracks are rubbish. But you learn something compared to if you race at Barcelona,for example, beca use if you go off at Oulton Park, that's your day over. If you go off at Barcelona, you stay flat on the throttle and drive straight back on the track. I really learnt a lot on Formula Renault. MN:OK,so your started in Malaysia, you've been in the UKfor a couple of years now - that's a pretty unique way to spend your childhood and young adult years. What's it been like, personally? MG:To be honest, living in Asia was normal for me, because I was born and brought up there. I went to international schools, and everyone is in the same boat, so it feels so normal. But when I left Asia to go to Europe,that was really hard. If you want to race, you don't do what normal 15 to 18 year olds do. While they're off partying and having a good time. motorsport news

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you're sitting at home. It was especially hard in Italy. I lived there for a year when I was karting, and nobody really speaks English. I learnt a bit of Italian, but it was difficult. MN: Flow do you find living in the UK, now you've been there a while? Is it the right country to be for someone in your position, career-wise? MG:Yeah, definitely. There's not as much racing going on there now, but it's all of the other stuff. England has the best trainers, the best sports psychologists, all of those things that you need. I enjoy living in the UK.The good thing about the UK is that a lot of other drivers live there, and drivers tend to stick together, because we can relate to each other, and they know what it's like to blow people off so you can go racing. MN:Just to make your life a bit more international, you spent 2012 in German F3. What made you pick German F3 over British F3? MG:To be honest, German F3 came about fairly randomly. I was almost set to do Formula Renault Eurocup, but I had a couple of difficult tests with a couple of teams. I wanted to stay with Fortec, but the engineers were moving around, and I realised that I had to do something else, because there were no good seats left. Anyway, I'd been speaking with Gravity Sports Management,and they told me that German F3 was quite good. It's also a lot cheaper than British F3 - you're looking at almost half the budget for almost double the test days,so it was a no brainer in the end. I think the level is definitely lower than, say, Euro Series. You don't have the same depth. But Lucas Auer was one of my main rivals in German F3, and when he did his first Euro

Series round he qualified P5, and was the fastest Volkswagen-powered car. So maybe the level isn't too bad! MN: Now you're getting ready to have a proper crack at F3 in the European Championship. MCicke is a big team that is more than capable of winning races, but what are your expectations for this season? Is it time to run at the front at this level, or do you give yourself another year of learning because it's a new championship for you? MG: Everyone starts the year with some expectations, and for me it's always top five. But after the first round, you tend to either go'oh, hang on, maybe we've over-played this', or'hey, we might win this!' VJhen we did Formula Renault, we said top five would be good,and we went pretty well. It was the same in German F3, and I was second a few rounds in. So I'll say top five for this season. I think it's a pretty realistic goal, because there are a few drivers staying on and doing their second, third or even fourth year. MN:You started with Mucke in Macau last year - why did you choose them for the new season? MG: Felix Roseqnvist put us in touch with them. Fle'd been telling me how good the team was, and I could see how well he was going last year. As soon as I tested with them, I could see there was a step-up, in terms of how they did things. It was difficult at first, actually, because sometimes you think you've done a good job, and they put you back in your place. But that's a good thing; you need that if you want to learn. MN:What about Macau? It's one of the most famous races in the world, and it's also one of the toughest tracks in the world. What was it like to race there? MG:The track is ... unreal. When I was on my

To say he’s Australian is a bizarre concept, but Gilbert doesn’t see himself as Malaysian, and, despite the accent(a common byproduct of the international school system in Asia), he’s not British.

first out-lap I was at full capacity just trying to get around. But it's awesome. I think I underestimated it a bit, in terms of who was racing and how quick they were. It's really hard to get your head around how different it is to another track. In the first practice session, I braked one metre too late and I was in the fence.That stays in your mind for the rest of the weekend. In qualifying, I did a bad job because the confidence just wasn't there. But you sit back and look at the 20 guys in front of you and think'hey, I don't mind them being in front of me for now'. We went to Macau to learn. When we get back this year, that's when it will be time to be quick. It's at least a two-year plan. MN:You're racing in Europe, in a very strong championship,so am I right to assume that Formula 1 is the goal? MG:Yeah, it's still my goal. I went off it for a while, because I thought it was impossible, but I've had a bit of a re-think. I've seen drivers that I'm racing against now that are making it. Guys like Felix da Costa, they're making it. And they're not bringing stupid money to the seats, either.The teams are watching at this level. I'm kind ofjust looking to have the skills set to go and do anything. Most of the teams and manufacturers have good junior programs. For example, Mercedes take drivers from F3 and put them in DTM.Volkswagen do the same with the Audis. Once you can drive an F3 fast, and be at the front in Euro Series or the European Championship, you can hop in anything and be fast. MN: What about V8 Supercars? Is that an option as well? MG: Definitely. I'm in the wrong part of the world to follow the series closely, but from what I've seen it looks great.The whole idea of being here is to become a professional driver, and at the moment it's mostly manufacturers that are paying people to race. So you have to be prepared to go where the manufacturers are willing to pay you to race, and whether that's Asia, Australia, Europe or The States, it doesn't matter.There are endless possibilities.

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The One Two Finish

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THE ONE - TWO FINISH .

A rn'assive eight hours of race cfey . ; coverage'from the’famous Ford.1^.2 at the 1977 Flardie-Ferodo 1000' at Bathurst. For the first tirne,eight : hours of unseen-since-aired coverage from this momentous day in Bathurst 1000 history - ,a must for Ford fans to have in their collectioa You'll see niaterial that didn't even . . SI

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C J FROM HUMBL.O BOONINNINGS, KBBB \X/BBl_ HAS BUILT HIS BUSINESS INTO A KBY SUPPUIBR FOR A HOST OF UBADINO TBAMS IN WORUD MOTORSPORT OBOFF ROUNDS SPOKB TO HIM ABOUT IT

EES Weel likens business to trying to build the'perfect mouse-trap'. The quietly spoken,58-year-old has been'hands-on'all his life and heads .one of the world's biggest and most widely-used motorsport businesses In PWR Paul Weel Radiators - named after his son, Paul. So big have Weel's radiators and performance cooling equipment become that he struggles to think of a class of motor racing in which his company doesn't have a presence. "I really don't think there's a category of motorsport around the world that we don't have some involvement with," he says. "To me,the business I do and life has been like trying to invent the perfect mouse-trap. It's not easy to do, but you have to keep trying." The PWR brand services most of the field in NASCAR's Sprint Cup and Nationwide Series, while also supplying teams in Formula 1, V8 Supercars, IndyCar, the World Rally Championship, DTM,Sprintcars and Grand-Am, to name but a few. "It's fairly well documented that we have an engineering alliance with Red Bull [Racing] and have had for some time,"Weel says of his highest-profile FI client."We also supply to six other FI teams. "In NASCAR it's more of a case of who don't

we supply, as it's about 95 percent of the field now. NASCAR and FI are our biggest customers because of the sheer volume of product we supply." With such a specialised motor racing customer base, it might be expected that Kees would frequent race meetings on a regular basis. This, however, is not the case. "Everyone asks me that question all the time -'geez, you must get to a lot of races'. But the thing is, I don't. "I've got a very good guy in Charlotte and one in Europe. I really don't go to many races. The people we deal with are the people who stay at home and don't go to the races, and they're normally the engineering group of the development side.That's the exciting part for us and it's really interesting to see motorsport development before it hits the track. "After a NASCAR race, we'll call people up in the teams and ask if they're happy. It was because of the good people at Roush Fenway, who were the first to give us a go in NASCAR, that we were lucky enough and got in to NASCAR about three years ago.They're such genuine people and it's great to see their teams win a race or a championship - and we aiways feel we've played a small part.That goes for any team or category we supply to."

Weel lives by the philosophy that to have a successful business'you need a lot of luck, but you make your own luck'. He wanted to seek out a career of his own and it would eventually be the Gold Coast that would help Kees on his way to becoming one of the biggest component suppliers in world motoring and motorsports. Weel was born in a little town outside of Amsterdam in 1953. A year later, Weel’s family migrated to Australia, where his father took up an offer to share-farm in rural Victoria. At 16 Kees left school, moving into the automotive industry, which was always his main passion. Kees was given the opportunity to do a mechanic's apprenticeship in the Western Victorian town of Coiac. It was to be a resounding success. "It (the farm) wasn't that big and back then," Kees recalled of his decision to leave the farming to the rest of his family."You didn't get a lot of revenue out of farming." From there, he spent two years working on trucks for mining company Conzinc Riotinto of Australia (CRA) in New Guinea before returning home to establish and operate service stations and tyre dealerships in the Victorian townships of Simpson, Camperdown and Geelong. In the early 1980s, Kees was still in

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THG P\X/R BRAND 5BRVICB5 MOST OFTHB FIBL.D IN NASCAR'S SRRINT CUR AND NATIONVX/IDC SCRICS, \X/HIUe AUSO SURRUYING TCAMS IN FORMULA 1, VS SURGRCARS,INDYCAR,THC WORLD RALLY CHAMRIONSHIR DTM,SPRINTCARS AND GRAND-AM Victoria's west,taking over a wrecking yard in Warrnambool, where he started to dabble in radiators. He then made an important business decision that would ultimately change his family's life. It was while operating the wrecker's yard that Kees discovered making radiators was an untapped business. In mid-1987,the Weel family - Kees, wife Judy and children Georgie, Suzanne and a young Paul - moved to the warmer climate of the Gold Coast. A quarter of a century on, Kees explained it was a decision split between lifestyle and business opportunities. He said he knew making the move north was a risk, but it was one he was willing to take for his family's future. "We did not know one soul in Queensland when we decided to make the move," he said. "All we owned at the time was a bit of furniture, so it was a big move for us and the three kids.-( "At that time, Suzanne was involved with the [Warrnambool Amateur]Swimming Club and she was training a lot of mornings. I can tell you that getting up at 6am in the morning in the middle of winter is a lot easier on the Gold Coast than it is in Warrnambool," he said. "We decided to look around for a part of Australia where we could manufacture radiators to sell and be content with where we lived. Judy and I chose the Gold Coast because back

then,there were 10 radiator shops within 14km of each other between Southport and Tweed Heads and we were just happy to service them." He and Judy started the very small K8d Thermal Industries in Currumbin, with three employees, and within a decade they were rolling out standard-made radiators to suit all models of road cars, while at the same time dabbling in custom-built radiators. "From there, it's just got out of control. After we started servicing those outlets and soon we were shipping radiators all over Australia." The company now employs more than 100 people, including six full-time engineers. Kees says his big break came in 1990 when Holden released the VN Commodore, which used a new-style aluminium radiator.The success of that one component ensured they pretty much became stock standard for most of his vehicles.They still are, and it helped launch PWR. Image in business is what has made the PWR brand so successful and helped it grow quickly since 1997, says Kees, who believes in the importance of good branding and brand awareness. "We have worked on a very good brand and iogo, and our successful branding goes worldwide," he explains. "Generally, for us, what was a small Gold Coast company is now a very healthy business. motorsport news

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PWR \X/INS EXPORT AVX/ARD

F PWR Performance needed anymore acknowledgment in the business world it came in late November when the Gold Coast manufacturer was crowned Australian Exporter OfThe Year at Parliament House in Canberra.

PWR general manager Marshall Vann accepted awards for the Prime Minister's Australian Exporter of the Year Award and also the small-to-medium manufacturer award from Trade and Competiveness Minister Craig Emerson. PWR exports grew 33 per cent last financial year, with more than half of all Formula One teams and 90 percent of NASCAR teams now using PWR products. The company has recently secured new contracts with Porsche, Pagan!, Gibbs Sports Technology, Magnusan and Jaguar-Williams, and continues to supply retrofit cooling solutions to US military vehicles. The diversity of finalists for the.SOth anniversary of the Australian Export Awards reflected the country's growing trade and investment links with Asia,Trade and Competitiveness Minister Craig Emerson said. "The diversity of this year's finalists shows how far we have come in 50 years, as well as providing role models as we tackle the challenges ahead,"Dr Emerson said. Kees Weel told Motorsport News he"was bloody rapt"to win such a prestigious award. "I believe it is recognition for a team of hard workers we have at PWR," he said,"it gives great recognition for what we've done and it's a close team of people that have won this

I don't believe that anything is easy. If you want to be successful, you have to put in. It's all about doing the hard yards. "Our domestic market alone in the last 12 months has grown 30 percent. We never want to forget where we come from and slack off on our service on the people that made PWR.We never want or will forget those people from Touring Cars or Sprintcars that helped get us where we are today. "The beauty with all this high top-end stuff is that is trickles down into Sprintcars,'Mum and D84J

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Dad cars'or'Harry hot-rod'or whatever,they'll all benefit because of the technology." Kees is also acutely aware that the important decisions he makes daily is a major factor in the livelihood of many families that he employs. "I wake up every morning at Sam with the desire to do better," he says. "I always realise that I have the responsibility of 100 workers and their families and I have a real passion about what I do each day, I can genuinely say that. "I honestly believe and know that we're the

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award. "I really think it's pretty bloody special and it gives us a lot of confidence with who we deal with in the future." Between them,this year's finalists earned more than $8.6 billion in export revenue last year and employed more than 27,000 people. PWR were nominated for these national awards after winning The Premier of Queensland's Export Award in the small to medium manufacturer category in Brisbane.

best company in the world in the line of work and products we sell. Business to me has been kind. It has let me appreciate living in Australia and when I come home from overseas with business stuff I nearly want to kiss the ground; people should really appreciate this country." Kees came from a Speedway background and hit the V8 Supercar grid in 1997 when he bought a franchise into the then burgeoning sport to run a Falcon for Paul under the PWR Racing banner.The team would go on to field cars until the end of the 2008 season, finishing

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third in the 2004 season with Jason Bright. Fie also has competed with success in grueling Australian Safari himself, with Paul and, more recently, Craig Lowndes. "We had just started PWR in '97 and the V8 Supercars started racing around Australia and New Zealand and in areas where we sold our products too,"Weel said. "It all made perfect sense to us to give it all a go. It was a bit of risk back then but it's now all paid off." So is the infectious enthusiasm still there for the affable Weel? "Definitely, I love it. I bloody live for it. It's just so exciting," he enthuses. "There's nothing in our arsenal that we can't conquer and to me that's the best and most rewarding thing about PWR now. We spend 9.2 percent on research and development and we know that's the future of company and [we're] continually growing it.There's no-one else 80

in the world who does what we do, from the ground up to finished product." As part of that growth, PWR's horizons away from motorsport continue to broaden, with the signing of deals for several left-field projects. "We've started a military program to do transmission oil coolers for vehicles in Afghanistan which is going to be massively exciting,"Weel revealed. "It's a bit top secret but we're working with the US Army and again that's an area I'm proud of our guys to have developed. We're also doing a world-first in America, which will be a Quad-Ski. It's a jet-ski that will go on land and water. It's going to be really exciting and due for release next year. "On the local scene, marine is an area that we'd like to do more, and with military they are the two big areas for the future. I don't really want to say. Til just go on and supply all of Formula 1' because I don't think that's healthy

for business." PWR is on the verge of opening its own wind tunnel at the Yatala base, a project that Kees has overseen for the past 12 months and is again set to revolutionise worid motorsport, he believes. "It's a huge bloody thing and it's to give more accurate data for what we are doing,"Weel explains. "It's damn important that we stay in front of the game and it's a big tool that will be just for cool testing of all our products. We plan to commission that to any teams, be it FI, NASCAR or whatever, that they can bring a baseline radiator and oil cooler and do their testing. "It's like a big mousetrap. It's like I said; I've not built the perfect one (business) yet but I think we'll be ready for the cheese and the trap after we get the wind tunnel up and going. But we're still working on the bloody mouse trap all these years later." motorsport news

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The RNDRR ROlR/13 Top Fuel chompionship is rapidlij gaiuinp clarilp uiRh Tiuo runners puINng a margin on The fronf of Ihe field and preparing for The sprint to fhe finish line.

ollowing the blockbuster finish to the 2011/12 Top Fuel title, where four drivers still had a mathematical shot going into the last event,this season's version is a simpler affair but one which retains plenty of excitement. Phil Lamattina leads with 418 points from Darren Morgan on 375 and Mark Sheehan (184). The challenge for the remaining portion of the season may not just be between the two front runners themseives, but in the skiiled opponents making up the rest of the field. Several tough teams are returning to the fray after taking a break. They include Best Tractor Parts driver Damien Harris and 2010 nationai champion Martin Stamatis. Lamattina recentiy broke through for two championship round wins, after not taking out an event since 2010, He has now made it to five consecutive finals, with two wins. "We have made finals, that hasn't been a 82

problem,"the Victorian carrot farmer said."The problem has been getting the win and that's probably a credit to guys like Darren Morgan and Mark Sheehan.Those guys are quality operators and it's not easy, that's for sure." Lamattina does not believe smaller car counts in the early part of the season have made things any easier on the Fuchs outfit and is steeling himself for the return of a number of top teams. "There has been chatter about Top Fuel needing more cars and I agree with that for sure," he said."However,this category is producing amazing racing and is as tough as it ever has been. Getting wins is hard work." The Lamattina family have already added a second car once this season, at the opening round in Adelaide where Luke Shepherd drove for them, but another two-car outing is likely in the works with licensing procedures started for Phil's younger brother John.

That may eventually prove a valuable blocker in the championship chase. For now, though,John said he is content to just learn more handling the wild 8000 horsepower nitro dragsters. "I'm just happy to be learning the ropes and getting a feel for the car," he said."It's great having Phil here to help me through the process. He's been there and done it." Phil said John settled well into the car and fired off some impressive numbers at the incremental track timers. "We have a great team,the car is working well, we have some great sponsors in Fuchs and Elders Insurance, and we are hungry for success,"Phil concluded. Darren Morgan opened the season in the fashion in which he earned the 2011/12 title by winning at Adelaide International Raceway's season opener. Morgan used a consistent series of passes on the unique all-bitumen, 1000 feet motorsport news

surface to defeat Lamattina, who red lit (foul started) in the final. He backed it up with another win at the Australian Nationals at Sydney Dragway in November, again over Lamattina.This time it was a brute force approach, simply out running Lamattina to the line. Things then got a bit tricky for Morgan, however, going out in the semi finals in the first Perth round,then facing another first round loss. Morgan said the team knows what it needs to work on. We need to continue to step up the car's performance and consistency if we're going to record back-to-back-to-back ANDRATop Fuel championships," he said. Potentially serving as thorn in the side for Lamattina and Morgan will be returning Western Australian drivers Damien Harris and Martin Stamatis. Stamatis came back at the Australian Nationals and immediately reached the semi finals. He skipped the Perth rounds with a transporter still being arranged, but is set to race again at the Santo's Cranes Super 3 Extreme Drag Race at Willowbank Raceway on www.mnews.com.au

March 29-30. There Is no doubting the credentials of the "Flying Greek", who has some of the quickest runs ever recorded in the category under his belt. "We always said we would return to drag racing and I'm starting to get a bit more time these days,"Stamatls said of his return. Harris meanwhile returned for the double header round four and five of the championship in Perth and promptly made it to both finals. While a little rusty early as the team sorted out an ignition issue with the car, which had not been in competition since the Fuchs Winternationals in June 2012, he really began to fire by the time the first final rocked around as he hauled to a 4.77s pass,just shy of Lamattina's 4.73s. However,changes are afoot for Harris, who finished second by just 1.5 points in the 2011/12 series. Harris (below right) has decided to shift from the team he was part of a cooperative with and into the fold of Rapisarda Autosport International, where he will be joined by partner Best Tractor Parts. That's something Harris is thrilled about. "I'm definitely excited about driving with the Rapisarda family for the rest of the year," he said. "It will be a lot of fun and his two boys, Santo Jnr and Santino, are definitely the future of tuners in this country."

Harris did acknowledge there was a sadness with which he departed his old dragster and team. "It'was a happy day to be back racing but also a sad day for the team as the last time we all raced together," he said. Harris hasn't ruled out competing In some more USA events as part of the NHRA Mello Yello Drag Racing Series, regarded as the world's best. He has previously raced in Las Vegas and Pomona for Rapisarda. "For me personally I would like to go over there and do one, maybe two stints with Santo Jnr tuning a second car, it's all dependent on the boys and what they want to do," he said. Those thorns in the side mentioned may indeed turn out to be a thicket. Mark Sheehan is likely to sit out the remainder of the season, with the Perth driver concentrating only on home rounds. The aforementioned Rapisarda Autosport International have publicly stated they are out for record setting passes, but may bring things back a notch for the race they themselves will sponsor at Willowbank Raceway at Easter. Team driver Allan Dobson said they would be going back to what they know.Combined with the input of new team manager, USA-based Lee Beard, that may still be a very quick thing. "Now it's time to change strategy, tone it down a little bit and get back to our baseline, to make sure we get ourselves through some

rounds," Dobson said. The round will feature the Louie Rapisarda Top Fuel Trophy memorial. Santo Rapisarda and the whole Rapisarda Autosport International team have kept racing in memory of Louie since he passed away in a racing accident in 1990 and Dobson said he feels that passion flow through. "If he was alive he would be In my seat and I feel like I am there for him,so I am going to follow his passion," he said."I really want to deliver It for them. I'm going to be on my front foot." Sydney-based team owner and soon to be driver Peter Xiberras could become another one to watch. Xiberras has purchased the Top Fuel operation of Graeme Cowin, containing some of the most up to date nitro gear In the country. He has also signed up Tim Adams, who crew chiefed Damien Harris to within an inch of the title. Add in potent privateer Steve Read, who top qualified at the Australian Nationals in November, getting two shots at his home track before the season is out and the field's only fully Australian built car ofTerry Sainty and the competition becomes super intense. The remaining rounds of the series head to Willowbank Raceway on March 29-30, Sydney Dragway on May 4-5, Willowbank Raceway on June 7-10, Calder Park on October 19-20 and Sydney Dragway on November 1 -3,

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Premier Speedway during late January, ironically it is his own hometown which has fi nally given the green light to the mammoth 2014 Classic festival of racing after a decade of negotiation between the two neighbouring clubs. The Classic has never been so popular with drivers and fans. With growing sprintcar numbers in every state and territory of Australia and the again record-breaking number of Americans touring down under, it's probably only going to get bigger still. The growth in this race, for example, has outshone the world's biggest open race, the Knoxville Nationals in Iowa. The 100-plus cars that Warrnambool regularly hosts are a huge leap from the 50 or so just over a decade ago. The reality of the new format for the 2014 Classic finally came when Warrnambool president Richard Parkinson and General Manager David Mills met with Mount Gambier officials on Monday, January 21 in Mount Gambier where they argued the car count justified a third night. Significant factors that have helped drive the move are; record crowds at this year's Classic (19,000), a boom in the Warrnambool tourism of more than $4 million (with 80 percent of patrons from outside Victoria's south west), a charity soccer game for children's cancer in Australia backed by NASCAR legend Jeff Gordon in its inaugural year raised more than $57,000 (the USA record for this game after many years is just $22,000), the enormous fan appreciation morning, just prior to the opening night of the Classic again attracted a record 4000 fans and major sponsor Lucas Oils cementing their association with the event long term. The decision will be a boon for Australian and world sprintcar fans with racing now scheduled for five consecutive nights next year, beginning at Avalon Speedway on January 22 closely followed by Mount Gambier the night after then the Classic. Warrnambool Manager Mills said the trial of a three night show in 2014 will be held from Friday, January 24 to Sunday, January 26 next year and

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will be repeated near that weekend the following year. "We were going to kill our own event through our own success," Mills said. "We are looking at splitting the field (on the first two nights) and giving us a lot more flexibility, so starting later and not in the blazing sun and finishing a bit earlier and getting the showbiz side of it back. "We are determined to get the entertainment side of it back." Mount Gambier speedway secretary Kerry Flill remains unconvinced that a three-day Classic will work and if it will help the sport prosper. "We're fairly disappointed," Flill told MN. "We have tried to make the best out of a bad situation. We weren't left with any other options than to run on the Thursday night. We won't be as well supported on the Thursday night as we have been on the Friday night. We're not very happy as a club with this decision. "I have to seriously wonder if they (Warrnambool) have done the right thing for themselves and for sprintcar racing and for speedway as a whole." For those of us that attended this year's Classic, it was another

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deserved victory to the amiable 28-year-old Steven Lines. He took the honours after a shattering defeat the previous night in the Australia versus America Challenge, when claimed by winner of that race and Classic polesitter USA's Tim Kaeding. Lines, the 2011 Classic winner, was the only Aussie on the first two rows of the grid for the 40-lap A Main and added a second Classic victory after leading home American Terry McCarl and multiple Classic champ Brooke Tatnell, While Lines held a strong quarter-lap lead for most of the way, he admitted post-race to battling mental demons after losing the lead on the previous night's racing on the last lap to Kaeding when he struggled in lapped traffic. "After last night I was trying to keep a cool head... I was struggling after last night and now I'm just so stoked," Lines said. "It was hard. We sat down (after Saturday night) and took stock. At the end of the day we knew tomorrow was the one that really counted." Lines'$30,000 win was again for another Western Australian based team when he won driving for Albany's Halls Motorsport while his previous Classic victory was with Monte Motorpsort. "I think it's harder to win the second time.The first one I didn't expect to win.The second seemed so far away;to achieve it, well it's done and I'm rapt." Tatnell's third placing was heroic after rolling the previous night. His Classic record is now superb: three wins,two seconds and three thirds and he's been on the podium in four of the past five Classics, with his last win coming in 2009. Kaeding was a strong fourth for the Bunbury team of Krikke Motorsport despite leading the final early he finished ahead of Warrnambool's Jamie Veal. The 2010 Knoxville Nationals winner Tim

Shaffer was sixth and his smaller but fast countryman Rico Abreu raced to seventh from 18th. Rounding out the top 10 was lanky West Australian Cameron Gessner in eighth ahead of Ian Madsen with current Australian sprintcar champion James McFadden tenth after rolling on lap five and being sent to the rear. One of the more controversial incidents occurred on night one when big-name American Kevin Swindell was left fuming after a heat race bust-up with Australian Dave Murcott. Swindell, the son of three-time World of Outlaws champion Sammy Swindell, labelled Murcott an "idiot"and claimed he attempted "the dumbest move you could do"during the 12th heat on Saturday night. Murcott clipped the left rear tyre of Swindell's car on the first lap of the heat after the pair had started side-by-side on the fifth row. The incident prompted Swindell to kick the right front tyre of his rival in anger. "You want to make sure they know they're idiots. You go over and give him a tap and tell him he's stupid and he screwed both of us," Swindeli said. "I didn't know he was going to restart. I would've tried to find something that would've stuffed up his ride as much as mine." Swindeli wasn't so lucky. Car damage forced him out of the heat. "It was plain stupidity.The first lap of a heat race, we're all behind slower cars. It's not going to be tough to drive through if you take time." Swindeli, 23,from Tennessee, made a quick dash from to compete in his first Classic,fresh from winning his fourth consecutive Chili Bowl Nationals title an indoor race nicknamed the"super bowl of midget racing" which constantly attracts 250 cars. "The Classic is one of the few races that we do pay attention to back home. It's the biggest race in Australia and for most of the guys in it."

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Older readers mightrecall Valiant's Hey Charger peace sign ad slogan;younger folk can make their acquaintance with this iconic Bathurstspecialfrom 40 years ago in smallscale thanks to Classic Carlectables. By Bruce Moxon

HEY say the beginning is a very good place to start. Well, Rogers and Hammerstein did, anyway, when they wrote The Sound of Music. Ahem.So finally, there will be a model of the first-ever Bathurst Armstrong 500 winner. We are aware that the first Armstrong 500 was at Phillip Island, and that the 1963 500 mile race was not the first long-distance event at Bathurst. But this was the first of an unbroken series of races that has become the modern Bathurst 1000 for V8 Supercars. Apex Replicas'announcement of the Bob Jane/Harry Firth Cortina is exciting. Sure, the car has been modelled before, but only in 1/43 scale; Apex is doing the car in both 1/43 and 1/18. Hopefully more 1/18 winners from the '60s will follow. Sure, the V8s have been done in the larger scale, but until now you've had to rely on 1/43 or on expensive hand-made modifications to get the early cars. Needless to say, we're waiting for a 1/18 90

1965 Cortina GT500 and a 1966 Mini Cooper S. And while we're about it, how about the 1960, '61 and'62 Phillip Island winners in 1/18? Once we establish what colours they actually were,that is. Apex's Richard Poole is just back from the NuremburgToy Fair, where he negotiated the deal to bring us the Cortinas. He told me there's more goodies to come later in the year, like a Mark Webber Red Bull in 1/43, commemorating his fantastic win at the Monaco Grand Prix in 2012. Classic Carlectables is bringing out the first variation of its sensational 1/18 scale Lola T332 Formula 5000.The first of these cars was the Alan Jones Australian Grand Prix car from 1977.This latest one is anotherTheodore Racing example, Vern Schuppan's car from the 1976 Rothmans Series - the Oran Park car - being represented. I was so impressed with the Jones model I spent my own money getting one - trust me, that's high praise.The detail and presentation

are outstanding - world class. The engine cover lifts off to show the injected Chev V8. You can display the car with the full engine cover or with just the airbox, too - in the day.the cars ran in both forms, or sometimes without the air box at ail. Next car in this series will be the Matich A50, as driven to the Australian Grand Prix win by Frank Matich in 1971. But for now,the two Theodore Racing examples will look just great next to each other, won't they? We're yet to see the Schuppan Lola, but in the meantime we can show you Classics' new Valiant Charger model. Check out the pics of this 1/18 gem,theVH E49 model released in June of 1972. With its highly developed 4.3-litre Hemi six-cylinder engine putting out 225kW,and a four-speed gearbox to replace the previous model's lamentable three-onthe-floor, this was the ultimate performance Charger. At Bathurst that year Doug Chivas drove his to second place, but might just have troubled Peter Brock for the win had it not been motorsport news

The E49remains a classic Aussie Bathurst performance special from that halcyon early 70sSeries Production era,and Classic Carlectables'beautifully detailed new modelis a fitting tribute www.mnews.com.au

World beater:It is a qu Holden won the first rc World Touring Car Che can have your own Ha winner in miniature, above, for some wheel issues on the big Val. Sadly this was the last time Chrysler really threatened in the Great Race. But the E49 remains a classic Aussie Bathurst performance special from that halcyon early 70s Series Production era, and Classic Carlectables' beautifully detailed new model is a fitting tribute. Biante has been busy of late, and is in the midst of releasing a series of new models.The one that's really caught our eye is the Allan Moffat/John Harvey Commodore VL from the 1987 World Touring Car Championship.The pair applied the last-man-standing principle to win the first round of the World Touring Car Championship,at Monza. Actually, they fi nished down the order a bit, but all the BMWs that beat them were excluded for technical infringements. Their VL Commodore was a hastily put-together deal, the car being a brand new one built for Peter Brock, but sold to get some cash in the wake of Brock's famous bust up with Holden early that year. As the car was sponsored by Rothmans, you'll need to source some after-market decals to fill in the massive blanks, but they're out there for the buying. In amongst other new releases from Biante (check out www.biante.com.au)there's a triple-set of the three versions of the DeLorean Time Machine from the Back to the Future movies. Doc Brown kept making changes to the car - it could fly in the second movie and became steam-powered in the third (was this the earliest example of Steampunk?) The set of three cars in 1/43 scale will set you back $136.00 - a pretty good price I reckon. No news yet (to reach me,anyway), on who will be making what V8 Supercars this year. Patience everyone, and remember that tooling up costs about half a million dollars per model - so we may have to wait a wee while for the AMG and Nissan cars. 92

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t's the Larry, Skaifey and Alfie show. Well, that's selling it a bit short, because the appearance of Larry Perkins, Mark Skaife and Alfredo Costanzo is just a small component of what's on offer at the Phillip Island Classic Festival of Motorsport on March 8-10. For Perkins, it marks a return to the track after his retirement from V8 Supercars 10 years ago. Larry will be driving the unique Barry Lock-designed 6.2-litre V8 Ford powered deTomaso Pantera GT car which was raced in the 1980s by Kevin Bartlett. He'll be competing in the International Sportscar Challenge event against a superb field that will boast nine Lolas, eight McLarens,four Elfins, two Le Mans Matra-Simca MS670s,three Porsches and a 1966 Ford GT40. Perkins did briefly race against Alfredo Costanzo in Formula 5000(the pair took one another out of the 1979 Australian Grand Prix in a celebrated first-corner clash), and fittingly the four-times Australian Drivers'Champion will be back in an F5000 at the Island. Costanzo, now 70, will drive an ex-Niel Allen McLaren Ml OB in the Formula 5000 and Group Q & R Racing Cars events over the Phillip Island weekend. Mark Skaife Alfie's junior by quite a few years, but the former V8 Supercars star has reached that certain vintage whereby touring cars he once raced are now eligible for historic racing. In the historic Group C & A races, Skaife will drive the Nissan Skyline HR 31 GTS-R in which he contested much of the 1990 Australian Touring Car Championship. Interestingly, Skaife is filling in for car owner and Nissan Motorsport team-mate from that era, Jim Richards, due to a date clash with theTouring Car Masters. Also making an appearance will be former Le Mans winner Vern Schuppan who will drive a rare Le-Mans-spec Aston Martin DB2 in the regularity events. The 2013 event will again see more than 500 sports, racing and touring cars spanning nearly a century take to the newly resurfaced Phillip Island Grand Prix circuit over three days of the Labour Day long weekend.

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