BONUS LIFT-OUT POSTER PORSCHE CONQUERS THE MOUNT SINCE 1971
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LEGEND WHO’LL DEB NEW BLUE OVAL RACUT ER
MUSTANG
! D E K S A UNM
KING OF THE HILL
ON THE WAY BACK
Walkinshaw’s bold new look
Matt Campbell’s stunning Bathurst 12 Hour win
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FORD’S NEW WEAPON IN FULL WARPAINT. LET THE DEBATE BEGIN...
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IRONED MAIDEN
Simona on women in racing
s w e n e n O Formula THE ALFA CONNECTION
ALFA ROMEO is returning to Formula 1, but in team name only. Called the Alfa Romeo Sauber F1 Team last year, the official name has been changed to Alfa Romeo Racing. In 2019, just as in 2018 and every other season since the team debuted in F1 in 1993, the cars themselves will carry the Sauber name. And the team will continue to be an independently owned and operated company based in Hinwil, Switzerland. The Sauber chassis name might be changed, but the regulations do not make it easy to do that. What is important is that the money Alfa/Ferrari/Fiat Chrysler will pump into the team is said to have doubled
this year. The Alfa link also strengthens the team’s ties as a satellite team to Ferrari, which also has Haas in its stable. Alfa Romeo competed as a factory squad in the first two seasons of the official Formula 1 World Championship when it started in 1950. It won drivers’ world championship in both years, with Guiseppe Farina in 1950 and Juan Manuel Fangio in 1951. Alfa’s second period as a full-time constructor in F1 – from 1980 through 1985 – was far less successful. While Sauber’s record contains only one F1 victory – the 2008 Canadian Grand Prix with Robert Kubica when it was owned by BMW – the team, now embarking on
PROMOTER DISSENT
TWO OF the successful keys to Bernie Ecclestone’s F1 business model – well, at least for him! – were divide and conquer, and keep raising the price. Whenever the teams would try to unite to support their own interests, Ecclestone would drive a wedge between them by signing exclusive deals with one or two of them. Circuit promoters wishing to host a grand prix had to pay a high fee (Monaco excepted), and that price increased every year. Liberty Media, which took over F1’s commercial rights two years ago, is encountering challenges on both those fronts. In this case it is not the teams but the circuit promoters who are mostly united, and they are protesting what they have to pay for grands prix and they are unhappy with the way Liberty is handling the sport and business. The Formula One Promoters Association (FOPA) is made up of the promoters of the 21 races on the 2019 calendar, and 16 of them recently met in London. “There is a lack of clarity on new initiatives in F1 and a lack of
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engagement with promoters on their implementation,” a FOPA statement read. “New races should not be introduced to the detriment of existing events, although the association is encouraged by the alternative business models being offered to prospective venues.” But the Mexican and Russian promoters said they did not agree with the statement. What each promoter pays per year varies widely, from about 20 to 50 million euros. A number of promoters were upset when it was revealed that Miami would not have to pay for its proposed race, but rather do a profit-sharing deal with Liberty. Silverstone has already taken up the option to get out of its contract
its 27th year, has survived in F1 far longer than Alfa’s combined seven full seasons as a constructor. Only three current teams have competed in F1 longer than Sauber. Ferrari, which has been there since 1950; McLaren, founded in 1966; and Williams, which started building its own cars in 1978. Ligier, Lotus, Footwork Arrows, March, Lola and Larrousse also competed in 1993, but they are long gone. As for Tyrrell, BAR bought it to secure an official 1999 F1 entry, and later became Honda, then Brawn, and is today Mercedes. So, in a way, Tyrrell is still winning world championships decades after Ken Tyrrell and Jackie Stewart won in 1969, 1971 and 1973!
after this year’s event. The contracts for the races in Germany, Italy, Spain and Mexico also expire this year. And none of them have substantial government backing (zero in Silverstone’s case) like the races in Azerbaijan, Russia, Bahrain and Abu Dhabi. To try and make a profit after paying the high sanctioning fees, the circuits have to charge spectators high ticket prices. FOPA is also concerned by the trend to show the races on payfor-view rather than free-to-air TV because this means F1 reaches a smaller audience, which in turn reduces the ticket-buying fan base. “If this continues, Formula 1 will be racing on second-rate circuits, if any at all,” Silverstone chairman Stuart Pringle told the Daily Mail. “Everyone is disgruntled. Liberty’s ideas are disjointed.” Ecclestone, who was ousted by Liberty, told the same publication that he would be happy to mediate. “If they want me to help, I am willing to do so,” he said. “I don’t want to lie on my deathbed and see the sport I created go downhill.” Liberty has been shocked how the various F1 factions air their dirty laundry in public as it prefers to sort things out behind closed doors. While Liberty gave the former boss the title of F1’s chairman emeritus, it has shown little interest in consulting with Ecclestone. Indeed, Liberty has been steadily erasing many things Ecclestone introduced over the years, and along the way is discovering just how complex and contrary is this business of F1.
VETTEL UNDER PRESSURE
Other teams from 1993 – such as Jordan, Benetton and Minardi – survived by changing owners and names. Since 1995, Simtek, Pacific, Forti, Prost, Toyota, Super Aguri, a different Lotus, HRT and Virgin were also in F1, and they are also long gone. Founder Peter Sauber always ran a very efficient racing team. However, there were good times and bad times financially, and it’s doubtful the team would have survived if it had not been sold to the Swiss-based Longbow Finance in July
2016. Pascal Picci became the new chairman and president of Sauber. The investment helped turn the team around, as did the decision by new team principal Frederic Vasseur to cancel the contract for Honda for 2018 and remain with Ferrari engines. And now, in 2019, a new era for Sauber – Alfa Romeo Racing – begins. With additional money coming in from the Italian carmaker, the fourth-oldest team in F1 looks like it will remain in the series for a very long time
IT IS inevitable in motor racing that younger, faster drivers will eventually replace the established stars. Three former F1 drivers are speculating that Charles Leclerc, 21, will pose a threat to his new Ferrari teammate, four-time world champion Sebastian Vettel, 31. “He (Vettel) needs to improve and the team needs to improve,” 2016 world champion Nico Rosberg told Sky Sports News. “They (Ferrari) have made some major changes… they got rid of (team principal Maurizio) Arrivabene and put in (Mattia) Binotto. They’ve made a change in the highest position there. Leclerc could also be a very, very positive dynamic; but could also be negative, it could also backfire.” Eddie Irvine, who drove for Ferrari from 1996 through 1999, does not seem to rate Vettel very highly. “I think Vettel is good if he is at the front and he doesn’t have anybody to race,” Irvine told the BBC. “When you watch Lewis (Hamilton) race, Lewis is focused on racing and getting ahead. You watch Vettel and, when Vettel is racing someone, he is focused as much on the other guy as he is on where he is going and inevitably crashes into the other guy. That happens nearly all the time. “I think Vettel is a good driver, but a four-times world champion, I just don’t see it. I think he is massively over-rated. I think he’s a one-trick pony.” 2009 world champion Jenson Button was Hamilton’s teammate at McLaren from 2010 through 2012, which was the period Vettel was winning his crowns with Red Bull. “It’s a very different atmosphere for Sebastian at Ferrari than it was at Red Bull,” Button told Sky Sports News. “Maybe there’s more pressure. “We’re going to see how he copes this year. It’s going to be a big year for Sebastian. When Daniel (Ricciardo) came into Red Bull, he found it difficult. Daniel put him under a lot of pressure and actually outperformed him. I think if Charles can do that this year it’s a tough decision of where Sebastian is going to go for the future and what he’s going to do.” Leclerc insists that his Ferrari contract does not stipulate he plays a number two role to Vettel. But then Rubens Barrichello mistakenly thought the same of his Ferrari contract regarding Schumacher. Hamilton, 34, is the second-oldest F1 driver this season (Kimi Raikkonen is 39) and knows he will have to fight hard to keep the younger generation behind him. “How do I remain relevant?” Hamilton told Autosport. “How do I remain fitter than all these guys? How do I remain mentally more focused and more diligent than all these other guys? That’s my super focus, to stay ahead of them.” Vettel is also going to have to dig deep to keep the youngsters, and his detractors, at bay.
NEW FOR 2019
THE TEAMS will unveil their 2019 F1 cars in February prior to preseason testing, which begins in Barcelona on the 18th. Those cars comply to the new 2019 rules, and the drivers and teams will also have to deal with changes in the regulations. Here’s a roundup of what’s new for this year: * One of the most visible changes are the aero regs aimed at improving the possibilities for drivers to overtake. These include: a higher, wider, simpler front wing; a higher, simpler rear wing; and restrictions on the brake ducts and barge boards. * After a safety car period, the restart line will now be the start/ finish line rather than a line in the previous corner as in the past. Drivers cannot overtake another car before that line. * The rear wings will feature vertical strips of LED lights on the endplates, along with the traditional central rear light. This will improve the visibility of the cars in rain conditions, and the lights must be turned on whenever the cars are on intermediate or wet-weather tyres. * Minimum weight of driver and car increases from 733kg to 740kg. A major change is that the driver weight, including his seat and driving equipment, must be 80kg and is measured separate to the car. If ballast is needed to bring a lighter driver up to 80kg, it
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must be placed in the seat area rather than strategically elsewhere in the chassis. This evens the playing field between heavier and lighter drivers as it removes the advantage the latter have enjoyed. * Helmets must now meet new safety standards. * The maximum amount of fuel a driver may use during the race increases from 105kg to 110kg. This should enable a driver to go
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flat-out for the entire race rather than having to save fuel. On the other hand, the engineers are so paranoid of adding weight to the cars that they might still send them into the races with a lighter fuel load. * Drivers will now wear biometric gloves. The tiny sewed-in sensors will transmit vital driver signs to the medical car heading to the scene of an accident so that the doctors will get an early indication of the driver’s condition. * Rather than having five different sidewall colours to differentiate the five different slick tyre compounds, there will be only three during a race weekend – red for the soft compound, yellow for the medium and white for the hardest compound. * While the traditional chequered flag will still be waved at the end of the race, the official signal will now be a lighted chequered display panel at the finish line. This will eliminate embarrassing moments such as happened in Canada last year when a celebrity guest flag waver mistakenly displayed the flag a lap too early.
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Porsche conquers the Mountain Australian sports car sensation Matt Campbell produced a stunning drive, along with Earl Bamber Motorsport team-mates Dirk Werner and Dennis Olsen, to race the Porsche 911 GT3 R to 2019 Liqui-Moly Bathurst 12 Hour victory.
NASCAR 40 AutoAction FEATURE
EVOLUTION AND REVOLUTION On the eve of the 2019 NASCAR Cup Series, DAN MCCARTHY analyses the technical changes and driver swaps that have taken place during a hectic off-season
THE 2018 NASCAR Cup Series was a close and at times controversial season, and in the end it was Joey Logano who won his first title with Team Penske. Logano didn’t have a stunning start to the season, but he hit his stride when the playoffs began, finishing with an incredible run of results. The coming season is also shaping up to be another interesting championship, with many key drivers changing teams and new car models being introduced to the series. Mustang will be the hero car for Ford fans in 2019, replacing the Fusion, but it’s not Kurt Busch replaces Jamie McMurray in the Ganassi team’s #1 Chevrolet
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completely new because the model has been used in the Xfinity Series since 2011. There are a few regulation changes for this season, including the reduction of engine power from 750hp to 550hp on tracks longer than one mile (1.61km). Aerodynamics will also be adjusted on these longer tracks, fitting a taller rear spoiler, a wider radiator pan and a larger splitter with an overhang of 50mm. As a result of these new aerodynamic and engine regulations, restrictor plates will only be required for the Daytona 500.
Th man tto bbeatt iin 2019 will The ill bbe TTeam Penske’s Joey Logano (above), who will defend his title in a new Mustang (main). Martin Truex Jr (right) was forced to find a new home and will race a factory Toyota for Joe Gibbs Racing. Another change is a reduction of test days, down from four to three. Due to lack of sponsorship, 2017 champion team Furniture Row Racing had no choice but to close, but Martin Truex Jr has found a new home as part of Toyota factory team Joe Gibbs Racing, where he joins Denny Hamlin, Erik Jones and Kyle Busch. Truex replaces Daniel Suarez, who won the 2016 Xfinity Series with the team. Suarez moves to Stewart-Haas Racing, where he joins Kevin Harvick, Aric Almirola and Clint Bowyer. The biggest news of the off-season was Kurt Busch’s defection from Stewart-Haas Racing to Chip Ganassi, in what is expected to be his final NASCAR season. Kurt will take over the #1 Chevrolet from Jamie McMurray, marking the first time since 2009 that the number has changed hands. McMurray is set to play a leadership role with the team as well as joining the Fox Sports broadcast team as an expert commentator.
However, he will make a brief return with the new Spire Racing squad at the Daytona 500. Others to depart the NASCAR Cup Series ahead of the 2019 season have been former champion Matt Kenseth, Kasey Kahne and A.J. Allmendinger. Team Penske retains the same driver line-up as last year, led by reigning champion Joey Logano, Brad Keselowski and Ryan Blaney. As a Ford team, Penske will change to the Mustang – as it will in Australia. The 2019 schedule is essentially the same as last year, beginning at Daytona on February 10. However, the first championship points race will be the Daytona 500, which takes place on February 17.
Sam Bird negotiates the crumbling track as he heads for victory, and the title lead.
FORMULA E
FORMULA E TURNS UP THE HEAT IN CHILE SAM BIRD became the third different race winner in the first three races of the Formula E championship, taking the series lead while many of his championship rivals had a race to forget. The Santiago ePrix was a scorcher in 37-degree temperatures, and the weather made the race an attritional affair, as just 14 of the 22 starters finished. Sebastien Buemi inherited pole position after Lucas di Grassi was disqualified for a brake temperature infringement. At the same time, most of the championship contenders qualified down the back of the field due to bad track conditions in the first qualifying session. When the lights went out Buemi got off the line well and led into Turn 1 from Pascal Wehrlein and Sam Bird, who overtook Daniel Abt. On the sixth lap Buemi was the first driver to use Attack Mode on the outside of Turn 3, just keeping his lead, and the Swiss driver then started to edge out a gap over the battling pair of Wehrlein and Bird. Bird activated Attack Mode and made short work of Wehrlein, firing up the inside at Turn 1 on lap 11. When fighting for fifth, Alexander Sims in the Andretti BMW turned around Edoardo Mortara in the Venturi at the tight Turn 8/9/10 chicane. Mortara recovered quickly, only losing two places, while Sims would receive a time penalty for the incident after the race, denying him a first Formula E podium. On lap 12 Maximilian Gunther suffered a mechanical failure that left him stranded on the pit straight, resulting in a full course yellow. After the restart, Stoffel Vandoorne understeered into the Turn 3 barrier, bringing out another full course yellow to clear the debris. The Belgian limped back to the pits, holding up Buemi and Bird, allowing Wehrlein to catch the leaders. The tarmac on the outside of Turn 7 had broken up in the heat, creating a single-line grove through the corner. Buemi found this out the hard way, trying to gap Bird after the restart, but the Nissan E-Dams driver ran wide at Turn 7, clouting the outside wall and breaking his suspension. Bird inherited the lead and with clear road in front decided use his final Attack Mode to gap Wehrlein, while further back Sims overtook Abt. With six minutes to go Wehrlein activated Attack Mode and quickly closed the gap to Bird, putting the Brit under maximum pressure and forcing him to defend. When Wehrlein’s Attack Mode ran out he was told by his Mahindra team to slow down and manage his battery temperatures. This allowed Bird to cruise home to a 6.5s victory ahead of Wehrlein in just his second Formula E race.
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Sims crossed the line in third but dropped to seventh after the time penalty was added for spinning se Mortara. As a result, Abt was promoted to third, giving M Audi A its first podium of the season. “Everyone was struggling out there, so I’m absolutely delighted to bring it home,” Bird said. ab The top three in the drivers standings coming into the th weekend all had disasters in Chile. Antonio Felix da Costa and Jean-Eric Vergne retired after aft an early incident with Andre Lotterer, while Jerome d’Ambrosio made his way up from 20th to Je finish fin eighth before a post-race penalty for speeding under un full course yellows demoted the Mahindra driver to tenth. POINTS: Bird 43, d’Ambrosio 41, da Costa 28, PO Frijns Frij 28, Vergne 28, Evans 22, Abt 21, Lotterer 19, Wehrlein 18, Sims 18 We Bird Bi irdd ((above) abov ab bovve)) ttook ookk vi oo victory ict ctor tor oryy an andd th thee tititl title tltlee llead, d while hil rival i l JJean-Eric E i VVergne ended dd his race in retirement (below).
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PORSCHE SUPERCARS SHOCK? ALTHOUGH YOU’VE now seen the Mustang Supercars racer uncamouflaged, debate continues about its look compared with the road car’s sleek lines. Before it was revealed in Ford Performance warpaint, DJR Team Penske issued a media invitation to the February 11 launch of the Shell V-Power Racing-liveried Mustang with a black silhouette profile image. The image prompted comment from several Supercars insiders, including Penrite Racing team boss Barry Ryan, who on Facebook joked that it indicated that Porsche was joining Supercars. Ryan compared the silhouette with the profile of a 1980s Porsche 935 ‘Moby Dick’ – and his observation was immediately endorsed by many, including Walkinshaw Andretti United boss Ryan Walkinshaw. Funnily enough, a DJRTP insider had made the same wry observation in a casual conversation about the
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Porsche’s famous 935 ‘Moby Dick’ (above) and DJRTP’s invitation outline (below).
launch invite’s dark teaser image. And the resemblance is uncanny. Same bubble roof line, massive rear wing and drooping nose. The difference is more pronounced in the undisguised profile shot from Ford, but from
the side, the Supercars Mustang’s shape is still 935-esque. There is no doubt the push-me, pull-me solution to meeting the Supercars body shape regulations has resulted in a disproportioned shape. But the Ford Performance-liveried
racer – which is a rebodied DJRTP Falcon FG X chassis that will be the squad’s spare car – does look better than when it first appeared in a busy camouflage livery. That colour scheme was deliberately distracting, creating comment and discussion, although the adverse reaction from fans on social media – not to mention the negative judgement of traditional media – surprised Ford and the teams. We’ll reserve our final verdict until the DJRTP and Tickford Racing Mustangs are revealed in their racing liveries. But even then, we fear ‘Porsche 935’ will still permeate our thoughts, especially the side view.
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